Doctor Mentor
EVENTS
The Doctor Mentor programme will run from August to September. This ensures a provision of continuous mentoring and wellbeing support, with no gaps and mirrors the transition phases that most doctors experience themselves, when they move from post to post. The programme curriculum runs again and again on a rolling yearly basis. This ensures that doctors and Trusts can join at any point.
All Doctors are Learners and Mentors
Doctors will transition from ‘learner’ to ‘implementor’ to ‘mentor’. This is similar to the ‘see one’, ‘do one’, ‘teach one’ method that all doctors already utilise in their training.
This ensures that the doctors have a different experience each time that they attend the same event. For example, the first time that they attend a session on Presentation Skills, they will be in the audience taking notes and engaging in interactive sessions to get feedback on their presentation skills. The second time that they attend the session, they will be doing more of the presenting of the sessions and facilitating the group work and providing feedback to others. The third time, they will be coordinating and hosting the programme.
As our doctors progress they will be rewarded with certificates, portfolio sign offs and achievements that they can include to further their careers. So although the session might be the same, the doctors will experience it from different perspectives as they become more confident with the subject matter. There is also enough flexibility, so that if doctors want to repeat ‘learner’, ‘implementor’ or ‘mentor’ multiple times, they can do so.
In-Person Events
In-person teaching will take place at a venue that is not linked to your workplace. This is important because doctors need to feel a sense of physical detachment in order to feel more relaxed. The sessions themselves are a stress-outlet as well as a vehicle for teaching and mentoring. They will be conducted in a very relaxed manner, where doctors will be expected to dress casually, so that it does not resemble a medical conference (which also triggers anxiety amongst some of our doctors because it is work-related). It will likely be held in a local hotel where the rooms are chosen for their relaxed atmosphere. The tables and chairs will be arranged in a banquet format to encourage discourse and collaboration compared with a theatre style format that is similar to medical school and grand rounds. Doctors will be served with teas and coffees throughout the day, and a relaxed lunch such as pizza to encourage natural and authentic discussions, similar to how you would relax with your friends. This method has already proven to be incredibly effective based on feedback from Doctor Mentor events that have been conducted in this way.
Virtual Events
Virtual teaching will employ Zoom because it is a market-leader in video conferencing technology and it is widely used by people in a relaxed setting, for example when speaking to family and friends. For this reason, it is preferred by doctors compared with other platforms such as Microsoft Teams which is predominantly used in workplace and educational settings, or Google Meets which is prominent in corporate settings.
Zoom also offers excellent features that we can harness to deliver an interactive programme in a similar way to an in-person event. For example, the use of 40 break out rooms on one channel, raise hand and broadcast messaging features as well as polling and a controlled chat feature for interactivity. This enables us to expand our reach to doctors and reduces the barriers for having to travel to a venue. Some doctors find that attending an in-person event is more intimidating and a virtual setting gives them a greater sense of control, for example they can choose to have their cameras switched on or off.
Personalise your Mentoring Needs with Doctor Mentor
Explore our core curriculum and personalise the mentoring programme by choosing which areas you would like to focus on. Each curriculum topic is delivered across a variety of platforms, to provide you with choice. These include in-person and virtual events, e-learning videos with our virtual avatar Chief Mentors, online blogs and podcasts. The aim is to help you develop confidence by learning about a topic, giving you the opportunity to put those skills in action, and then mentor others in the skill that you have now mastered!
