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. 2019 Oct;15(SP):73-84.
doi: 10.12927/hcpol.2019.25978.

Exploring Mentorship as a Strategy to Build Capacity and Optimize the Embedded Scientist Workforce

Stephen Bornstein  1 , Meghan McMahon  2 , Verna Yiu  3 , Vinita Haroun  4 , Heather Manson  5 , Paul Holyoke  6 , Tracy Wasylak  7 , Robyn Tamblyn  8 , Adalsteinn Brown  9
Affiliations

Exploring Mentorship as a Strategy to Build Capacity and Optimize the Embedded Scientist Workforce

Stephen Bornstein et al. Healthc Policy. 2019 Oct.

Abstract
in English, French

Background: Mentorship plays a significant role in career development in academic and applied settings, but little is documented about its role in the experiential learning of academic trainees embedded in health system organizations. The experiences of the first cohort of Canada's Health System Impact (HSI) Fellowship program can provide insights into how mentorship in this innovative type of training can work.

Objectives: To understand the mentorship strategies that were used and to explore fellows' and supervisors' perspectives and experiences on the effectiveness and value of those strategies.

Methods: Data from the surveys of fellows and their supervisors and a panel rooted in the lived experience of the first HSI Fellowship cohort were used.

Results: Health system and academic supervisors developed a range of innovative, individualized and effective approaches for guiding their fellows, such as providing the fellow with a committee of mentors within the organization, holding regular meetings with the fellow and both the health system and the academic supervisor and leveraging their own network to expand the network and resources available to the fellow.

Conclusion: The results suggest that engaging senior leadership in health system settings has provided positive experiences for both fellows and their mentors.

Contexte:: Le mentorat joue un rôle important pour le développement de carrière dans les établissements universitaires ou de santé, mais il y a peu de documentation sur son rôle dans l'apprentissage expérientiel d'étudiants universitaires enchâssés dans des organismes de santé. L'expérience de la première cohorte de boursiers du programme des bourses d'apprentissage en matière d'impact sur le système de santé (BAIS) offre des pistes sur le fonctionnement du mentorat dans ce type novateur de formation.

Objectifs:: Mieux comprendre les stratégies de mentorat utilisées et étudier les points de vue et expériences des boursiers et des superviseurs quant à l'efficacité et à l'importance de ces stratégies.

Méthode:: Nous avons utilisé les données recueillies lors d'enquêtes auprès des boursiers et des superviseurs ainsi que celles d'un panel ancré dans l'expérience vécue par la première cohorte de boursiers.

Résultats:: Les superviseurs universitaires et ceux des organismes d'accueil ont développé une gamme d'approches novatrices, personnalisées et efficaces pour guider les boursiers, telles que leur permettre d'accéder à un comité de mentors au sein de l'organisme, la tenue de rencontres régulières et la mise à profit de leurs propres réseaux afin d'accroître le réseau et les ressources pour les boursiers.

Conclusion:: Les résultats font voir que l'engagement de la haute direction dans l'organisme d'accueil se traduit par une expérience positive pour les boursiers et leurs mentors.

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References

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    1. Canadian Health Services and Policy Research Alliance, Training Modernization Working Group (CHSPRA TMWG). 2015a. Challenges, Opportunities, and Future Directions for Health Services and Policy Research Training in Canada: A White Paper. Ottawa, ON: Canadian Institutes of Health Research; Retrieved January 6, 2019. <https://docs.wixstatic.com/ugd/5adc92_1718e4da4dca480f8a8b475e20178f7e.pdf>.
    1. Canadian Health Services and Policy Research Alliance, Training Modernization Working Group (CHSPRA TMWG). 2015b. Modernizing Health Services and Policy Research Training: A Pan-Canadian Strategy. Ottawa, ON: Canadian Institutes of Health Research; Retrieved January 6, 2019. <https://docs.wixstatic.com/ugd/5adc92_4b4c942ad529449489953892703473cc.pdf>.
    1. Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). 2017. Fellowships: Health System Impact Fellowships. Retrieved January 6, 2019. <https://www.researchnet-recherchenet.ca/rnr16/vwOpprtntyDtls.do?prog=263...>.
    1. Claman P. 2010, October 20 “Forget Mentors: Employ a Personal Board of Directors. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved January 11, 2019. <https://hbr.org/2010/10/forget-mentors-employ-a-person>.

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