Across the globe, nursing schools are increasingly offering opportunities for students to engage in student-led community health services. These opportunities are typically offered through service-learning programmes, internship placement or voluntary community involvement initiated independently by the students (Salm et al., 2021). These student-led community health services are aimed at strengthening students' educational competencies in areas like chronic disease management and health behaviour change in the community, alongside non-academic skills such as leadership and social responsibilities (Emrani et al., 2024; Wee et al., 2010). The community health services are often organised and led by students, with the support of faculty members. The community health services often involve collaboration among nursing schools, healthcare providers and community partners, fostering professional networking opportunities for students and strengthening community bonds (Stuhlmiller & Tolchard, 2015). These services are delivered in community settings, including home visits, and medical posts located within residential districts and community centres (Markaki et al., 2021). The activities may include health screenings or social engagement initiatives for socially isolated individuals (Teo et al., 2023).

Studies have shown that these student-led services have helped students to build their professional identity, foster empathy and reduce pre-conceived notions about the community (Gipson et al., 2020; Marcilla-Toribio et al., 2022). It also promotes autonomy in decision-making, accountability, and responsibility, thereby contributing to enhanced patient care, which constitutes a crucial aspect of nursing education (Oshodi et al., 2019; Turk et al., 2021). Engagement in such community programmes also offers valuable opportunities to deepen students' understanding of social issues, fostering personal growth and supporting cognitive development (Markaki et al., 2021). Understanding of social issues can be broadly perceived as an individual's perspective that influences decision-making on intricate social matters. Having an enhanced social awareness will nurture the nursing students' cultural sensitivity and acceptance of diversity and practical skills that allow them to collaborate and work effectively with those from diverse backgrounds (Henderson et al., 2018; Huang & Lajoie, 2023). It deepens students' understanding of and connections to the world around them, allows them to learn the importance of community engagement, and develops a personal commitment to addressing community health (Schneider et al., 2018).

Student-led community health services also provide opportunities for students and nursing schools to strengthen community-academic partnerships by developing and evaluating initiatives that address the specific needs of the community (Nagel et al., 2022). Therefore, beyond enhancing student's learning, these services have also contributed positively to the well-being of the individuals and communities they serve. Shimizu (2023) suggests that these services contribute to making healthcare more affordable and accessible to individuals within the community, thereby supporting the broader objective of achieving universal healthcare access. Similarly, Nagel et al. (2022) reported that such initiatives can reduce healthcare costs, improve chronic disease management, increase screening uptake and enhance clients' quality of life.

Despite widespread implementation of community health services by nursing schools, there remains a lack of comprehensive understanding and synthesised evidence on the implementation strategies and overall impact of nursing student-led community health services on both students and service recipients. Existing literature often focuses on condition-specific interventions, such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes (Sampath et al., 2023; Suen et al., 2020). Other reviews tend to focus on underserved populations, particularly the elderly and uninsured (Wilson et al., 2023). However, analysing services aimed at the general population is equally important to enhance the generalisability of the service. Currently, the evidence on student-led community health services remains fragmented and does not fully capture the broader impact of these services. Therefore, gaining this insight is essential to identify effective implementation strategies and strengthen efforts to embed student-led community health services into nursing curricula and practice for greater educational and community impact.

This study has two main aims: (1) to synthesise the implementation strategies of nursing student-led community health services; and (2) to evaluate the impact of these services on nursing students' learning outcomes and the health outcomes of service recipients. To achieve these aims, the study addressed the following research questions (RQ):1.

How are nursing student-led community health services implemented?

2.

What is the evidence of their impact on nursing students' learning outcomes?

3.

What is the evidence of their impact on community health outcomes?