Using Career Nurse Mentors to Support Minority Nursing Students and Facilitate Their Transition to Practice Gaurdia Banister PhD,RN,executive director, Helene M. Bowen-Brady BSN, MEd, RN-BC, central educator, Marion E. Winfrey EdD, RN, associate dean PII: DOI: Reference:
S8755-7223(13)00187-7 doi: 10.1016/j.profnurs.2013.11.001 YJPNU 799
To appear in:
Journal of Professional Nursing
Please cite this article as: Banister, G., Bowen-Brady, H.M. & Winfrey, M.E., Using Career Nurse Mentors to Support Minority Nursing Students and Facilitate Their Transition to Practice, Journal of Professional Nursing (2013), doi: 10.1016/j.profnurs.2013.11.001
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT Using Career Nurse Mentors to Support Minority Nursing Students and Facilitate
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Their Transition to Practice
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Authors: Gaurdia Banister, PhD, RN, executive director, The Institute for Patient Care,
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Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA; Helene M. Bowen-Brady, BSN, MEd, RN-BC, central educator, Department of Nursing Professional and Practice Development,
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Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital, Boston, MA; Marion E. Winfrey, EdD, RN, associate dean, College of Nursing and Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts
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Corresponding author:
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Boston, Boston, MA
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Gaurdia Banister, PhD, RN
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The Institute for Patient Care Massachusetts General Hospital 55 Fruit Street FND3 Boston, MA 02114 [email protected] 617-724-1266
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Abstract
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The Clinical Leadership Collaborative for Diversity in Nursing (CLCDN) was developed
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through an academe-service partnership focused on supporting minority nursing students and facilitating transition to practice. A key program element is mentoring. Students are
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paired with an experienced, minority clinical nurse or nurse leader from one of the
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partnering agencies, who helps guide the student throughout the junior and senior year of school and first year of employment. The mentoring component was evaluated through
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surveys in which mentors and mentees rated one another and offered open-ended comments on the program's impact. Aspects of mentees rated highest by mentors include
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manner (courteous and professional), ability to communicate and get along with others,
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preparation for meetings, and fully utilizing their time with mentors. Aspects of mentors rated highest by mentees include warmth, encouragement, and willingness to listen;
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enthusiasm for nursing and how they sparked the mentee's interest; and clarity regarding
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expectations for mentees and how they pushed mentees to achieve high standards. In the open-ended comments, mentees consistently identified mentoring as the program's strongest component. Sixty-four minority students have participated to date with a zero rate of attrition and very low job turnover among graduates.
Index Words: Diversity, Mentorship, Mentor, Minority, Workforce Development
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT Introduction Numerous professional organizations, including the American Association of Colleges of
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Nursing (2011a), the American Organization of Nurse Executives (AONE, 2005), and the
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Institute of Medicine (IOM, 2010), have called on nurse educators and nurse leaders of service institutions to increase the diversity of the nursing workforce. The challenge is
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compelling in light of research that links minority providers to improved access to care
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and satisfaction among minority patients, as well as research that suggests minority clinicians can be instrumental in addressing cultural and linguistic factors that negatively
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impact minority patient outcomes (IOM, 2004). However, a noteworthy gap persists between the racial and ethnic diversity of the US population and that of the nursing
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workforce. Individuals from racial and ethnic minority groups make up 34.4 percent of
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the US population, but only 16.8 percent of nurses (Health Resources and Services Administration, 2010). While the data from academe are promising, indicating that
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minorities made up 22.5 percent of nursing school graduates in 2005-2008 (up from 21.5
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percent in 2001-2004), the incremental progress indicates that more needs to be done if nursing is to achieve representative diversity.
Even after racially and ethnically diverse students gain access to nursing programs, they face a number of challenges that contribute to attrition and impede their success, including financial constraints, linguistic differences, academic demands, social isolation and loneliness, encounters with discrimination and racism, and a lack of cultural knowledge and understanding among peers (Gardner, 2005a; IOM, 2004; Loftin, Newman, Dumas, Gilden, & Bond, 2012). The challenges continue after graduation, as
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT evidenced by reports from minority health professionals who describe how race-related experiences influence their interpersonal interactions at work, and how they feel
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pressured to be strongly self-reliant and repeatedly "prove" themselves to others (Carr,
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Palepu, Szalacha, Caswell, & Inui, 2007; Nunez-Smith, Curry, Bigby, Berg, Krumholz, & Bradley, 2007). The low numbers of minority faculty and nurse administrators
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available to serve as mentors and role models compounds the difficulties and sense of
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isolation many minority nurses experience in school and work settings. (Loftin et al., 2012)
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Nursing programs have used a variety of approaches to attract individuals from racial and ethnic minority groups to nursing and ensure their academic success. The strategies
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include partnering with high schools to encourage minority students to consider nursing
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as a career (Georges, 2012); supporting minority students through the nursing school application process and, if needed by the student, providing those who are accepted with
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tutoring and academic counseling (Beacham, Askew, & Williams, 2009); and pairing
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minority students with mentors who provide role modeling and academic guidance and support (Wilson, Sanner, & McAllister, 2010). While these strategies may be helpful in supporting nursing students through school, they do little to prepare students for the challenges they will face as minority nurses in the workplace.
In 2007, the College of Nursing and Health Sciences (CNHS) at the University of Massachusetts Boston (UMB), Boston’s only public baccalaureate and higher degreegranting college of nursing, and Partners HealthCare, an integrated healthcare delivery system that serves New England and includes multiple community and specialty
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT hospitals, developed a unique program that is specially designed to further meet the academic goals of racially and ethnically diverse nursing students and help them launch
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their nursing careers (Banister & Winfrey, 2012). Offering a blend of academic guidance,
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financial support, and career mentoring, the Clinical Leadership Collaborative for Diversity in Nursing (CLCDN) has helped 64 minority nursing students, providing
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support during their junior and senior years of study and helping graduates transition into
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the role of professional nurses. A unique and critical element of the CLCDN is the mentoring component, which pairs each student with an experienced, minority clinical
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nurse or nurse leader from a Partners HealthCare agency. By serving as role models, counselors, and coaches for the students, the mentors help students forge an identity that
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embraces their racial and ethnic heritage and their stature as professional nurses.
The purpose of this article is to examine how others have used mentors to support racially
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and ethnically diverse nursing students, and to present the CLCDN mentoring component
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as a potential model for use in academe and service. Evaluation data describing the experiences of CLCDN mentors and mentees are presented, along with descriptions of the CLCDN's non-mentoring components, program outcomes, and lessons learned.
Mentoring in Nursing Mentoring within nursing has evolved from a largely informal, discretionary activity involving self-selected relationships, into formal programs designed to support and promote nurses' professional development. (Ehrich, Tennent, & Hansford, 2002)
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT Through the mentoring process, an experienced and knowledgeable person helps a junior or novice professional learn to negotiate a new role or environment, and in the process
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transmits values, skills, and knowledge (Banister & Gennaro, 2012). A traditional
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mentoring relationship blends career functions, such as teaching, coaching, protecting, and sponsoring, with psychosocial functions, such as role modeling, counseling, and
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friendship, that provide emotional support and boost the mentee's confidence and sense of
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self-worth (Dorsey & Baker, 2004).
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Many nursing programs now use mentors to support and reduce attrition among minority students. At Lehman College of the City University of New York faculty members
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provide mentoring to nursing students as part of a multi-faceted initiative to interest
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Hispanic high school students in nursing as a career and support them through the nursing program (Georges, 2012). In another example, faculty members who mentored minority
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students attributed the mentoring program's success largely to workshops designed to
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increase their knowledge about the mentoring process and the challenges facing minority students (Wilson et al., 2010). Meanwhile, a baccalaureate program in California, for example, paired students who spoke English as a second language with English-as-a-firstlanguage students as a means of promoting friendships and cultural understanding, and also created a mentoring network of minority community nurses to provide role models, confidantes, and a support system for minority students (Gardner, 2005b).
Mentoring is also used increasingly in hospitals and other service organizations. It has been identified as an important strategy for supporting and developing new nurse leaders
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help new graduates cope with the challenges associated with the transition process
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(Hoffart, Waddell, & Young, 2011).
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The mentoring process offer mutual benefits to mentors and mentees. Studies examining
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mentoring in nursing and education suggest that mentees experience decreased anxiety and stress, enhanced self esteem, increased socialization with colleagues, and benefit
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from the support, empathy, encouragement, and assistance with problem solving provided by mentors. For mentors, the process offers an opportunity to strengthen
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leadership skills, enhances their self-worth, fosters collegiality and reflection, and
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cultivates a sense of personal satisfaction. (Dorsey and Baker, 2004; Ehrich, et al., 2002)
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In constructing the mentoring component of the CLCDN, the program developers built
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on the literature to craft a mentoring model aimed at supporting two key program objectives: to help qualified minority students obtain a baccalaureate degree from UMB, and to support each student's transition into employment as a practicing nurse in a Partners institution. To achieve these objectives, the program developers determined that career mentors would work with students during the more rigorous final two years of the baccalaureate program, as well as during the vulnerable first year following graduation, when students face the difficult tasks of transitioning into their first jobs, forming positive relationships with nursing colleagues, and working independently as professional nurses.
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT CLCDN Structure and Mentoring Component UMB nursing faculty and nurse leaders from Partners HealthCare agencies collaborated
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to define the program goals, structure, and eligibility and performance criteria of the
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CLCDN and, in 2007, the program launched. Nurse leaders from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), a founding member of Partners HealthCare, took the lead in working
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with CNHS to design the program. Nurse leaders representing four additional Partners
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agencies soon joined the program steering committee. The steering committee reports to the CNHS dean, MGH chief nurse, and other members of the Partners chief nurse
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council, and works with the program's two co-directors to help guide the program. The co-directors — the associate dean of the CNHS at UMB, and the executive director of the
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Institute for Patient Care at MGH — are both doctorally-prepared nurses of color and
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share responsibility for all aspects of program operations, monitoring, and development.
