A peer mentoring initiative across medical residency programs
| Date | 13 December 2019 |
| Pages | 33-40 |
| Published date | 13 December 2019 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/MHSI-09-2019-0027 |
| Author | Marie Fournier,Leon Tourian |
| Subject Matter | Health & social care,Mental health,Social inclusion |
A peer mentoring initiative across medical
residency programs
Marie Fournier and Leon Tourian
Abstract
Purpose –Several studies have shown benefits of peer mentoring on wellness among medical students and
health care professionals. Peer mentorship has also been pointed as having interesting potential for International
Medical Graduates. However, the literature on peer mentoring at the residency level is very limited. The purpose
of this paper is to assess the benefits of a resident-led pilot peer-mentoring initiative at McGill University.
Design/methodology/approach –Over 2 years, 17 residents from various residency programs were put in
contact with a volunteer peer mentor by e-mail. The structure of the mentorship was flexible. A survey using
Likert scale and free text responses was sent to all the participants.
Findings –There were response rates of 65 percent for mentees and 59 percent for mentors. The majority of
mentees thought the service was either moderately helpful (18 percent) or helpful (36 percent). Several
residents noted that communication by e-mails and lack of in-person contacts were a limitation in the
mentorship experience. The most frequent challenge that led to consult the service was immigration or arrival
from another province.
Originality/value –The results show that the program can be helpful to medical residents, is cost-effective,
flexible and could be adapted and replicated elsewhere. In the future, the program will adjust to tend toward a
more structured frame, highlighting the importance of in-person contacts. The small sample size of
participants and the recall bias are some limitations of our study.
Keywords Wellness, Peer mentoring, Mentorship, Smart technologies, Postgraduate medical education
Paper type Case study
Introduction
High rates of burnout and diminished wellness among medical residents have been well studied
and documented in the past decades (Dyrbye and Shanafelt, 2016; Dyrbye et al., 2014;
Holmes et al., 2017; Markwell and Wainer, 2009; Soares and Chan, 2016). In addition to the
pressure inherent in medical training, residents (postgraduate physician learners training to
become family physicians or specialists) are asked to perform in administrative positions, as
teachers, and in research. Some residents have the additional challenges of parenting or
adjusting to a new culture away from their family and support networks. Given these demands,
peer support becomes important to preserve wellness while going through residency training.
Peer support in mental health services has gained interest over the years (Perkins and
Repper, 2019). In these models, peer workers are integrated into clinical services where they
share their lived experience within the mental health system with patients in ways that mental
health providers cannot. Despite some evidence for peer support in the literature (Bellamy et al.,
2017; Repper and Carter, 2011), its underpinning mechanisms are not fully understood due to
heterogeneity in the peer support literature (Watson, 2017).
Similarly, peer mentoring, another form of peer support, is not clearly defined, though generally
understood to be a model in which groups with similar professional profiles and experiences
engage in a mentorship relationship. The concept of mentoring itself has numerous definitions
(Berk et al., 2005; Chen et al., 2016; Dawson, 2014; Jacobi, 1991) and it has been studied in
various fields as presented below.
Marie Fournier is based at the
Postgraduate Residency
Training Program in Psychiatry,
McGill University, Montreal,
Canada.
Leon Tourian is based at the
Department of Psychiatry,
McGill University Health Center,
McGill University, Montreal,
Canada.
DOI 10.1108/MHSI-09-2019-0027 VOL. 24 NO. 1 2020, pp. 33-40, © Emerald Publishing Limited, ISSN 2042-8308
j
MENTALHEALTH AND SOCIAL INCLUSION
j
PAG E 33
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