Role as a Mentor - Coursework Example

? Role as a Mentor Introduction The key factor for facilitating learning in medical profession for while still onpractice is mentoring. This program is well established, and it is a significant aspect for pre-education programs. There are policy documents that indicate the criteria that health professionals have to meet in order to use the title of a mentor, and the competences they have to fulfill to perform the mentoring role effectively. Mentoring is a concept and practice that is associated with providing professional learning in health care. This practice has changed since 1970 significantly and was officially implemented in nursing in 1980. There are different tittles that are used in connection with the role of mentoring. Role of Mentors Mentoring activities are aimed at providing safe and effective skills for students in health care practice. It helps professionals provide informed guidance to students while they are in a practical situation (Martin and Mackinnon, 2007, 41). Mentors should have the knowledge and skills to hold up learners and offer secure surroundings for learning. There are roles within mentorship that overlap, even though there are distinctions between these roles. When these roles change, a clear distinction between mentoring and coaching is established. The term ‘mentor’ has changed to signify a person who guides individuals during their developmental years to progress and achieve their identity (Martin and Mackinnon, 2007, 41). The term is implemented in nursing education for students to achieve safe and effective clinical skills during their practice. The role of a mentor is to support learning in the practice situation. There are overlapping roles of a mentor; thus, he is expected to show certain characteristics during a practical situation. There are different roles of a mentor and a lecturer in that a mentor focuses on individual students in practice while a lecturer focuses on learning environment. In nursing practice, the word ‘mentor’ is defined as a midwifery or health visitor who supervises students in clinic situations. Mentors also help in facilitating learning in clinical settings. Mentors have different roles that include nurturing, role modeling, functioning, and sustaining a caring relationship over time. Mentors should have good communication skills for them to understand the principles of adult education. The role of mentors is widely utilized, and it may appear as an obvious aspect offered to learners. Students need mentors to ensure they have safe practices. Mentors also ensure that students acquire competence in their fields of learning. In nursing and health profession mentors guide, support and act as role models to their students. It is the responsibility of a mentor to structure a working environment for learning, hence facilitating constructive and honest feedback. A mentor ought to be friendly and encourage the students while they are in a learning situation. Students who have been on placement can take advantage of mentoring by applying for that post after qualification. Mentorship enables students to attain competent practice as long as it is established on a supportive basis. It is suggested that people might benefit from having a mentor in their lives. Both parties select this role, and the mentor can be a parent, friend, or a senior peer. Students select mentors for guidance and counseling. However, mentors identify different reasons for mentoring roles. Research has identified different roles for mentors such as guidance and counseling. Aspects for Change The mentoring process combines various factors that are effective and essential for learning. Mentors need to create an environment for learning and display leadership skills for students to emulate. The mentoring process should emphasize assessment and accountability. Establishing an effective learning environment is significant because it contributes to sufficient clinical experience. This relationship assists the mentor and students in establishing a rapport during the learning experience. An effective working relationship is established by firstly accepting the strengths and weakness of an individual. The two parties should be genuine towards each other and form an empathic understanding. The mentoring process should have efficient communication (Martin and Mackinnon, 2007, 41). The mentor needs to be well equipped with efficient communication skills. The aim of communication is to find a common understanding of the message that is sent and the one received. The factors that influence communication include past conditioning and present situation. The purpose of every person’s mindset might also affect communication. An effective mentor should be open-minded, patient, and approachable. It is significant for the mentor to have a good knowledge base and possess good communication skills. During the mentoring process, the mentor is supposed to provide encouragement, displays skills of self-motivation and show concern. It is the responsibility of a mentor to provide psychological support during learning situations and act as a role model. The mentor is not supposed to judge the students during learning situations, and he should show a sense of fun and fairness. He should constantly give advice to learners while they are in practice placement. Mentors ought to form a relaxed relationship with their students and identify what a student needs to meet the desired learning outcomes. The mentor ought to give students some independence by giving more guidance at the beginning and pulling back to allow the student show initiative. Evaluation In evaluating the quality of education provision in practice and in order to propose aspects for change, mentors nurture medical students by becoming the students’ role models. Quality education requires learners to have a source of motivation, which can only come from a mentor. The mentors are experienced medical practitioners that are highly regarded. Mentors play a vital role in the development of the students’ learning process, practice and the medical professionalism in the field of medicine. The mentor ensures that the students’ needs are met, to ease the process of learning. Mentors invest energy and effort to see a student succeed. This can be time consuming but has a positive effect on the development of the student. Learning institution can only provide aspects for change by inviting famous figures in the society to come and talk to their students for motivation. This is because learners are driven by the words and life experience. It is true the mentor assists the learners in solving their challenge, hence becoming the students mentor. The challenges that the student faces are the driving force of any mentor. They, the challenges, make the student adapt to the practice of medicine. The adaption process is highly influenced by the mentor. The process should establish an effective learning relationship that will facilitate and evaluate learning. Medical students gain a lot from mentorship. In evaluating mentorship, advisers have different roles, and in some cases different titles, depending on the medical field. In nursing, terms like midwifery or health visitor are used to refer to mentors. The mentors supervise the nursing students and help them to perfect their learnt nursing skills. The mentor acts like support beams in the students practice, who are guided by their mentors through the hardships in the discipline and practice of medicine. Mentorship has played and continues to play a vital role in the medical practice. Conclusion The key factor for facilitating learning in medical profession for students while still on practice is mentoring. Mentoring is a concept and practice that are associated with providing professional learning in health care. The term is implemented in nursing education for students to achieve safe and effective clinical skills during their practice. Mentors should have the knowledge and skills to hold up learners and offer secure surroundings for learning. In nursing and health profession, mentors guide support and act as role models to their students. Mentorship enables students to attain competent practice as long as it is established on a supportive basis. Mentors need to create an environment for learning and display leadership skills for students to emulate. Mentoring activities are aimed at providing safe and effective skills for students in health care practice. The mentoring process should have efficient communication. The mentor needs to be well equipped with efficient communication skills. Establishing an effective learning environment is significant because it contributes to sufficient clinical experience. Bibliography Martin, P. & Mackinnon, H., 2007. National approach to mentor preparation for nurses and midwives. [online] Available at: [Accessed 11 November 2012]. Read More