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The CLCDN's overarching goal is to realize a vision of diversity within the partnering
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organizations by facilitating the progression of racially and ethnically diverse students through the generic undergraduate nursing program at UMB, and supporting their transition to registered nurse positions in Partners facilities. Program eligibility and performance criteria are designed to assure that students in the program are on a trajectory consistent with working in complex care environments, such as those encountered in Partners organizations. In addition to being a member of a racial or ethnic minority group, students eligible for the CLCDN must be entering the UMB nursing program's junior year (although in the program's first year, senior students were also accepted), have a grade point average of 3.0 or greater, and demonstrate a record of
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT leadership through letters of recommendation and participation in professional and community leadership activities. Participants are selected by the program steering
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committee and are expected to maintain good academic standing and a GPA of at least
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3.0, demonstrate leadership in a tangible manner, and complete the nursing major within
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the specified timeframe.
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CLCDN participants are provided with a range of resources in support of their academic success. Some of these are available to all UMB students, while others were developed
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specifically for the CLCDN. The resources include individualized academic counseling, workshops to help students master collegiate and professional skills, stress management
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programs, peer tutoring and mentoring, and NCLEX preparation support. CLCDN
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students also receive financial support covering tuition and fees, and a stipend for expenses, in order to alleviate the financial strain experienced by many minority students,
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and to decrease the chance that students will suspend their studies for financial reasons.
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The funds are provided by Partners HealthCare, with the understanding that in exchange students will limit their external employment during the fall and spring semesters to less than 20 hours per week (and work preferably at a Partners agency), and will pursue full time employment as an RN in a Partners institution for a period of time equal to the number of years they participated in the CLCDN upon graduation.
Resources provided to CLCDN students in the clinical setting are designed to help them gain the skills needed to transition to independent practice in a Partners institution. All CLCDN participants complete their senior preceptorship and as many other clinical
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT experiences as possible at a Partners agency under the guidance of UMB clinical instructors and Partners nursing staff and preceptors. Additionally, each student is paired
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with a career mentor, who provides individualized support and guidance throughout the
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student's junior and senior years, and for at least one year following graduation.
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Mentoring component
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The career mentor role is a voluntary position open to experienced minority nurses who have successfully defined a nursing career path within a Partners agency. Mentors are
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recruited by the program co-director from MGH with the help of the steering committee. Using minority nurses assures that the career mentors have a first-hand understanding of
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the unique challenges facing minority students and nurses.
Using information obtained from advisory sessions with students, steering group
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members, and the mentors and their managers, the program co-directors assign each
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CLCDN student a career mentor upon the student's acceptance into the program. After mentors are assigned, the mentors and mentees each receive a copy of a resource book that provides details about the CLCDN program and the UMB nursing curriculum and outlines expectations for mentors and mentees (Table 1). In addition to a training session, in which the co-directors review and discuss the UMB nursing program, the CLCDN's goals and purpose, and the mentoring role, mentors meet with the co-directors and steering committee members on a scheduled and as-needed basis to discuss any concerns.
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT The goal of the mentoring component is to have mentors and mentees establish a mutually respectful relationship that allows for honest dialogue and reflection, focusing
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on leadership skills and how to succeed as a minority nurse in a Partners HealthCare
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agency. As noted in Table 1, mentors and mentees are expected to connect on a regular basis to reconcile the mentee's assignments and other activities with their learning
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objectives. Mentors are also expected to facilitate shadowing, interviews, and other
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activities aimed at helping mentees learn what it means to be a nurse within a Partners organization. By observing their mentor's practice, interviewing other nurse leaders, and
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attending organizational and unit meetings focused on practice and policy issues, the mentees witness the application of critical "21st century skills" (e.g., critical thinking and
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problem solving, flexibility and adaptability, initiative and self-direction) — that are
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increasingly needed to succeed in complex organizations (Partnership for 21st Century Skills, 2011). Mentors are encouraged to use the activities as a starting point for
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discussion about nursing roles, expectations, and their own experiences as racially and
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ethnically diverse nurses in Partners institutions. Additionally, mentors are required to maintain a log of their meetings with mentees and mentees are required to maintain a journal, which are reviewed during meetings with the program co-directors.
Mentors and mentees are also required to attend educational offerings planned by the CLCDN and content experts to facilitate leadership development, foster a sense of community, serve as a venue for discussing shared concerns and experiences, and learn about useful topics, such as interviewing skills, speaking with confidence, the HR
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT process, how diversity can enhance the work environment, and expectations of a newly-
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licensed nurse.
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Program Implementation
In the fall of 2007, , the first student cohort included seven seniors and 11 juniors from
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Asian, African, African American, and Latino backgrounds, of which four were male and
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14 female. Fourteen nurses from three Partners HealthCare facilities served as mentors, all but two of which were from racially and ethnically diverse backgrounds, and all of
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which had demonstrated leadership in their roles as staff nurses and nurse leaders.
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Additional cohorts were added each academic year. Between fall 2007 and June 2012, 64
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students participated in the CLCDN. Fifty-three students have graduated and 11 are still
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enrolled in the UMB nursing program.
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The mentor pool now includes 44 nurses from the five Partners HealthCare agencies, 3 of which are male. Since the initial cohort, all mentors are from racially and ethnically diverse backgrounds. Mentors represent a range of nursing roles, including staff nurse, nurse manager/director, clinical nursing supervisor, and nurse practitioner.
Evaluating the CLCDN mentoring component The mentoring component of the CLCDN was evaluated in summer 2010 via two surveys. Separate surveys were developed for the 36 mentors and 43 mentees that had, to that point, participated in the program.
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The mentor and mentee surveys consisted of the following three sections:
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Demographics: Included questions on gender, age, employment, education,
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country of origin, family history, religious and ethnic practices, and language
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Mentor/mentee evaluation: Separate batteries were used for mentors and mentees. Mentors were asked to rate professional, interpersonal, and
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communication behaviors of mentees on a five-point Likert scale ranging from strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (5). Mentors who had more than one
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mentee were asked to rate each mentee separately. Mentees completed the Quality of Mentoring tool developed by Caine (1989), which asks mentees to rate their
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mentor on 14 attribute statements indicating behaviors that nurses have identified
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as significant in influencing their guidance and growth. Each statement was rated on a scale from 1 (least favorable) to 5 (most favorable).
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Additional qualitative questions: Consisted of four open-ended questions asking
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mentors and mentees to describe: (1) the importance of the CLCDN to them and their professional development, (2) aspects of the program they would change, (3) aspects of the program they would keep as is, and (4) any additional comments about the program and mentoring component.
Results Using SPSS 19.0., descriptive statistics for all variables were computed and examined for systematic and random missing data, the presence of outliers, and marked skewness. No
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT problems were detected. The four qualitative questions were analyzed using content
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analysis techniques (Waltz, Strickland & Lenz, 2010).
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Twenty-five mentors and 31 mentees completed surveys, for a response rate of 69 percent and 72 percent respectively. The demographics of survey respondents are summarized in
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Table 2. As expected, the mentors as a group were older: 52 percent of mentors versus
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three percent of mentees were age 46 or older, and eight percent of mentors versus 60 percent of mentees were age 30 or younger. The majority of the mentors (67 percent) had
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worked as a registered nurse for more than 10 years; all but eight percent had at least a BSN, and 17 percent had earned a master's or doctoral degree in nursing. Both groups are
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highly diverse: 58 percent of the mentors, and 68 percent of the mentees, were born
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outside the United States. The diversity of both groups is further reflected in the wide variety of countries that respondents listed as their parents' country of origin. Countries
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represented in addition to the United States include the Philippines, Cuba, Jamaica,
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Guatemala, Haiti, Columbia, Brazil, Cape Verde, Rwanda, Ghana, Kenya, Sierra Leone, China, Cameroon, and Vietnam.
Mentor ratings of mentees are presented in Table 3. Average ratings were generally high, with an average rating greater than 4 given to the mentees' manner (courteous and professional), ability to communicate and get along with others, coming prepared for meetings, suggesting ideas for discussion, and fully utilizing the time with mentors. The only item with an average score less than 4.0 related to whether mentees actively
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT participated in mentoring meetings. (A low score, indicating approval, was also obtained
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for whether mentees attempted to contact mentors during inappropriate hours.)
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Mentee rated mentors using the Caine tool (Table 4), which presents respondents with a series of related statements on which they are asked to rate the mentor on a scale of 1
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(unfavorable) to 5 (favorable). Average scores on all items were well above the midpoint,
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with the highest scores (4.0 or greater) given to items describing the mentors' caring, warmth, encouragement, and willingness to listen; enthusiasm for nursing and how they
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sparked the mentee's interest; and clarity regarding expectations for mentees and how
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Open Responses by Mentees
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they pushed mentees to achieve high standards.
Mentee responses to the open-ended questions were also favorable and indicated strong
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support for the mentoring component. Mentee responses to the question regarding the
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importance of the CLCDN to the mentee and his/her professional development yielded four themes. The theme most commonly observed related to the positive impact of mentors and the CLCDN program as a whole. Mentees identified their mentors as positive, professional role models, whose support, encouragement, and guidance helped them succeed academically and professionally. Additionally, mentees appreciated the guidance mentors provided during the job application and interview process, and the networking skills they learned through the CLCDN's group activities. In one representative comment, a mentee wrote: "The CLCDN program has been very formative and informative. It has helped to increase my networking, boost my confidence, refine my
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT leadership skills, and foster my communication skills. The mentorship part of [the program] has helped me to grow professionally and prioritize during nursing care and
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various assessments." The second most common theme pertained to personal growth.
