What do participants value in a diversity mentorship program? Perspectives from a Canadian medical school

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie Yifan Zhou ◽  
Anita Balakrishna ◽  
Joyce Nyhof-Young ◽  
Imaan Javeed ◽  
Lisa Annette Robinson
Keyword(s):  
Medical School ◽  
Career Guidance ◽  
Mentoring Relationships ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Mentorship Program ◽  
Canadian Medical School ◽  
University Of Toronto ◽  
Shared Identity ◽  
Program Diversity ◽  
Professional Fields

PurposeAs medical schools become increasingly diverse, there is a growing demand for schools to support their equity-seeking students. At the University of Toronto, the diversity mentorship program (DMP) is a new program created to support equity-seeking and diverse medical students in first- and second-year through didactic lectures, networking opportunities and mentorship from senior clinicians. This article aims to share participant perspectives on how diversity-focused mentorship benefits them, perceived barriers and insights for other institutions developing a similar program.Design/methodology/approachUsing a mixed methods design, students and mentors completed semi-structured surveys to assess broad perceptions of their mentorship experiences. Focus groups were conducted with both groups to gain deeper understandings of participants' experiences. The authors performed thematic analysis to identify qualities of successful experiences and barriers to participation.FindingsMost mentors and mentees found the DMP helpful and identified five themes contributing to a positive mentorship experience: (1) accessibility, (2) program diversity focus with clear expectations, (3) career guidance, (4) exposure to different perspectives and (5) community and shared identity. Uncertainty on how to help less assertive mentees, mentorship pair discordance where mentees paired by race did not share racial identities and logistical challenges was identified as barriers to maintaining mentoring relationships.Originality/valueTo the authors’ knowledge, this is the first qualitative study exploring the feelings and impressions of participants in a mentorship program at a medical school addressing the needs of equity-seeking groups. By understanding the characteristics and value of diversity-focused mentorship, this will inform the creation of similar supportive programs across various professional fields at other schools.

Reflections on team culture, structure and function of an intensive support service centred on positive behavioural support

2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 203-211 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lawrence A. Patterson ◽  
Samuel Berry
Keyword(s):  
Social Services ◽  
Support Service ◽  
Structure And Function ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Case Examples ◽  
Behavioural Support ◽  
Team Culture ◽  
Shared Identity ◽  
The Right ◽  
And Function

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore experiences of team culture, structure and function of an intensive support service (ISS) within the context of the recent service guidance “Building the Right Support” (NHS England, Local Government Association and Association of Directors of Adult Social Services, 2015). Reflections on the Hampshire and Southampton ISS set up in 2010 are discussed with a view to informing a debate about frameworks for ISS services nationally. Design/methodology/approach A reflective piece, drawing on experience and case examples. Findings This paper describes that a key function of an ISS is making individuals safe and this is significantly assisted by using shared team formulation, which can enable information and perspectives to be shared between and within teams as rapidly as possible. Further, a case is made for recognising the importance of inter-disciplinary practice, as the Southampton and Hampshire ISS has removed the “old fashioned” demarcations that led to individuals seeing a “procession” of different professionals from different disciplines. This relates to team structure, but importantly is about a culture of holding a shared identity based on positive behavioural support values, rather than a traditional uni-disciplinary perspective. Practical implications ISS models are being proposed by NHS England and this paper suggests some important practical aspects. Originality/value Limited literature exists examining the team culture within ISSs, which contributes to desired outcomes for service users. This paper opens a debate about structural and functional aspects of service delivery in this service model.

scholarly journals Networking behaviour, graduate employability: a social capital perspective

2017 ◽  
Vol 59 (4) ◽  
pp. 374-388 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saša Batistic ◽  
Alex Tymon
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Goal Orientation ◽  
Career Guidance ◽  
Business Students ◽  
Social Capital Theory ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Perceived Employability ◽  
Graduate Employability

