Characteristics of Effective Mentorship for Academic Surgeons

Abstract

This study identified a need for multiple mentors across time and disciplines, and identified 3 key characteristics of effective mentoring relationships in academic surgery. Future work in this area should generate an operational definition of mentorship that supports quantitative evaluation of mentor and mentoring panel performance.

Development of a surgical oncology training curriculum for accreditation

“…Any institution looking to start a fellowship must ask whether their faculty are willing to mentor and whether the institution can provide training as to how best to mentor fellows. One model of effective mentoring in academic surgery proposed by Cochran et al 16 highlights the need for strategic advising, an unselfish attitude, and the ability to engage with diverse mentees. They also provide evidence that many mentees will need multiple mentors, each of which helps cultivate a different aspect of their professional career.…”

Sabbatical as a part of the academic excellence journey: A narrative qualitative study

“…Interviewees also suggested that mentees should seek mentors who will serve as strategic advisors, who will be unselfish, and who engage with diverse mentees. [ 13 ] Although today, internationalization of higher education trend involving ICT facilities such as e-learning and virtual networks has provide innovative opportunities for academic staff to be involved from their offices and homes instead of going abroad to other academic institutions,[ 14 ] still personal experience for going abroad and moving to another country for sabbatical leave makes people excited and inspired sometimes as a dream; we named it as “The academic journey in search of educational excellence.” Experiencing learning in different environment is still exciting and inspiring for innovation, knowledge transferring, and benchmarking as well as diffusion of scientific methods and techniques.…”

Mentorship availability and needs for junior faculty members at the United States and Australian dental schools

“…[5][6][7][8] Mentorship can be defined in many ways in various contexts, all of which encompass a synergistic relationship between a mentor with accumulated expertise and a mentee with novice-like inexperience, who engage in the sharing of knowledge and personal experiences to facilitate career development and guidance towards a path of promotion, fulfilment and overall success. [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11] Whether formal or informal, mentorship is considered fundamental in an academic career and has both personal and professional effects. [1][2][3][4][5][6][7] In a study by Mylona et al 3 , faculty with mentors were surveyed and reported greater workplace engagement, greater satisfaction with pace of professional advancement, and more positive perceptions of their relationships with colleagues and overall roles within the institution compared to faculty without mentors.…”

“…3 In its absence, however, a lack of mentorship may result in failure to retain junior faculty at an institution or within academia altogether. 10 Where there is robust literature on the role and positive effects of mentorship in many academic settings, few studies have examined the availability and format in the context of dental education. A 2011 case study examined dental faculty at the end of a six-year period following the implementation of a mentoring programme in a dental school setting that was developed based on literature review and faculty input.…”