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Specifically, mentees indicated that mentor support increased mentees’ confidence and strengthened their belief in their own potential. They also reported feeling personally
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responsible for their own development and for excelling and achieving more, and for
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becoming a strong representative of the CLCDN program. The remaining two themes related to the financial support provided by the program and how it allowed mentees to
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focus on their studies, and the clinical knowledge mentees gained from shadowing their mentors and obtaining advice on patient assessment, priority setting, and other care
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concerns.
When asked which aspects of the program they would keep (open response question
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two), mentees indicated support for all parts of the CLCDN program, but highlighted the
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mentorship component, financial support, and networking opportunities as especially valuable. While the mentees consistently identified the mentorship component as the program's strongest, they also offered suggestions for how it could be improved (open response question three), including creating more opportunities for face-to-face meetings with mentors, strengthening the mentee evaluation process, and placing more emphasis on a student's nursing interests when matching mentors and mentees. Other suggestions for program improvement included having more group discussions about transitioning to the workplace as a minority nurse, and developing opportunities for former CLCDN students to give back to the community by volunteering with underserved populations.
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The mentees used open response question four as an opportunity to describe their
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mentoring experience and involvement in the CLCDN as overwhelmingly positive. One
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mentee noted, “My mentoring experience has been nothing but great. As a male in the nursing field there are a lot of challenges that you will face, and having a male mentor
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has not only prepared me for those challenges but has given me the tools I need to
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survive as a male nurse in nursing.” Another mentee noted: "[The program was] excellent overall. My nursing trajectory would have been different without it. I had
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opportunities to meet very dynamic, inspirational women of color with PhDs [who] have
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Open Responses by Mentors
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given me sound advice and have been [in]vested in my career.”
The mentors also indicated strong support for the CLCDN program in their open
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responses. Responses to a question about the importance of the CLCDN to the mentor's
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professional development yielded four themes, the most common relating to mentors’ personal growth as a result of the program. Mentors noted that by participating in the program they gained confidence, developed leadership and teaching skills, and were exposed to programs and initiatives within their hospitals that they were previously unaware of. The second most prevalent theme related to the gratification mentors experienced by giving back to the profession. Mentors described the role as "rewarding and exciting", eliciting "sense of pride" by allowing mentors to "give back" and “share knowledge" about the nursing profession. One mentor wrote: "It [the CLCDN] offers
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT something that I wish I had when I was a new nurse, and I feel honored to be involved
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and give back."
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The two remaining themes from open response question one pertained to the clinical skills and knowledge mentors acquired by working with mentees, and the importance of
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sharing issues and stories about cultural challenges and culturally rewarding experiences.
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Wrote one mentor: “It [the CLCDN] allowed me to further enhance my leadership skills, my teaching skills, and to work with like-minded individuals who understand that
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minority nursing students often need more support in order to navigate through both the clinical and political issues and concerns of the hospital's systems.” Another wrote:
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“Cultural subconscious bias exists and it may influence trusting relationships and care.
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The CLCDN program allows us to share issues and stories that are culturally
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challenging and culturally rewarding.”
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Mentors uniformly reported that all aspects of the program should be maintained, but singled mentor/mentee group activities and the opportunity to follow mentees after they graduate and through their first year of employment as particularly important. When asked what they would change, mentors suggested increasing the frequency of mentor and mentee meetings, and strengthening communication between mentors and program directors through more regularly scheduled meetings to allow for more preparation for the mentor role, as well as to address challenges faced during the mentoring process.
In responding to the request for additional comments, the mentors reiterated how the program impacted them personally and highlighted the importance of the program for the 18
ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT nursing profession and for nurses of diverse backgrounds. Wrote one mentor: "Not only
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[do] the students learn from us, but…we as mentors learn with them as well."
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Student Attrition and Nurse Turnover
To date, none of the 64 students participating in the CLCDN have dropped out of the
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program. Of the 53 students that have graduated, 38 were hired by a Partners institution,
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4 were hired by institutions outside the Partners network, and 11 students (from the cohort graduating in June 2012) are actively seeking employment. Among the nurses
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hired by non-Partners agencies, one had to move out of state for family reasons and several others were encouraged to gain experience in a less acute setting before seeking
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employment in acute care. Retention among the graduates employed by Partners is high,
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with only one nurse leaving the Partners network (two other nurses have moved from one
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Discussion
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Partners institution to another).
Bridging the academic and service environments, the CLCDN serves to enhance the diversity of the partnering organizations while helping students forge an identity that embraces their racial and ethnic heritage and their stature as a professional nurse. Graduation and job retention data, and data obtained through the mentor and mentee surveys, highlight the program's effectiveness and the importance of the mentorship component. Survey respondents consistently identify the mentoring component as the program's strongest and most valuable element and point to the way mentors served as
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT role models, boosted mentee confidence, and helped them appreciate the opportunities
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afforded by nursing.
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Multiple factors contributed to the success of the mentoring program; specifically, the partnership between UMB and the Partners agencies, which ensured the availability of a
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broad range of expert resources, served to eliminate the boundaries that typically exist
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between academe and service organizations, and allowed the mentoring component to extend beyond the academic period into the first year of employment. Frequent
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communication between the academe and service co-directors allowed the co-directors to quickly identify and resolve any issues that arose, such as mentor/mentee conflicts and
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academic pressure faced by mentees. By maintaining a collegial relationship and working
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collaboratively to solve problems, the co-directors were able to prevent the exacerbation of minor problems and readily identify issues that required the attention of the steering
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committee. Also critical to the program's success was the availability of a rich and
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diverse mentor pool made up of nurses with clinical and leadership expertise. The mentors' success as minority nurses working in complex organizations prepared them to serve as guides, consultants, and confidantes for their younger colleagues.
Since the surveys were administered, the program co-directors and CLCDN steering committee have introduced a number of improvements. For example, in response to mentors' request for more preparation and support, a mentoring handbook developed by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN, 2011) has been made available. The handbook offers guidance for establishing goals with mentees, as well as
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT ideas and suggestions for strengthening the mentoring relationship. Steering committee members have begun scheduling more frequent and structured meetings with the mentors
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in their institutions, using the meetings to provide focused guidance and support.
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Educational offerings for mentors and mentees have also been expanded, with the addition of workshops addressing topics such as public speaking and interviewing skills.
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In response to mentees' requests for enhancements to the mentee evaluation process, the
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co-directors and steering committee have developed a tool that mentors will use to formally evaluate mentees to supplement clinical faculty and preceptor evaluation and
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yield a comprehensive assessment of students’ transition into practice and the
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effectiveness of the program.
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Members of the steering committee now connect directly with students who are assigned to their institutions, and support mentors and students in accessing support for projects
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and arranging meetings with nurse leaders and representatives from human resources.
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Meanwhile, another major initiative has involved the creation of a second arm of the CLCDN. This arm is dedicated to helping racially and ethnically diverse Partners nurses obtain a master's or doctoral degree in nursing, thus positioning them for managerial, academic, and advanced practice roles. Introduced in 2011, the new program has already attracted several CLCDN mentors and awarded them scholarships to advance their education.
Efforts to develop and maintain the CLCDN and the mentoring component have not been without their challenges. As interest in the program has grown, so has the need for a
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT larger pool of mentors. To meet this need, co-directors and steering committee members encourage non-participating Partners agencies to become involved and identify potential
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nurse mentors. Meanwhile, graduates from early CLCDN cohorts have also begun to
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serve as mentors and thus support the next generation of racially and ethnically diverse nursing students. However, helping students secure appropriate nursing positions after
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graduation has become a greater challenge as the economy has faltered and the number of
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open nursing positions has declined. Completing clinical placements at Partners has proved advantageous to CLCDN students, as many have been have been offered jobs on
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units in which they completed clinical placements. The mentors have also helped students by working with them to identify clinical areas that match their clinical interests and that
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are open to hiring new graduates.
The CLCDN program's graduation rate (100 percent), low rate of turnover among
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Partners-employed CLCDN nurses, and favorable ratings by mentors and mentees are
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testament to the success of the CLCDN and the mentoring component. Equally compelling are the affirmations offered by CLCDN students themselves. In the words of one student: "The CLCDN program has given me the opportunity to have a mentor ...[and] to surround myself with competent and supportive people, which will allow me to grow in whatever specialty I decide to pursue in the future. The…encourages leadership and focuses on diversity, which gives me confidence that I can accomplish anything in my nursing career if I set my priorities straight and focus on my future goals."
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT In conclusion, the CLCDN is an academic/service collaboration that has successfully guided mentees through baccalaureate programs of nursing and into the workforce.
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CLCDN mentors have been enriched by their time with the mentees, and Partners
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HealthCare has become more diverse.
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT References American Association of Colleges of Nursing [AACN]. (2011a). Enhancing diversity in
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the workforce. Retrieved from http://www.aacn.nche.edu/media-relations/fact-
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sheets/enhancing-diversity
American Association of Colleges of Nursing [AACN]. (2011). The AACN mentoring
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handbook. Published by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the American
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Association of Colleges of Nursing for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation New Careers in Nursing Scholarship Program. Washington, D.C.: Author.
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American Organization of Nurse Executives (AONE). (2005). Diversity. Retrieved from http://www.aone.org/resources/leadership%20tools/diversity.shtml
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Baker, B.H. (2010). Faculty ratings of retention strategies for minority nursing students.