Purpose Drawing on the overarching framework of social capital theory, the purpose of this paper is to develop and empirically examine networking behaviour and employability within the higher education context. Design/methodology/approach In a sample of 376 full-time business students the authors measured perceived employability, networking behaviour, access to information and resources and job-search learning goal orientation (JSLGO). Findings The authors found networking is related to increased internal and external perceived employability by boosting access to information and resources. The results also demonstrate that networking is positively related to access to information and resources for low and high JSLGO, the relationship being stronger for those with higher levels. Research limitations/implications The results provide an enriched view of individual networking behaviour by offering an indirect model of networking outcomes and to the graduate employability and social capital literatures. Practical implications The findings may provide focus for individuals concerned with enhancing their employability and those involved in supporting career guidance. Originality/value Obvious beneficiaries are students, for whom employment is a key concern, and universities who face increasing pressure to enhance graduate employability whilst resources to do so are diminishing. To this end the authors highlight activities that may develop networking behaviours and JSLGO.

Determination of criteria for assessing the quality of training future specialists for higher education

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ludmila Sokorutova ◽  
Natalia Prodanova ◽  
Inna Ponomareva ◽  
Oleg Volodin
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Personal Development ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Highly Qualified ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Survey Results ◽  
Professional Employee ◽  
Professional Fields

PurposeThe most important problem for higher education in the post-COVID period is the production of highly qualified specialists for the labor market. The purpose of this study is to determine effective criteria for assessing the quality of training of future specialists and the adequacy of their readiness to solve real problems of the future specialty.Design/methodology/approachA study was carried out among students in order to determine some of the most important characteristics of them as future specialists. Based on the survey results, non-academic indicators were identified that participants perceive as significant for a highly professional employee. The empirical study included 300 undergraduate students from four universities (66% women and 34% men aged 20–21). All participants represent full-time training.FindingsThe survey showed that the participants identified the ability to learn and personal development as the most significant personal qualities.Originality/valueMany criteria for assessing the quality of training of specialists in different professional fields have not been precisely defined. Several ways of solving this problem can be proposed: developing criteria for assessing quality in hiring; revising the methods of work of universities; presenting to students the criteria for development in the profession or adopting international criteria for assessing pedagogical quality.

Student leadership programme: igniting the young minds

2022 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-20
Author(s):  
Mihir Ajgaonkar
Keyword(s):  
Leadership Development ◽  
Resource Management ◽  
Human Resource Management ◽  
Human Resource ◽  
Urban Poor ◽  
Career Guidance ◽  
Ground Level ◽  
The Other ◽  
Ethical Behaviour ◽  
Content Type

