Exploring the relationship between mentoring and doctors’ health and wellbeing: a narrative review

Abstract

(2017) Exploring the relationship between mentoring and doctors' health and well-being: A systematic narrative review. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 110 (5 Northumbria University has developed Northumbria Research Link (NRL) to enable users to access the University's research output. Copyright © and moral rights for items on NRL are retained by the individual author(s) and/or other copyright owners. Single copies of full items can be reproduced, displayed or performed, and given to third parties in any format or medium for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-profit purposes without prior permission or charge, provided the authors, title and full bibliographic details are given, as well as a hyperlink and/or URL to the original metadata page. The content must not be changed in any way. Full items must not be sold commercially in any format or medium without formal permission of the copyright holder. The full policy is available online: http://nrl.northumbria.ac.uk/policies.html This document may differ from the final, published version of the research and has been made available online in accordance with publisher policies. To read and/or cite from the published version of the research, please visit the publisher's website (a subscription may be required.) The health and well-being of doctors is crucial, both for the individuals themselves and their ability to deliver optimum patient care. With increased pressures on healthcare, support mechanisms that attend to doctors' health and well-being, may require greater emphasis to safeguard those working in frontline services. To inform future developments, this systematic narrative review aimed to identify, explore and map empirical and anecdotal evidence indicating relationships between mentoring activities and the health and well-being of doctors. Twelve databases were searched for publications printed between January 2006 and January 2016.Articles were included if they involved doctors' engagement in mentoring activities and, either health or wellbeing, or the benefits, barriers or impact of mentoring. The initial search returned 4669 papers, after exclusions a full-text analysis of 37 papers was conducted. Reference lists and citations of each retrieved paper were also searched. Thirteen papers were accepted for review. The Business in the Community model was used as a theoretical framework for analysis. Mentoring influenced, collegiate relationships, networking and aspects of personal well-being, such as confidence and stress management, and was valued by doctors as a specialist support mechanism and professional practice. This review contributes to the evidence base concerning mentoring and doctors' health and well-being. However, it highlights that focused research is required to explore the relationship between mentoring, and health and well-being.2

Psychosocial and career outcomes of peer mentorship in medical resident education: a systematic review protocol

“…While prior reviews have addressed mentoring among physicians, junior doctors, and medical students, there has, to date, been no explicit systematic review of peer mentoring among medical residents [ 35 – 38 ]. Our review will address an important gap in the literature by comprehensively assessing the impact that peer mentors can have on reducing burnout, enhancing overall emotional wellbeing, and furthering the development of professional competencies in medical residency education.…”

Peer mentoring in medical residency education: A systematic review

“…5,14 While our review aligns with previous research reporting on the benefits of mentorship in medical education, it is unique in its focus on the role of peer mentors in developing interpersonal and coping skills, and academic and career competencies among medical residents. 12,15,23,42 A culture of supportiveness amongst peers in medical residency may help to address the psychosocial needs of medical residents as they transition to new roles, and increasingly challenging learning environments. 11 Recent developments in medical education have emphasized the importance of medical residents cultivating soft skills throughout their training.…”

“…9,17 Researchers who have studied peer mentorship in graduate education and among healthcare professionals in workplace settings have found that peer mentoring increases socialization and reduces symptoms of burnout. 14,[18][19][20][21][22][23] In a randomized controlled study of the impact of a peer support group program for healthcare workers, Peterson et al reported that "statistically significant intervention effects were found for general health, [and] perceived quantitative demands at work". 22 Other researchers have also noted that increased social or emotional support were associated with decreased burnout among college students and social workers.…”

Mentoring for urologists

“…The findings were that mentoring positively influenced collegiate relationships, networking and aspects of personal wellbeing, such as confidence and stress management, and was valued by doctors as a specialist support mechanism for professional practice. 12 Ackroyd and Adamson in 2015 published a review paper on 'Mentoring for new consultants' to popularise their mentoring scheme at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. 13 They suggested that mentees acquired increased job satisfaction, greater self-confidence, improved objectivity with problem solving and ability to implement change, and importantly improved work-life balance.…”