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Nursing Education Perspectives, 31(4), 216-220. Banister, G., & Gennaro, S. (2012). Mentorship and best practices for mentorship. In:
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Ives Erickson, J., Jones, D. and Ditomassi, M. (Eds) Fostering Nurse-Led Care Professional Practice for the Bedside from Massachusetts General Hospital , (pp.197-215) Sigma Theta Tau
Indianapolis, IN.
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International,
Banister, G., & Winfrey, M.E. (2012). Enhancing diversity in nursing: A partnership approach. Journal of Nursing Administration, 42(3), 176-81. Beacham, T., Askew, R.W., & William, P.R. (2009). Strategies to increase racial/ethnic student participation in the nursing profession. The ABNF Journal, 20(3), 69-72. Caine, R.M. (1989). A comparative survey of mentoring and job satisfaction: Perceptions of clinical nurse specialists (Doctoral dissertation). Retrieved from University Microfilms International. (Order No. 8918736).
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT Carr, P.L., Palepu, A., Szalacha, L., Caswell, C., & Inui, T. (2007). "Flying below the radar": A qualitative study of minority experience and management of
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discrimination in academic medicine. Medical Education, 41(6), 601-609.
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Dorsey, L.E., & Baker, C.M. (2004). Mentoring undergraduate nursing students: Assessing the state of the science. Nurse Educator, 29(6), 260-265.
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Ehrich, L., Tennent, L., & Hansford, B. (2002). A review of mentoring in education:
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Some lessons for nursing. Contemporary Nurse, 12, 253-264. Gardner, J. (2005a). Barriers influencing the success of racial and ethnic minority
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students in nursing programs. Journal of Transcultural Nursing, 16(2), 155-62. Gardner, J. (2005b). A successful minority retention project. Journal of Nursing
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Education, 44(12), 566-568.
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Georges, C. (2012). Project to expand diversity in the nursing workforce. Nursing Management, 19(2), 22-26.
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Health Resources and Services Administration [HRSA]. (September 2010). The
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registered nurse population: Findings from the 2008 National Sample Survey of registered nurses. Retrieved from http://bhpr.hrsa.gov/healthworkforce/rnsurveys/rnsurveyfinal.pdf Hoffart, N., Waddell, A., & Young, M.B. (2011). A model of new nurse transition. Journal of Professional Nursing, 27(6), 334-343. Institute of Medicine. (2010). The future of nursing: Leading change, advancing health. Retrieved from http://www.iom.edu/Reports/2010/The-Future-of-NursingLeading-Change-Advancing-Health.aspx
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT Institute of Medicine. (2004). In the Nation’s Compelling Interest: Ensuring Diversity in the Health Care Workforce. Retrieved from
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http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?isbn=030909125X
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Loftin C., Newman S.D., Dumas, B.P., Gilden, G., & Bond, M.L. (2012). Perceived barriers to success for minority nursing students: An integrative review (Article
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ID 806543). ISRN Nursing, Vol. 2012. Retrieved from
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http://www.isrn.com/journals/nursing/2012/806543/ doi: 10.5402/2012/806543 McCloughen, A., O'Brien, L., & Jackson, D. (2009). Esteemed connection: Creating a
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mentoring relationship for nurse leadership. Nursing Inquiry, 16(4), 326-336. Nunez-Smith, M., Curry, L.A., Bigby, .J, Berg, D., Krumholz, H.M., & Bradley, E.H.
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(2007). Impact of race on the lives of physicians of African descent. Annals of
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Internal Medicine, 145(1), 45-51. O'Brien, J., Ringland, M., Wilson, S. (2010). Advancing nursing leadership in long-term
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care. Nursing Leadership, 23 (special 2010), 75-89.
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Partnership for 21st Century Skills. (2011). Framework for 21st century learning. Partnership for 21st Century Skills Web-site. Retrieved from http://p21.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=254&Itemid=120 Waltz, C., Strickland, O., & Lenz, E. (2010). Measurement in Nursing and Health Research (4th ed.). NY: Springer. Washington, D., Erickson, J.I., & Ditomassi, M. (2004). Mentoring the minority nurse leader of tomorrow. Nursing Administration Quarterly, 28(3), 165-169.
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT Wilson, A., Sanner, S., & McAllister, L. (2010). An evaluation study of a mentoring program to increase the diversity of the nursing workforce. Journal of Cultural
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Diversity, 17(4), 144-150.
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT Acknowledgments The authors would like to thank Jariza Rodriguez, administrative assistant for the
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CLCDN in the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at the University of
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Massachusetts Boston, for her invaluable support for program operations; the Partners HealthCare Chief Nurse Council for their ongoing guidance and support, the members of
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the CLCDN Steering Committee for their help in making the program the best it can be;
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Mary Duffy, RN, PhD, FAAN, senior nurse scientist, the Yvonne L. Munn Center for Nursing Research, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, for her support with data
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analysis, writing, and editing; Cara Marcus, MSLIS, AHIP, director of library services, Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital, Boston, for her help with article retrieval, the
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CLCDN students and mentors for their creativity, enthusiasm, and professionalism; and
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Beth Kantz, RN, MS of Corrigan Kantz Consulting for writing and editing support.
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Table 1. Expectations for CLCDN Mentors and Mentees
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Expectations for Mentors: Attend orientation and other CLCDN meetings and informal gatherings Advise mentee on life skills and leadership and professional development Meet/dialogue with mentee on a regular basis, but no less than once per week to discuss activities, reflections, assignments, and interactions that affect the attainment of mentee goals and 21st century skills, and facilitate the mentee's transition to a graduate nurse at a Partners HealthCare agency Assist with leadership skill development by facilitating mentee attendance at agency leadership and policy meetings and other forums such as diversity workshops and nursing grand rounds Facilitate the mentee's acquisition of knowledge concerning the agency organizational structure, nursing structure and function, expectations of graduate nurses, examples of 21st century skills, and strategies for success Meet at least once during the semester with the program co-director to review mentee's progress Consult with the program co-director as needed on any mentee activities or issues of concern Work with the program co-director to facilitate the mentee's transition to the role of a Partners HealthCare nurse Work with the mentee on a presentation or activity that requires the use of 21st century skills Submit suggestions for program improvement
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Expectations for Mentees Attend orientation and other CLCDN meetings and informal gatherings Maintain a journal, recording reflections regarding activities, assignments, and interactions that affect attainment of goals and 21st century skills and that facilitate your transition to a graduate nurse at a Partners HealthCare agency Meet/dialogue with mentor on a regular basis but no less than once per week; journal how your mentor is assisting you in meeting your goals and developing 21st century skills Engage in activities and mentor discussions that facilitate the acquisition of knowledge concerning your goals and 21st century skills, strategies for success in a Partners Healthcare agency, agency's organizational and nursing structure, leadership opportunities, agency philosophy and how it is actualized Work with the mentor to develop a presentation or engage in an activity that requires use of 21st century skills Consult with the program co-director regarding any CLCDN issues and to maximize attainment of program objectives Meet with faculty advisor/program co-director for academic advising Submit suggestions for program improvement
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Table 2. Survey Respondents — Demographics Characteristic
Mentors
Mentees
Gender
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92% 8%
Female Male
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4% 4% 12% 16% 12% 16% 36%
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21-25 26-30 31-35 36-40 41-45 46-50 over 50 Years worked as a Registered Nurse 2-5 years 6-10 years 11-15 years 16-19 years 20-30 years > 30 years Highest nursing degree earned ADN BSN Master's Doctoral Born outside USA Religious preference Catholic Jewish Protestant Hindu/Buddhism Islamic/Muslim Other None
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Age
63% 37% 33% 27% 17% 10% 10% 3% 0 NA
8% 25% 21% 4% 17% 25% NA 8% 75% 13% 4% 58%
68%
43% 0% 9% 0% 0% 30% 17%
41% 0% 17% 3% 3% 28% 7%
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Item Manner is courteous and professional Able to get along well with others Communicates effectively Comes prepared for meetings Fully utilizes time with mentor Suggests ideas for discussion/places to attend Actively participates in mentoring meetings Attempts to contact mentor during inappropriate hours
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Table 3. Mentor Ratings of Mentees
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Mean (std deviation) 5.0 (0.00) 4.45 (0.67) 4.41 (0.80) 4.23 (.81) 4.23 (0.87) 4.23 (0.75) 3.41 (0.67) 2.05 (1.29)
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Table 4. Mentee Ratings of Mentors
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Item Willing to listen and help, warm and caring; extremely encouraging; available to me if I got discouraged Gave me a picture of what nursing can be; enthusiastic; sparked my interest; showed me possibilities Enthusiastic and exciting; very dynamic; made it fascinating Very clear what she/he wanted from me; pushed me to achieve high standards; kept prodding me if I allowed myself to slack off Taught me how to set priorities; to develop interpersonal skills; guided me on patient problems; said 'Let's see how you could have done it better' Bouncing things off her/him brings things into focus; eloquently speaks for professional issues; like to discuss them with her/him; would discuss issues, problems, goals Gave me a lot of positive and negative feedback; let me know if I wasn't doing it right and helped me examine it Let me try new things and helped me figure it out; we looked at my strengths and created a way to use them to benefit nursing Spotted me and worked with me more than other nurses; invested in me; saw my capabilities and pushed me Impressed with mentor's ability; respected and admired mentor Got me started on a 5-year career plan; I went to her/him when I was trying to sort out where I wanted to go in my career; I could trust him/her Opened my eyes; got me interested in research; helped me understand the politics of the hospital; why you had to look at the total impact something has on the hospital Made inservices available; included me in discussions; said I want you to represent me on this committee
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Mean (std deviation) 4.31 (1.11) 4.17 (1.07) 4.0 (1.25) 4.0 (1.16) 3.83 (1.23) 3.79 (1.37)
3.79 (1.34) 3.75 (1.35) 3.68 (1.31) 3.48 (0.99) 3.41 (1.57) 3.31 (1.31)
3.11 (1.31)
S8755-7223(13)00187-7 doi: 10.1016/j.profnurs.2013.11.001 YJPNU 799
To appear in:
Journal of Professional Nursing
Please cite this article as: Banister, G., Bowen-Brady, H.M. & Winfrey, M.E., Using Career Nurse Mentors to Support Minority Nursing Students and Facilitate Their Transition to Practice, Journal of Professional Nursing (2013), doi: 10.1016/j.profnurs.2013.11.001
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT Using Career Nurse Mentors to Support Minority Nursing Students and Facilitate
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Their Transition to Practice
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Authors: Gaurdia Banister, PhD, RN, executive director, The Institute for Patient Care,
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Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA; Helene M. Bowen-Brady, BSN, MEd, RN-BC, central educator, Department of Nursing Professional and Practice Development,
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Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital, Boston, MA; Marion E. Winfrey, EdD, RN, associate dean, College of Nursing and Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts
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Corresponding author:
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Boston, Boston, MA
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Gaurdia Banister, PhD, RN
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The Institute for Patient Care Massachusetts General Hospital 55 Fruit Street FND3 Boston, MA 02114 [email protected] 617-724-1266
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Abstract
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The Clinical Leadership Collaborative for Diversity in Nursing (CLCDN) was developed
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through an academe-service partnership focused on supporting minority nursing students and facilitating transition to practice. A key program element is mentoring. Students are
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paired with an experienced, minority clinical nurse or nurse leader from one of the
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partnering agencies, who helps guide the student throughout the junior and senior year of school and first year of employment. The mentoring component was evaluated through
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surveys in which mentors and mentees rated one another and offered open-ended comments on the program's impact. Aspects of mentees rated highest by mentors include
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manner (courteous and professional), ability to communicate and get along with others,
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preparation for meetings, and fully utilizing their time with mentors. Aspects of mentors rated highest by mentees include warmth, encouragement, and willingness to listen;
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enthusiasm for nursing and how they sparked the mentee's interest; and clarity regarding
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expectations for mentees and how they pushed mentees to achieve high standards. In the open-ended comments, mentees consistently identified mentoring as the program's strongest component. Sixty-four minority students have participated to date with a zero rate of attrition and very low job turnover among graduates.
