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As the professionals of the future, students can help realise the aims of the NHS Five Year Forward View, says Thorrun Govind, recently graduated from King's College London.

The NHS Five Year Forward View outlines a vision of an NHS
that can deliver better care and a better experience for patients.
It aims to tackle the growing health and care inequality gap and acknowledges that patient needs are changing over time and new challenges are developing. So how can students help?

Students have to regularly adapt to a changing environment, from the transition from primary school to secondary school and then to university. They need to be equally adaptable in the NHS by knowing who can effectively care for the patient best, thereby helping to minimise inappropriate use of healthcare services.

Joint learning

Engagement in interprofessional learning can further aid a student's awareness of the skill set of the healthcare team and students can also be part of engaging communities by volunteering, for example, in care homes. Such a move would enhance their learning inside the lecture room and enable them to develop behaviours, such as empathy and building rapport, that cannot necessarily be taught.

By actively engaging in community life, future healthcare professionals will have a better understanding of the difficulties others may experience in the community. This will stand them in good stead if they only engage with individuals infrequently in their future role (e.g. as doctors in a time-limited consultation).

Leadership skills

The NHS Five Year Forward View goal to back diverse solutions and local leadership can be cultivated at an early stage in student careers, with involvement in student professional bodies. The British Pharmaceutical Students' Association (BPSA), United Kingdom Medical Students Association (UKMSA) and Royal College of Nursing Students (RCN Students) are prime examples of a number of student pressure groups that can influence public bodies and should work together.

There are many opportunities to foster leadership within these student bodies but also during extracurricular activities and societies at university. Students should realise that leadership roles and involvement in activities unrelated to their area of study can be very valuable in helping them become a well-rounded professional, in order to contribute to the Five Year Forward View as future leaders.

Networking

The Five Year Forward View aims to exploit the information revolution €“ and students have grown up with technology and social media at the forefront of their everyday life. Students have a role in networking with other professionals via this technology and developing their knowledge. Engaging in Twitter groups such as the WE communities are an excellent way of speaking to like-minded individuals and helping to identify problems and solutions.