Midwives’ perspectives of the challenges in mentoring students: A qualitative survey

Gray, Michelle; Downer, Terri

doi:10.1016/j.colegn.2020.05.004

Cited by 13 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…They believed that a mentor training could help them to increase their skills and develop as mentors. A number of studies, including a paper by Gray and Downer emphasized that mentors need to be provided with adequate preparation and support [ 31 ]. The midwives in the present study observed that a single training course was not enough to make one a mentor and they expressed the need for continuing dedicated structured education to become confident and competent mentors.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Similarly, Johnson and Gandhi reported in their Mentor Training Program high participant satisfaction rates and a statistically significant improvement in the self-evaluated mentoring skills [ 19 ]. A number of authors point out that when creating a mentor training program for a particular professional group it may be necessary to eventually revise it to meet the specific expectations and needs of participants [ 19 , 20 , 24 , 31 ]. It is important to continue supervision of the mentoring process run by the mentors as the MTP alone and its immediate evaluation do not predict the long-term distal outcomes for mentors and mentees.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The results of their research project reported by Moran and Banks demonstrate that mentors see themselves as essential to the delivery of midwifery programs but are not sure if student midwives or senior management are aware of their role and its value [ 21 ]. The lack of standards and generally poor knowledge of the mentoring process and mentor preparation, and the fact that the mentor’s role is usually underestimated in their workplace are responsible for the shortage of properly trained healthcare professionals who could act as mentors [ 24 , 31 ]. As shown in the present study, its participants identified the above factors as the main obstacles hindering the adoption of mentoring as a strategy for clinical training in Polish medical universities.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Papers by Gray and Downer and by Richmond raise a number of issues related to the delivery of a mentoring process. Setting the appropriate boundaries of the mentoring relationship may be difficult for novice mentors, mentors are required to set aside dedicated time and are additionally burdened with the task of writing reports evaluating the implementation and outcomes of mentoring [ 31 , 33 ]. The participants of the MTP did not list such problems but they had no experience of mentorship and their perceptions could change when they established their first mentoring relationship.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The participants of the MTP did not list such problems but they had no experience of mentorship and their perceptions could change when they established their first mentoring relationship. Papers evaluating mentor training programs show that structured Mentor Training Programs can improve mentoring skills if they are specifically tailored to meet the actual needs of the participants [ 19 , 24 , 31 ]. The midwives who attended the MTP assessed their preparedness to act as mentors as insufficient which indicates the need for providing further mentorship training focusing on the development of specific skills necessary for maintaining a successful mentor – mentee relationship, such communication skills, assertive mentoring, decision making and leadership.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Evaluation of a Mentor training program for midwives in two hospitals in Warsaw, Poland - a qualitative descriptive study

Stefaniak

Dmoch-Gajzlerska

2021

BMC Med Educ

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Background Mentoring is a recognized, but still underutilized strategy for effective clinical training of midwifery students. The success of formally recognized course-embedded mentoring depends on adequate preparation of clinical teacher to act as mentors and effective developing of their mentoring skills. The aim of this study was to evaluate a Mentor Training Program for midwives, the first of its kind in Poland. Methods Twenty-one midwives who completed a dedicated Mentor Training Program organized by the Medical University of Warsaw (12–14 June 2017) participated in this study. In Stage 1, 7 days prior to the training course, the participants completed an online questionnaire that identified their motivations and expectations. In Stage 2, they assessed the training program they had completed as well as described any perceived needs of further mentor training. Subsequently a qualitative study of the data was performed using content analysis. Results In Stage 1, the participants expressed their interest in the Mentor Training Program mostly expecting to develop skills allowing them to implement mentoring in clinical training of student midwives. They were aware of the potential benefits of mentoring for hands-on instruction on the wards and wanted to gain knowledge of this strategy. In Stage 2, the overall satisfaction with the program was high, but the participants assessed their preparedness to act as midwifery mentors as inadequate. The results suggest that the Mentor Training Program should be further refined and expanded while the outcomes need to be evaluated in more detail by both new mentors and their trainers over a longer period of time, possibly after the participants have gained actual experience of mentoring in the clinical setting. Conclusion The participants described the Mentor Training Program as innovative, valuable and largely meeting their expectations. They gained knowledge of the concept of mentoring and its potential application in clinical training of midwifery students in Poland. Future mentor training programs should be expanded with a greater focus on developing, strengthening and applying mentoring skills in the clinical setting.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%