Index Words: Diversity, Mentorship, Mentor, Minority, Workforce Development
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT Introduction Numerous professional organizations, including the American Association of Colleges of
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Nursing (2011a), the American Organization of Nurse Executives (AONE, 2005), and the
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Institute of Medicine (IOM, 2010), have called on nurse educators and nurse leaders of service institutions to increase the diversity of the nursing workforce. The challenge is
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compelling in light of research that links minority providers to improved access to care
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and satisfaction among minority patients, as well as research that suggests minority clinicians can be instrumental in addressing cultural and linguistic factors that negatively
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impact minority patient outcomes (IOM, 2004). However, a noteworthy gap persists between the racial and ethnic diversity of the US population and that of the nursing
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workforce. Individuals from racial and ethnic minority groups make up 34.4 percent of
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the US population, but only 16.8 percent of nurses (Health Resources and Services Administration, 2010). While the data from academe are promising, indicating that
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minorities made up 22.5 percent of nursing school graduates in 2005-2008 (up from 21.5
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percent in 2001-2004), the incremental progress indicates that more needs to be done if nursing is to achieve representative diversity.
Even after racially and ethnically diverse students gain access to nursing programs, they face a number of challenges that contribute to attrition and impede their success, including financial constraints, linguistic differences, academic demands, social isolation and loneliness, encounters with discrimination and racism, and a lack of cultural knowledge and understanding among peers (Gardner, 2005a; IOM, 2004; Loftin, Newman, Dumas, Gilden, & Bond, 2012). The challenges continue after graduation, as
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT evidenced by reports from minority health professionals who describe how race-related experiences influence their interpersonal interactions at work, and how they feel
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pressured to be strongly self-reliant and repeatedly "prove" themselves to others (Carr,
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Palepu, Szalacha, Caswell, & Inui, 2007; Nunez-Smith, Curry, Bigby, Berg, Krumholz, & Bradley, 2007). The low numbers of minority faculty and nurse administrators
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available to serve as mentors and role models compounds the difficulties and sense of
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isolation many minority nurses experience in school and work settings. (Loftin et al., 2012)
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Nursing programs have used a variety of approaches to attract individuals from racial and ethnic minority groups to nursing and ensure their academic success. The strategies
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include partnering with high schools to encourage minority students to consider nursing
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as a career (Georges, 2012); supporting minority students through the nursing school application process and, if needed by the student, providing those who are accepted with
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tutoring and academic counseling (Beacham, Askew, & Williams, 2009); and pairing
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minority students with mentors who provide role modeling and academic guidance and support (Wilson, Sanner, & McAllister, 2010). While these strategies may be helpful in supporting nursing students through school, they do little to prepare students for the challenges they will face as minority nurses in the workplace.
In 2007, the College of Nursing and Health Sciences (CNHS) at the University of Massachusetts Boston (UMB), Boston’s only public baccalaureate and higher degreegranting college of nursing, and Partners HealthCare, an integrated healthcare delivery system that serves New England and includes multiple community and specialty
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT hospitals, developed a unique program that is specially designed to further meet the academic goals of racially and ethnically diverse nursing students and help them launch
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their nursing careers (Banister & Winfrey, 2012). Offering a blend of academic guidance,
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financial support, and career mentoring, the Clinical Leadership Collaborative for Diversity in Nursing (CLCDN) has helped 64 minority nursing students, providing
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support during their junior and senior years of study and helping graduates transition into
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the role of professional nurses. A unique and critical element of the CLCDN is the mentoring component, which pairs each student with an experienced, minority clinical
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nurse or nurse leader from a Partners HealthCare agency. By serving as role models, counselors, and coaches for the students, the mentors help students forge an identity that
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embraces their racial and ethnic heritage and their stature as professional nurses.
The purpose of this article is to examine how others have used mentors to support racially
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and ethnically diverse nursing students, and to present the CLCDN mentoring component
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as a potential model for use in academe and service. Evaluation data describing the experiences of CLCDN mentors and mentees are presented, along with descriptions of the CLCDN's non-mentoring components, program outcomes, and lessons learned.
Mentoring in Nursing Mentoring within nursing has evolved from a largely informal, discretionary activity involving self-selected relationships, into formal programs designed to support and promote nurses' professional development. (Ehrich, Tennent, & Hansford, 2002)
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT Through the mentoring process, an experienced and knowledgeable person helps a junior or novice professional learn to negotiate a new role or environment, and in the process
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transmits values, skills, and knowledge (Banister & Gennaro, 2012). A traditional
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mentoring relationship blends career functions, such as teaching, coaching, protecting, and sponsoring, with psychosocial functions, such as role modeling, counseling, and
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friendship, that provide emotional support and boost the mentee's confidence and sense of
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self-worth (Dorsey & Baker, 2004).
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Many nursing programs now use mentors to support and reduce attrition among minority students. At Lehman College of the City University of New York faculty members
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provide mentoring to nursing students as part of a multi-faceted initiative to interest
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Hispanic high school students in nursing as a career and support them through the nursing program (Georges, 2012). In another example, faculty members who mentored minority
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students attributed the mentoring program's success largely to workshops designed to
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increase their knowledge about the mentoring process and the challenges facing minority students (Wilson et al., 2010). Meanwhile, a baccalaureate program in California, for example, paired students who spoke English as a second language with English-as-a-firstlanguage students as a means of promoting friendships and cultural understanding, and also created a mentoring network of minority community nurses to provide role models, confidantes, and a support system for minority students (Gardner, 2005b).
Mentoring is also used increasingly in hospitals and other service organizations. It has been identified as an important strategy for supporting and developing new nurse leaders
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help new graduates cope with the challenges associated with the transition process
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(Hoffart, Waddell, & Young, 2011).
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The mentoring process offer mutual benefits to mentors and mentees. Studies examining
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mentoring in nursing and education suggest that mentees experience decreased anxiety and stress, enhanced self esteem, increased socialization with colleagues, and benefit
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from the support, empathy, encouragement, and assistance with problem solving provided by mentors. For mentors, the process offers an opportunity to strengthen
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leadership skills, enhances their self-worth, fosters collegiality and reflection, and
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cultivates a sense of personal satisfaction. (Dorsey and Baker, 2004; Ehrich, et al., 2002)
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In constructing the mentoring component of the CLCDN, the program developers built
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on the literature to craft a mentoring model aimed at supporting two key program objectives: to help qualified minority students obtain a baccalaureate degree from UMB, and to support each student's transition into employment as a practicing nurse in a Partners institution. To achieve these objectives, the program developers determined that career mentors would work with students during the more rigorous final two years of the baccalaureate program, as well as during the vulnerable first year following graduation, when students face the difficult tasks of transitioning into their first jobs, forming positive relationships with nursing colleagues, and working independently as professional nurses.
