Mentoring

WHAT IS MENTORING?

Mentoring is an important component of professional development and personal growth.

It is a supportive, nurturing relationship; a sounding board that enables someone through a transition in learning.

Through the sharing of skills, knowledge and expertise, the mentee is empowered to develop their full potential.

The relationship may cover a wide variety of contexts, and when successful, it benefits all partners; the mentor, the mentee, the profession and ultimately patients.

Fig 1. Benefits of the Mentoring Programme

EARLY CAREER MENTORING PILOT

The pilot mentoring programme will operate from March- June including on boarding and a 3 month mentoring period. It will support new pharmacist registrants in their professional development.

PILOT Programme Objectives

The aim is to empower new pharmacist registrants to take early control of their professional development and to realise the benefits of reflective practice.
Provide pharmacists, who have attended the IIOP Mentoring Skills Workshops in 2019 and 2020 with an opportunity to put their skills into practice
Learn from the pilot experience to develop and launch a broader evidence based programme with appropriate governance and shaped by best practice later in the year.

Limited places apply (approx. 15 Mentors and 15 Mentees).

Mentors

- Must be a member of the IIOP
- Committed to their ongoing professional development
- Be in good professional standing
- Have completed the Mentoring Skills Training (2019/2020)

Mentees

- Must be a member of the IIOP for < 3 years
- Willing to invest time and energy into the process

Orientation training on roles and responsibilities and how to get the best from mentoring will be provided in advance of mentoring commencing.

Participation in IIOP Mentoring programmes is optional and voluntary. Applications are now closed.

HOW WILL IT WORK

A validated framework will be used to reflect the programme lifecycle from programme planning to full implementation.

Fig 2. Framework for the Mentoring Programme

The IIOP will manage the end to end roll out and administration of the programme including designing the framework to support the programme managing the selection, training and providing ongoing support.

The mentoring programme will continue to be further developed over time with the support and guidance of the Mentoring Programme Steering Group, as well as other subgroups which may be convened to support on specific agendas and topics, as required.

Fig 3. Steps involved in the mentoring pilot and timing

MENTORING IN PHARMACY

Whilst there are lots of mentoring programmes in organisations, there are relatively few programmes in diverse and disparate professions such as pharmacy. Below are some research, and short articles on mentoring specific to pharmacy and healthcare.

RESEARCH

A recent review of Mentoring in Pharmacy and the principles relevant to it has been published.

In Part 1 a wealth of literature, theories and evidence are presented aiming to inform the general structure and logistical considerations for both in-person and distance mentoring programmes https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1551741120303946
In Part 2, the more human needs of the relationship are taken into account, both independently and in pairs as well as the evolving roles each person plays and what this can mean for administrators of such programmes. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1551741120304290

SHORT ARTICLES

IIOP Webinar

The IIOP hosted a webinar on 'Building a Mentoring Mindset in Pharmacy' on Wednesday 17 February 2021 to talk about why mentoring matters, how it works and what it could look like in pharmacy. You can watch the recording of the webinar here.

GET IN TOUCH

We will be developing this portal over the coming months. Keep an eye on our social media for updates and ways to get involved.

A dedicated Mentoring Mailbox is available at mentoring@iiop.ie.