Source: Association of Salaried Medical Specialists
The New Zealand Medical Students’ Association and the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists (ASMS) are proud to launch the ASMS-NZMSA Year 4 Clinical Mentoring Programme for 2020.
This is the second year of the Mentoring Programme, which aims to provide an avenue of support for Fourth Year students around New Zealand transitioning into the clinical environment. The programme pairs Fourth year Students in one on one mentoring partnerships with ASMS Consultants either in person or via skype, and has four key aims:
- To develop and foster wellbeing and resilience, not career coaching or specialty-specific advice
- Reduce isolation and confusion for medical students throughout their medical training
- Empower medical students through having access to mentors who can provide wisdom and advice
- Upskill clinicians in communication and mentoring
This programme is informal, with minimal transactional rules: pairs are simply recommended to meet four or more times during the year, where students can share experiences, seek advice and gain further insight into Medicine. There is a transparent “opt-out” available for both parties (no blame, no explanation), and students can be re-matched if desired.
Students found immense value in the inaugural programme run in 2019, below are some statements from students involved:
“I enjoyed meeting with [my mentor] in person in a casual setting to talk about my experiences and anything else. I could ask for advice if I wanted to but mostly it was just helpful knowing that I had someone I could talk to about things. We had several discussions about things that I constantly find challenging in the clinical environment, and although her job is not to solve these, it is helpful to gain perspectives from someone who has lived through similar issues.
I also found it an excellent way to gain knowledge of what her life is like as an SMO. I also enjoyed getting to know my SMO, and this really helped me to see SMOs as people that I can be myself around.”
Hasini Atuluwage, University of Auckland fourth year student (2019), based at Tauranga Hospital
“My mentoring experience gave me insight into the way in which the medical hierarchy works and this gave me some comfort because I found it to be quite overwhelming at first. My mentor helped me to reframe my anxieties and negative experiences so that I could still learn and grow from them.”
Lucy Blundell, University of Auckland fourth year student (2019), based at Middlemore Hospital
NZMSA and ASMS would greatly appreciate your involvement in this programme, we simply cannot run it without you! If you would like to be a part of the programme, please sign up at the below link. Sign ups will be open until Sunday 8th March.
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1KrBQKaKu8bvyLgz_yNd86FEOkkIopY8Dw39plN2lNwc/edit
Please email wellbeing@nzmsa.org.nz with any questions.