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT CLCDN Structure and Mentoring Component UMB nursing faculty and nurse leaders from Partners HealthCare agencies collaborated
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to define the program goals, structure, and eligibility and performance criteria of the
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CLCDN and, in 2007, the program launched. Nurse leaders from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), a founding member of Partners HealthCare, took the lead in working
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with CNHS to design the program. Nurse leaders representing four additional Partners
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agencies soon joined the program steering committee. The steering committee reports to the CNHS dean, MGH chief nurse, and other members of the Partners chief nurse
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council, and works with the program's two co-directors to help guide the program. The co-directors — the associate dean of the CNHS at UMB, and the executive director of the
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Institute for Patient Care at MGH — are both doctorally-prepared nurses of color and
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share responsibility for all aspects of program operations, monitoring, and development.
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The CLCDN's overarching goal is to realize a vision of diversity within the partnering
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organizations by facilitating the progression of racially and ethnically diverse students through the generic undergraduate nursing program at UMB, and supporting their transition to registered nurse positions in Partners facilities. Program eligibility and performance criteria are designed to assure that students in the program are on a trajectory consistent with working in complex care environments, such as those encountered in Partners organizations. In addition to being a member of a racial or ethnic minority group, students eligible for the CLCDN must be entering the UMB nursing program's junior year (although in the program's first year, senior students were also accepted), have a grade point average of 3.0 or greater, and demonstrate a record of
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT leadership through letters of recommendation and participation in professional and community leadership activities. Participants are selected by the program steering
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committee and are expected to maintain good academic standing and a GPA of at least
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3.0, demonstrate leadership in a tangible manner, and complete the nursing major within
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the specified timeframe.
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CLCDN participants are provided with a range of resources in support of their academic success. Some of these are available to all UMB students, while others were developed
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specifically for the CLCDN. The resources include individualized academic counseling, workshops to help students master collegiate and professional skills, stress management
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programs, peer tutoring and mentoring, and NCLEX preparation support. CLCDN
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students also receive financial support covering tuition and fees, and a stipend for expenses, in order to alleviate the financial strain experienced by many minority students,
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and to decrease the chance that students will suspend their studies for financial reasons.
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The funds are provided by Partners HealthCare, with the understanding that in exchange students will limit their external employment during the fall and spring semesters to less than 20 hours per week (and work preferably at a Partners agency), and will pursue full time employment as an RN in a Partners institution for a period of time equal to the number of years they participated in the CLCDN upon graduation.
Resources provided to CLCDN students in the clinical setting are designed to help them gain the skills needed to transition to independent practice in a Partners institution. All CLCDN participants complete their senior preceptorship and as many other clinical
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT experiences as possible at a Partners agency under the guidance of UMB clinical instructors and Partners nursing staff and preceptors. Additionally, each student is paired
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with a career mentor, who provides individualized support and guidance throughout the
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student's junior and senior years, and for at least one year following graduation.
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Mentoring component
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The career mentor role is a voluntary position open to experienced minority nurses who have successfully defined a nursing career path within a Partners agency. Mentors are
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recruited by the program co-director from MGH with the help of the steering committee. Using minority nurses assures that the career mentors have a first-hand understanding of
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the unique challenges facing minority students and nurses.
Using information obtained from advisory sessions with students, steering group
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members, and the mentors and their managers, the program co-directors assign each
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CLCDN student a career mentor upon the student's acceptance into the program. After mentors are assigned, the mentors and mentees each receive a copy of a resource book that provides details about the CLCDN program and the UMB nursing curriculum and outlines expectations for mentors and mentees (Table 1). In addition to a training session, in which the co-directors review and discuss the UMB nursing program, the CLCDN's goals and purpose, and the mentoring role, mentors meet with the co-directors and steering committee members on a scheduled and as-needed basis to discuss any concerns.
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT The goal of the mentoring component is to have mentors and mentees establish a mutually respectful relationship that allows for honest dialogue and reflection, focusing
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on leadership skills and how to succeed as a minority nurse in a Partners HealthCare
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agency. As noted in Table 1, mentors and mentees are expected to connect on a regular basis to reconcile the mentee's assignments and other activities with their learning
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objectives. Mentors are also expected to facilitate shadowing, interviews, and other
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activities aimed at helping mentees learn what it means to be a nurse within a Partners organization. By observing their mentor's practice, interviewing other nurse leaders, and
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attending organizational and unit meetings focused on practice and policy issues, the mentees witness the application of critical "21st century skills" (e.g., critical thinking and
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problem solving, flexibility and adaptability, initiative and self-direction) — that are
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increasingly needed to succeed in complex organizations (Partnership for 21st Century Skills, 2011). Mentors are encouraged to use the activities as a starting point for
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discussion about nursing roles, expectations, and their own experiences as racially and
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ethnically diverse nurses in Partners institutions. Additionally, mentors are required to maintain a log of their meetings with mentees and mentees are required to maintain a journal, which are reviewed during meetings with the program co-directors.
Mentors and mentees are also required to attend educational offerings planned by the CLCDN and content experts to facilitate leadership development, foster a sense of community, serve as a venue for discussing shared concerns and experiences, and learn about useful topics, such as interviewing skills, speaking with confidence, the HR
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licensed nurse.
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Program Implementation
In the fall of 2007, , the first student cohort included seven seniors and 11 juniors from
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Asian, African, African American, and Latino backgrounds, of which four were male and
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14 female. Fourteen nurses from three Partners HealthCare facilities served as mentors, all but two of which were from racially and ethnically diverse backgrounds, and all of
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which had demonstrated leadership in their roles as staff nurses and nurse leaders.
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Additional cohorts were added each academic year. Between fall 2007 and June 2012, 64
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students participated in the CLCDN. Fifty-three students have graduated and 11 are still
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enrolled in the UMB nursing program.
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The mentor pool now includes 44 nurses from the five Partners HealthCare agencies, 3 of which are male. Since the initial cohort, all mentors are from racially and ethnically diverse backgrounds. Mentors represent a range of nursing roles, including staff nurse, nurse manager/director, clinical nursing supervisor, and nurse practitioner.
Evaluating the CLCDN mentoring component The mentoring component of the CLCDN was evaluated in summer 2010 via two surveys. Separate surveys were developed for the 36 mentors and 43 mentees that had, to that point, participated in the program.
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The mentor and mentee surveys consisted of the following three sections:
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Demographics: Included questions on gender, age, employment, education,
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country of origin, family history, religious and ethnic practices, and language
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Mentor/mentee evaluation: Separate batteries were used for mentors and mentees. Mentors were asked to rate professional, interpersonal, and
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communication behaviors of mentees on a five-point Likert scale ranging from strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (5). Mentors who had more than one
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mentee were asked to rate each mentee separately. Mentees completed the Quality of Mentoring tool developed by Caine (1989), which asks mentees to rate their
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mentor on 14 attribute statements indicating behaviors that nurses have identified
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as significant in influencing their guidance and growth. Each statement was rated on a scale from 1 (least favorable) to 5 (most favorable).
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Additional qualitative questions: Consisted of four open-ended questions asking
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mentors and mentees to describe: (1) the importance of the CLCDN to them and their professional development, (2) aspects of the program they would change, (3) aspects of the program they would keep as is, and (4) any additional comments about the program and mentoring component.
Results Using SPSS 19.0., descriptive statistics for all variables were computed and examined for systematic and random missing data, the presence of outliers, and marked skewness. No
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analysis techniques (Waltz, Strickland & Lenz, 2010).
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Twenty-five mentors and 31 mentees completed surveys, for a response rate of 69 percent and 72 percent respectively. The demographics of survey respondents are summarized in
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Table 2. As expected, the mentors as a group were older: 52 percent of mentors versus
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three percent of mentees were age 46 or older, and eight percent of mentors versus 60 percent of mentees were age 30 or younger. The majority of the mentors (67 percent) had
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worked as a registered nurse for more than 10 years; all but eight percent had at least a BSN, and 17 percent had earned a master's or doctoral degree in nursing. Both groups are
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highly diverse: 58 percent of the mentors, and 68 percent of the mentees, were born
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outside the United States. The diversity of both groups is further reflected in the wide variety of countries that respondents listed as their parents' country of origin. Countries
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represented in addition to the United States include the Philippines, Cuba, Jamaica,
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Guatemala, Haiti, Columbia, Brazil, Cape Verde, Rwanda, Ghana, Kenya, Sierra Leone, China, Cameroon, and Vietnam.
Mentor ratings of mentees are presented in Table 3. Average ratings were generally high, with an average rating greater than 4 given to the mentees' manner (courteous and professional), ability to communicate and get along with others, coming prepared for meetings, suggesting ideas for discussion, and fully utilizing the time with mentors. The only item with an average score less than 4.0 related to whether mentees actively
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for whether mentees attempted to contact mentors during inappropriate hours.)
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Mentee rated mentors using the Caine tool (Table 4), which presents respondents with a series of related statements on which they are asked to rate the mentor on a scale of 1
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(unfavorable) to 5 (favorable). Average scores on all items were well above the midpoint,
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with the highest scores (4.0 or greater) given to items describing the mentors' caring, warmth, encouragement, and willingness to listen; enthusiasm for nursing and how they
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sparked the mentee's interest; and clarity regarding expectations for mentees and how
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Open Responses by Mentees
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they pushed mentees to achieve high standards.
Mentee responses to the open-ended questions were also favorable and indicated strong
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support for the mentoring component. Mentee responses to the question regarding the
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importance of the CLCDN to the mentee and his/her professional development yielded four themes. The theme most commonly observed related to the positive impact of mentors and the CLCDN program as a whole. Mentees identified their mentors as positive, professional role models, whose support, encouragement, and guidance helped them succeed academically and professionally. Additionally, mentees appreciated the guidance mentors provided during the job application and interview process, and the networking skills they learned through the CLCDN's group activities. In one representative comment, a mentee wrote: "The CLCDN program has been very formative and informative. It has helped to increase my networking, boost my confidence, refine my
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT leadership skills, and foster my communication skills. The mentorship part of [the program] has helped me to grow professionally and prioritize during nursing care and
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various assessments." The second most common theme pertained to personal growth.
