STUDENTS are to support the delivery of NHS services across the region.

West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership – which is spearheading the initiative – says the move will help reduce NHS waiting lists and provide enhanced patient care, as well as benefitting the students.

The model will be adaptable to cover any clinical specialist area and will work across all professions – including nursing, midwifery, podiatry, occupational therapy and physiotherapy.

Clinics will be staged at venues including GP practices and community centres.

Registered professionals will oversee the care delivered, and provide support as and when required.

The scheme is being rolled out after a successful pilot.

Laura Singleton, head of workforce transformation at West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership, says: "Patients who are referred to student-supported services will be seen by a group of multi-professional students in a safe and supervised environment.

"Through the new model, people will experience enhanced care due to additional patient education opportunities and interventions which otherwise wouldn’t be available – such as podiatry musculoskeletal clinics.

"In collaboration with West Yorkshire’s higher education institutions, the project has so far been delivered as a pilot, but the aim now is to learn from this and begin to roll out the model throughout the region.

"One of the stand-out features of the student-supported services model is that it focuses on addressing health inequalities. By offering patients education and engaging them in their healthcare journeys, it helps them better understand and manage their conditions. It also supports the development of new services in areas where unmet healthcare needs are most pressing.

"This model is about creating a sustainable, cost-effective solution that benefits both the workforce and the communities we serve, and is already evidenced to increase patient safety and satisfaction."

Beverley Geary, the partnership's director of nursing, says: "We are committed to providing students with the opportunity to gain experience and develop into well-trained, competent and confident healthcare professionals. This in turn will contribute to better care and improved patient outcomes and result in higher levels of retention.

"Whilst this is an opportunity to deliver an excellent placement experience, it creates the opportunities with a focus on them being safe environments not only for our students, but for the patients and staff involved."

The partnership has launched a website designed to help patients, students and professionals understand the model and how they can benefit from it. Visit student-supported-services.org