Learning outcomes This case will help students to understand the following: Develop a basic understanding of competency building processes. Learn about the mentoring process and its application in leadership development. Develop awareness about the methodology for assessment of the effectiveness of training. Case overview/synopsis Dr A. R. K. Pillai founded the Indian Leprosy Foundation in 1970 in response to the national call by late Mrs Indira Gandhi, prime minister of India, to the public-spirited people to take up leprosy eradication. It collaborated with international agencies to reduce leprosy drastically in India from four million, in 1982 to around a hundred thousand cases in 2006. In 2006, the Indian Leprosy Foundation was renamed as Indian Development Foundation (IDF) as the trustees decided to expand the work of IDF in the areas of health, children’s education and women’s empowerment. Dr Narayan Iyer, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of IDF initiated a leadership development intervention called the Students’ leadership programme (SLP) for children in the age group of 12 to 14, from the urban poor households in 2014. It was a structured mentoring programme spanning over three months in collaboration with the schools. It aimed at incubating skills in the areas of leadership, teamwork, personality, behavioural traits and provided career guidance. It had a humble beginning in 2014 with a coverage of 50 students. Initially, IDF welcomed executives from the corporate sector as mentors. As there was a need to rapidly expand the scope of SLP to the other cities of India, IDF tied up with the graduate colleges and invited the students to be the mentors. The other objective behind this move was to create social awareness among the students from more affluent strata of society. IDF was able to dramatically increase the participation of the students through SLP by approximately up to 100,000 by 2020. However, rapid progress threw up multiple challenges. The teachers complained about the non-availability of the students for regular classes to teach the syllabus as the students were busy with SLP. The schools forced IDF to shorten the duration of SLP to two months. Also, many undergraduate mentors were unable to coach the participants due to lack of maturity and found wanting to strike a rapport with them. There was a shortage of corporate executives who volunteered for the mentoring, due to work pressures. Dr Narayan, CEO & National Coordinator and Ms Mallika Ramchandran, the project head of SLP at IDF, were worried about the desired impact of SLP on the participants and its sustainability due to these challenges. So, with the support of Dr Narayan, she initiated a detailed survey to assess the ground-level impact of SLP. The objective was to get clarity about what was working for SLP and what aspects needed to improve, to make the programme more effective. Overall feedback from the survey was very positive. The mothers had seen very positive changes in the participants’ behaviour post-SLP. The teachers had specific concerns about the effectiveness of undergraduate mentors. The need for a refresher course to inculcate ethical behaviour and the inadequacy of the two-month duration of the SLP to reinforce values were highlighted. Respondents also voiced the requirement to build responsible citizenship behaviours among the participants. Mallika was all for preparing a model to further enhance the effectiveness of SLP. Dr Narayan and Mallika embraced the challenge and they were raring to go to develop SLP as a cutting-edge leadership programme and to take it to new heights. Complexity academic level This case can be used in courses on human resource management in postgraduate and graduate management programmes. It can also be used in the general and development management courses and during executive education programmes to teach methodologies for evaluating the effectiveness of the training interventions, with emphasis on the voluntary sector. Supplementary materials Teaching notes are available for educators only. Subject code CSS 6: Human Resource Management.

Being “adopted” into a teaching community

2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 228-241 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erinn Bentley ◽  
Madison Workman ◽  
Alex Overby
Keyword(s):  
Focus Group ◽  
Student Teachers ◽  
Teacher Candidates ◽  
Mentor Teachers ◽  
Mentoring Relationships ◽  
Field Placement ◽  
Focus Group Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Group Interviews ◽  
The Impact

Purpose In order to prepare new members of the education profession, it is imperative that teachers enter their classrooms with the confidence, knowledge, and skills to serve their students from day one. One method for preparing such teacher candidates or student teachers is through school-based field placements during their preparation program. The purpose of this paper is to describe one example of a yearlong field placement and the mentoring relationships that emerged among participants. Design/methodology/approach This qualitative study used the following data sources: focus group interviews among the teacher candidates, focus group interviews among the mentor teachers, field placement reflections and teaching analyses composed by the teacher candidates, and interviews conducted among teacher candidates and mentor teachers. Findings Analysis of the data revealed that the yearlong field placement promoted positive mentoring relationships between teacher candidates and their classroom teachers. Specifically the following themes emerged: the “adoption” of teacher candidates into the high school classrooms, risk-taking within the classrooms, the mentor teachers’ use of constructive feedback, and collaborative “mentoring-down-the-hall.” Originality/value In recent years, various scholars have investigated the impact of field placement experiences on teacher candidates; however, these studies have lacked a detailed analysis of how such experiences impacted mentoring relationships among candidates and their mentor teachers in a collaborative setting. This paper provides an in-depth study of the perceived experiences of mentor teachers and their candidates.

scholarly journals Approaches to incorporating indigenous health into the Canadian medical school curriculum

2017 ◽  
Vol 86 (2) ◽  
pp. 57-59
Author(s):  
Danielle Robinson ◽  
Chowdhury Anika Saiva ◽  
Purathani Shanmuganathan
Keyword(s):  
Medical School ◽  
Cultural Competency ◽  
Indigenous Health ◽  
Health Status Disparities ◽  
School Curriculum ◽  
Indigenous Populations ◽  
Canadian Medical School ◽  
Health Curriculum ◽  
School Programs ◽  
Significant Health