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Specifically, mentees indicated that mentor support increased mentees’ confidence and strengthened their belief in their own potential. They also reported feeling personally
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responsible for their own development and for excelling and achieving more, and for
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becoming a strong representative of the CLCDN program. The remaining two themes related to the financial support provided by the program and how it allowed mentees to
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focus on their studies, and the clinical knowledge mentees gained from shadowing their mentors and obtaining advice on patient assessment, priority setting, and other care
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concerns.
When asked which aspects of the program they would keep (open response question
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two), mentees indicated support for all parts of the CLCDN program, but highlighted the
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mentorship component, financial support, and networking opportunities as especially valuable. While the mentees consistently identified the mentorship component as the program's strongest, they also offered suggestions for how it could be improved (open response question three), including creating more opportunities for face-to-face meetings with mentors, strengthening the mentee evaluation process, and placing more emphasis on a student's nursing interests when matching mentors and mentees. Other suggestions for program improvement included having more group discussions about transitioning to the workplace as a minority nurse, and developing opportunities for former CLCDN students to give back to the community by volunteering with underserved populations.
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The mentees used open response question four as an opportunity to describe their
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mentoring experience and involvement in the CLCDN as overwhelmingly positive. One
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mentee noted, “My mentoring experience has been nothing but great. As a male in the nursing field there are a lot of challenges that you will face, and having a male mentor
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has not only prepared me for those challenges but has given me the tools I need to
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survive as a male nurse in nursing.” Another mentee noted: "[The program was] excellent overall. My nursing trajectory would have been different without it. I had
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opportunities to meet very dynamic, inspirational women of color with PhDs [who] have
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Open Responses by Mentors
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given me sound advice and have been [in]vested in my career.”
The mentors also indicated strong support for the CLCDN program in their open
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responses. Responses to a question about the importance of the CLCDN to the mentor's
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professional development yielded four themes, the most common relating to mentors’ personal growth as a result of the program. Mentors noted that by participating in the program they gained confidence, developed leadership and teaching skills, and were exposed to programs and initiatives within their hospitals that they were previously unaware of. The second most prevalent theme related to the gratification mentors experienced by giving back to the profession. Mentors described the role as "rewarding and exciting", eliciting "sense of pride" by allowing mentors to "give back" and “share knowledge" about the nursing profession. One mentor wrote: "It [the CLCDN] offers
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and give back."
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The two remaining themes from open response question one pertained to the clinical skills and knowledge mentors acquired by working with mentees, and the importance of
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sharing issues and stories about cultural challenges and culturally rewarding experiences.
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Wrote one mentor: “It [the CLCDN] allowed me to further enhance my leadership skills, my teaching skills, and to work with like-minded individuals who understand that
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minority nursing students often need more support in order to navigate through both the clinical and political issues and concerns of the hospital's systems.” Another wrote:
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“Cultural subconscious bias exists and it may influence trusting relationships and care.
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The CLCDN program allows us to share issues and stories that are culturally
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challenging and culturally rewarding.”
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Mentors uniformly reported that all aspects of the program should be maintained, but singled mentor/mentee group activities and the opportunity to follow mentees after they graduate and through their first year of employment as particularly important. When asked what they would change, mentors suggested increasing the frequency of mentor and mentee meetings, and strengthening communication between mentors and program directors through more regularly scheduled meetings to allow for more preparation for the mentor role, as well as to address challenges faced during the mentoring process.
In responding to the request for additional comments, the mentors reiterated how the program impacted them personally and highlighted the importance of the program for the 18
ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT nursing profession and for nurses of diverse backgrounds. Wrote one mentor: "Not only
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[do] the students learn from us, but…we as mentors learn with them as well."
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Student Attrition and Nurse Turnover
To date, none of the 64 students participating in the CLCDN have dropped out of the
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program. Of the 53 students that have graduated, 38 were hired by a Partners institution,
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4 were hired by institutions outside the Partners network, and 11 students (from the cohort graduating in June 2012) are actively seeking employment. Among the nurses
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hired by non-Partners agencies, one had to move out of state for family reasons and several others were encouraged to gain experience in a less acute setting before seeking
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employment in acute care. Retention among the graduates employed by Partners is high,
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with only one nurse leaving the Partners network (two other nurses have moved from one
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Discussion
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Partners institution to another).
Bridging the academic and service environments, the CLCDN serves to enhance the diversity of the partnering organizations while helping students forge an identity that embraces their racial and ethnic heritage and their stature as a professional nurse. Graduation and job retention data, and data obtained through the mentor and mentee surveys, highlight the program's effectiveness and the importance of the mentorship component. Survey respondents consistently identify the mentoring component as the program's strongest and most valuable element and point to the way mentors served as
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afforded by nursing.
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Multiple factors contributed to the success of the mentoring program; specifically, the partnership between UMB and the Partners agencies, which ensured the availability of a
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broad range of expert resources, served to eliminate the boundaries that typically exist
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between academe and service organizations, and allowed the mentoring component to extend beyond the academic period into the first year of employment. Frequent
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communication between the academe and service co-directors allowed the co-directors to quickly identify and resolve any issues that arose, such as mentor/mentee conflicts and
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academic pressure faced by mentees. By maintaining a collegial relationship and working
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collaboratively to solve problems, the co-directors were able to prevent the exacerbation of minor problems and readily identify issues that required the attention of the steering
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committee. Also critical to the program's success was the availability of a rich and
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diverse mentor pool made up of nurses with clinical and leadership expertise. The mentors' success as minority nurses working in complex organizations prepared them to serve as guides, consultants, and confidantes for their younger colleagues.
Since the surveys were administered, the program co-directors and CLCDN steering committee have introduced a number of improvements. For example, in response to mentors' request for more preparation and support, a mentoring handbook developed by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN, 2011) has been made available. The handbook offers guidance for establishing goals with mentees, as well as
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT ideas and suggestions for strengthening the mentoring relationship. Steering committee members have begun scheduling more frequent and structured meetings with the mentors
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in their institutions, using the meetings to provide focused guidance and support.
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Educational offerings for mentors and mentees have also been expanded, with the addition of workshops addressing topics such as public speaking and interviewing skills.
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In response to mentees' requests for enhancements to the mentee evaluation process, the
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co-directors and steering committee have developed a tool that mentors will use to formally evaluate mentees to supplement clinical faculty and preceptor evaluation and
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yield a comprehensive assessment of students’ transition into practice and the
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effectiveness of the program.
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Members of the steering committee now connect directly with students who are assigned to their institutions, and support mentors and students in accessing support for projects
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and arranging meetings with nurse leaders and representatives from human resources.
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Meanwhile, another major initiative has involved the creation of a second arm of the CLCDN. This arm is dedicated to helping racially and ethnically diverse Partners nurses obtain a master's or doctoral degree in nursing, thus positioning them for managerial, academic, and advanced practice roles. Introduced in 2011, the new program has already attracted several CLCDN mentors and awarded them scholarships to advance their education.
Efforts to develop and maintain the CLCDN and the mentoring component have not been without their challenges. As interest in the program has grown, so has the need for a
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT larger pool of mentors. To meet this need, co-directors and steering committee members encourage non-participating Partners agencies to become involved and identify potential
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nurse mentors. Meanwhile, graduates from early CLCDN cohorts have also begun to
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serve as mentors and thus support the next generation of racially and ethnically diverse nursing students. However, helping students secure appropriate nursing positions after
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graduation has become a greater challenge as the economy has faltered and the number of
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open nursing positions has declined. Completing clinical placements at Partners has proved advantageous to CLCDN students, as many have been have been offered jobs on
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units in which they completed clinical placements. The mentors have also helped students by working with them to identify clinical areas that match their clinical interests and that
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are open to hiring new graduates.
The CLCDN program's graduation rate (100 percent), low rate of turnover among
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Partners-employed CLCDN nurses, and favorable ratings by mentors and mentees are
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testament to the success of the CLCDN and the mentoring component. Equally compelling are the affirmations offered by CLCDN students themselves. In the words of one student: "The CLCDN program has given me the opportunity to have a mentor ...[and] to surround myself with competent and supportive people, which will allow me to grow in whatever specialty I decide to pursue in the future. The…encourages leadership and focuses on diversity, which gives me confidence that I can accomplish anything in my nursing career if I set my priorities straight and focus on my future goals."
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT In conclusion, the CLCDN is an academic/service collaboration that has successfully guided mentees through baccalaureate programs of nursing and into the workforce.
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CLCDN mentors have been enriched by their time with the mentees, and Partners
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HealthCare has become more diverse.
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT References American Association of Colleges of Nursing [AACN]. (2011a). Enhancing diversity in
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the workforce. Retrieved from http://www.aacn.nche.edu/media-relations/fact-
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sheets/enhancing-diversity
American Association of Colleges of Nursing [AACN]. (2011). The AACN mentoring
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handbook. Published by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the American
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Association of Colleges of Nursing for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation New Careers in Nursing Scholarship Program. Washington, D.C.: Author.
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American Organization of Nurse Executives (AONE). (2005). Diversity. Retrieved from http://www.aone.org/resources/leadership%20tools/diversity.shtml
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Baker, B.H. (2010). Faculty ratings of retention strategies for minority nursing students.
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Nursing Education Perspectives, 31(4), 216-220. Banister, G., & Gennaro, S. (2012). Mentorship and best practices for mentorship. In:
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Ives Erickson, J., Jones, D. and Ditomassi, M. (Eds) Fostering Nurse-Led Care Professional Practice for the Bedside from Massachusetts General Hospital , (pp.197-215) Sigma Theta Tau
Indianapolis, IN.
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Banister, G., & Winfrey, M.E. (2012). Enhancing diversity in nursing: A partnership approach. Journal of Nursing Administration, 42(3), 176-81. Beacham, T., Askew, R.W., & William, P.R. (2009). Strategies to increase racial/ethnic student participation in the nursing profession. The ABNF Journal, 20(3), 69-72. Caine, R.M. (1989). A comparative survey of mentoring and job satisfaction: Perceptions of clinical nurse specialists (Doctoral dissertation). Retrieved from University Microfilms International. (Order No. 8918736).
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT Carr, P.L., Palepu, A., Szalacha, L., Caswell, C., & Inui, T. (2007). "Flying below the radar": A qualitative study of minority experience and management of
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discrimination in academic medicine. Medical Education, 41(6), 601-609.
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Dorsey, L.E., & Baker, C.M. (2004). Mentoring undergraduate nursing students: Assessing the state of the science. Nurse Educator, 29(6), 260-265.
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Ehrich, L., Tennent, L., & Hansford, B. (2002). A review of mentoring in education:
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Some lessons for nursing. Contemporary Nurse, 12, 253-264. Gardner, J. (2005a). Barriers influencing the success of racial and ethnic minority
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students in nursing programs. Journal of Transcultural Nursing, 16(2), 155-62. Gardner, J. (2005b). A successful minority retention project. Journal of Nursing
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Education, 44(12), 566-568.
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Georges, C. (2012). Project to expand diversity in the nursing workforce. Nursing Management, 19(2), 22-26.
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Health Resources and Services Administration [HRSA]. (September 2010). The
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registered nurse population: Findings from the 2008 National Sample Survey of registered nurses. Retrieved from http://bhpr.hrsa.gov/healthworkforce/rnsurveys/rnsurveyfinal.pdf Hoffart, N., Waddell, A., & Young, M.B. (2011). A model of new nurse transition. Journal of Professional Nursing, 27(6), 334-343. Institute of Medicine. (2010). The future of nursing: Leading change, advancing health. Retrieved from http://www.iom.edu/Reports/2010/The-Future-of-NursingLeading-Change-Advancing-Health.aspx
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT Institute of Medicine. (2004). In the Nation’s Compelling Interest: Ensuring Diversity in the Health Care Workforce. Retrieved from
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http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?isbn=030909125X
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Loftin C., Newman S.D., Dumas, B.P., Gilden, G., & Bond, M.L. (2012). Perceived barriers to success for minority nursing students: An integrative review (Article
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ID 806543). ISRN Nursing, Vol. 2012. Retrieved from
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http://www.isrn.com/journals/nursing/2012/806543/ doi: 10.5402/2012/806543 McCloughen, A., O'Brien, L., & Jackson, D. (2009). Esteemed connection: Creating a
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mentoring relationship for nurse leadership. Nursing Inquiry, 16(4), 326-336. Nunez-Smith, M., Curry, L.A., Bigby, .J, Berg, D., Krumholz, H.M., & Bradley, E.H.
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(2007). Impact of race on the lives of physicians of African descent. Annals of
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care. Nursing Leadership, 23 (special 2010), 75-89.
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Partnership for 21st Century Skills. (2011). Framework for 21st century learning. Partnership for 21st Century Skills Web-site. Retrieved from http://p21.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=254&Itemid=120 Waltz, C., Strickland, O., & Lenz, E. (2010). Measurement in Nursing and Health Research (4th ed.). NY: Springer. Washington, D., Erickson, J.I., & Ditomassi, M. (2004). Mentoring the minority nurse leader of tomorrow. Nursing Administration Quarterly, 28(3), 165-169.
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT Wilson, A., Sanner, S., & McAllister, L. (2010). An evaluation study of a mentoring program to increase the diversity of the nursing workforce. Journal of Cultural
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Diversity, 17(4), 144-150.
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT Acknowledgments The authors would like to thank Jariza Rodriguez, administrative assistant for the
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CLCDN in the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at the University of
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Massachusetts Boston, for her invaluable support for program operations; the Partners HealthCare Chief Nurse Council for their ongoing guidance and support, the members of
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the CLCDN Steering Committee for their help in making the program the best it can be;
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Mary Duffy, RN, PhD, FAAN, senior nurse scientist, the Yvonne L. Munn Center for Nursing Research, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, for her support with data
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analysis, writing, and editing; Cara Marcus, MSLIS, AHIP, director of library services, Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital, Boston, for her help with article retrieval, the
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CLCDN students and mentors for their creativity, enthusiasm, and professionalism; and
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Beth Kantz, RN, MS of Corrigan Kantz Consulting for writing and editing support.
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Table 1. Expectations for CLCDN Mentors and Mentees
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Expectations for Mentors: Attend orientation and other CLCDN meetings and informal gatherings Advise mentee on life skills and leadership and professional development Meet/dialogue with mentee on a regular basis, but no less than once per week to discuss activities, reflections, assignments, and interactions that affect the attainment of mentee goals and 21st century skills, and facilitate the mentee's transition to a graduate nurse at a Partners HealthCare agency Assist with leadership skill development by facilitating mentee attendance at agency leadership and policy meetings and other forums such as diversity workshops and nursing grand rounds Facilitate the mentee's acquisition of knowledge concerning the agency organizational structure, nursing structure and function, expectations of graduate nurses, examples of 21st century skills, and strategies for success Meet at least once during the semester with the program co-director to review mentee's progress Consult with the program co-director as needed on any mentee activities or issues of concern Work with the program co-director to facilitate the mentee's transition to the role of a Partners HealthCare nurse Work with the mentee on a presentation or activity that requires the use of 21st century skills Submit suggestions for program improvement
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Expectations for Mentees Attend orientation and other CLCDN meetings and informal gatherings Maintain a journal, recording reflections regarding activities, assignments, and interactions that affect attainment of goals and 21st century skills and that facilitate your transition to a graduate nurse at a Partners HealthCare agency Meet/dialogue with mentor on a regular basis but no less than once per week; journal how your mentor is assisting you in meeting your goals and developing 21st century skills Engage in activities and mentor discussions that facilitate the acquisition of knowledge concerning your goals and 21st century skills, strategies for success in a Partners Healthcare agency, agency's organizational and nursing structure, leadership opportunities, agency philosophy and how it is actualized Work with the mentor to develop a presentation or engage in an activity that requires use of 21st century skills Consult with the program co-director regarding any CLCDN issues and to maximize attainment of program objectives Meet with faculty advisor/program co-director for academic advising Submit suggestions for program improvement
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Table 2. Survey Respondents — Demographics Characteristic
Mentors
Mentees
Gender
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92% 8%
Female Male
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4% 4% 12% 16% 12% 16% 36%
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21-25 26-30 31-35 36-40 41-45 46-50 over 50 Years worked as a Registered Nurse 2-5 years 6-10 years 11-15 years 16-19 years 20-30 years > 30 years Highest nursing degree earned ADN BSN Master's Doctoral Born outside USA Religious preference Catholic Jewish Protestant Hindu/Buddhism Islamic/Muslim Other None
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Age
63% 37% 33% 27% 17% 10% 10% 3% 0 NA
8% 25% 21% 4% 17% 25% NA 8% 75% 13% 4% 58%
68%
43% 0% 9% 0% 0% 30% 17%
41% 0% 17% 3% 3% 28% 7%
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Item Manner is courteous and professional Able to get along well with others Communicates effectively Comes prepared for meetings Fully utilizes time with mentor Suggests ideas for discussion/places to attend Actively participates in mentoring meetings Attempts to contact mentor during inappropriate hours
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Table 3. Mentor Ratings of Mentees
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Mean (std deviation) 5.0 (0.00) 4.45 (0.67) 4.41 (0.80) 4.23 (.81) 4.23 (0.87) 4.23 (0.75) 3.41 (0.67) 2.05 (1.29)
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Table 4. Mentee Ratings of Mentors
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Item Willing to listen and help, warm and caring; extremely encouraging; available to me if I got discouraged Gave me a picture of what nursing can be; enthusiastic; sparked my interest; showed me possibilities Enthusiastic and exciting; very dynamic; made it fascinating Very clear what she/he wanted from me; pushed me to achieve high standards; kept prodding me if I allowed myself to slack off Taught me how to set priorities; to develop interpersonal skills; guided me on patient problems; said 'Let's see how you could have done it better' Bouncing things off her/him brings things into focus; eloquently speaks for professional issues; like to discuss them with her/him; would discuss issues, problems, goals Gave me a lot of positive and negative feedback; let me know if I wasn't doing it right and helped me examine it Let me try new things and helped me figure it out; we looked at my strengths and created a way to use them to benefit nursing Spotted me and worked with me more than other nurses; invested in me; saw my capabilities and pushed me Impressed with mentor's ability; respected and admired mentor Got me started on a 5-year career plan; I went to her/him when I was trying to sort out where I wanted to go in my career; I could trust him/her Opened my eyes; got me interested in research; helped me understand the politics of the hospital; why you had to look at the total impact something has on the hospital Made inservices available; included me in discussions; said I want you to represent me on this committee
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Mean (std deviation) 4.31 (1.11) 4.17 (1.07) 4.0 (1.25) 4.0 (1.16) 3.83 (1.23) 3.79 (1.37)
3.79 (1.34) 3.75 (1.35) 3.68 (1.31) 3.48 (0.99) 3.41 (1.57) 3.31 (1.31)
3.11 (1.31)