In Canada, there are significant health status disparities that exist between Indigenous and non-Indigenous populations. Cultural competency among physicians is a probable way to address this large gap. The purpose of this article is to discuss the current challenges that exist in designing and delivering an Indigenous health curriculum in Canadian undergraduate medical school programs. This article will highlight the importance of cultural competency for improving the health outcomes of Indigenous populations. Additionally, it will explore potential approaches for better integration of Indigenous health into medical curricula.

scholarly journals “We wanted our children should have it better”: Jewish Medical Students at the University of Toronto, 1910-51

2006 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 109-124
Author(s):  
W. P.J. Millar
Keyword(s):  
Medical School ◽  
Political Culture ◽  
Academic Progress ◽  
The Political ◽  
Canadian Society ◽  
American Universities ◽  
University Of Toronto ◽  
Jewish Students ◽  
The University ◽  
Rare Opportunity

Abstract This article traces the development of a large contingent of Jewish students among those enrolled in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Toronto from 1910 to mid-century. During most of this period, unlike many other North American universities, Toronto imposed no quotas on Jewish entrants, nor any systematic barriers to their academic progress. Many of them found the university's medical school an educational niche, and a relatively rare opportunity to acquire the means to make a respectable professional living. The students' socio-economic backgrounds and academic careers before and during medical school help to illuminate that experience. By examining the peculiar intersection of university policies and the political culture of the province, the article also seeks to explain why, over most of the period, the University of Toronto maintained the principles of accessibility and opportunity for all, despite the prevalence of anti-Semitic attitudes in the larger Canadian society.

scholarly journals Lessons from across the pond: Student perspectives on the Internal Medicine clerkship experience at an Irish and Canadian medical school

MedEdPublish ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan Taylor Sless ◽  
Nathaniel Edward Hayward ◽  
Paul MacDaragh Ryan ◽  
Adam Kovacs-Litman ◽  
Umberin Najeeb
Keyword(s):  
Internal Medicine ◽  
Medical School ◽  
Student Perspectives ◽  
Medicine Clerkship ◽  
Canadian Medical School ◽  
Internal Medicine Clerkship

scholarly journals A Review of Canadian Medical School Conflict of Interest Policies

2013 ◽  
Vol 04 (03) ◽  
pp. 217-222
Author(s):  
Michael G. R. Beyaert ◽  
Jatinder Takhar ◽  
David Dixon ◽  
Margaret Steele ◽  
Leanna Isserlin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Medical School ◽  
Conflict Of Interest ◽  
Canadian Medical School ◽  
School Conflict

Medical student and psychiatrist perceptions towards a psychiatric career

2017 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 315-323
Author(s):  
Thomas Flamini ◽  
Natasha R. Matthews ◽  
George S. Castle ◽  
Elliot M. Jones-Williams
Keyword(s):  
Medical Student ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Medical School ◽  
Family Life ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate perceptions towards a career in psychiatry among medical students and psychiatrists and identify how recruitment into the specialty may be improved. Design/methodology/approach This study locally compares medical student and psychiatric doctor responses to a structured online survey and structured interviews with key managerial figures in the Humber NHS Foundation Trust. Findings Comparison across two main areas (pre-decision exposure to psychiatry and reasons for considering a psychiatric career) found that both students and doctors were influenced to make a choice about a career in psychiatry during medical school. Medical students found compatibility with family life to be more important when considering psychiatry, whereas doctors cited content-based reasons as significant pull factors. Stigma and fear of being harmed deterred some students from choosing a career in psychiatry. Structured interview responses reiterated the importance of pre-medical school and undergraduate mentorship in bolstering future recruitment to psychiatry. Practical implications Medical students perceive certain career issues differently to their postgraduate counterparts. Widening the content-based appeal of psychiatry and optimising the medical school experience of the specialty via varied and high-quality placements may be a key step towards tackling the national shortfall in qualified psychiatrists. Originality/value This is the first published study comparing medical student and psychiatric doctor perceptions of a career in psychiatry.

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