Healthcare Management Forum Gestion des soins de santé 37

ne of the key challenges for Canadian healthcare leaders,managers and educators revolves around preparing healthprofessionals to work effectively and efficiently in a techno-logically complex, demanding and changing environment. Forsome time people in the health sciences have acceptedpreceptoring and mentoring as methods to bridge classroomtheory and practice and actively support the transition of newgraduates to professional practice.

Although usage of the terms preceptor and mentor varies, wehave defined them as follows:

• A preceptor is an identified experienced practitioner who provides transitional role support and learning experiences to students and new staff.

• A mentor is someone who guides another individual in the development and examination of their own ideas, learning, and personal and professional development.

“Mentoring is viewed as highly relevant to promoting the continuingdevelopment of adults in our learning society.”1(p. 22)

Preceptoring and mentoring are vital to new and working healthprofessionals. Preceptor and mentor programs are of significant interest giventhat preceptors and mentors represent an essential component in the healthsciences education continuum. As the demand for mentors and preceptors isincreasing, their numbers are decreasing due to factors such as health systemrestructuring and retirement.

This article will describe the Preceptor & Mentor Initiative for Health Sciences inBC, a provincial strategy to facilitate preceptoring and mentoring. Wedeveloped a comprehensive preceptor/mentor framework with resources,based on best practices and applicable to all health sciences (see Figure 1 –

BRIEF REPORT

AbstractThis article describes the Preceptor& Mentor Initiative for HealthSciences in BC, a provincialstrategy to facilitate preceptoringand mentoring. A web site wasdeveloped with a comprehensivepreceptor/mentor framework andresources, based on best practicesand applicable to all healthsciences. Informal feedbackindicates this Initiative is effectivein supporting health sciencespreceptoring and mentoring in BC.A formal evaluation will beconducted by March 2003 andreported in a future FORUM article.

OGoing Provincial: Preceptoring andMentoring Revisited in the Health SciencesPart I by Carol Mitchell and Brenda Sawatzky-Girling

RECOGNITION

PRECEPTORSUPPORTS

Preceptor Programpolicies, roles,responsibilities,expectations

Access toResources and

Information

Preceptor selfassessment &feedback oneffectiveness

Support oforganization,

co-workers, others

PreceptorInteraction &Peer Support

Preceptor Training& Development

For Preceptor:• Personal growth• Professional development • Job enrichment

For Preceptee:• Positive experience in profession• Positive experience in organization

Workload ReliefPreceptorship/

InfrastructureCoordination

LONG TERM BENEFITS

Improved recruitment, retention,learning outcomes

REWARDS &

Sample Menu

• Monetary payment• Academic or continuing education credits• Academic appointment• Tuition voucher/credit• Journal subscription• Library card, Internet• Career advancement

Sample Menu• Note on employment file• Pin, pen, vest• Certificate• Ceremony, event, award

Figure 1: A Healthy Cycleof PreceptorSupport

Carol Mitchell, MSN,is the Project Manager of the Preceptor & MentorInitiative for HealthSciences in BC, Vancouver.

Brenda Sawatzky-Girling,MHA, is a healthcarepolicy and managementconsultant in Vancouver.

38 Healthcare Management Forum Gestion des soins de santé

a less structured model was developedfor mentors). An evaluation of theInitiative will be completed in March2003 and will generate Part II of thisseries.

Initiative StructureThe Preceptor & Mentor Initiative ismanaged through BC’s Council ofUniversity Teaching Hospitals (COUTH),an organization that develops strategiesto operationalize innovative methods forthe education of health and humanservice professionals. Funded $225,000by the BC Ministry of Health, theInitiative began in May 2001 and hasbeen extended to March 2003. The goalsof the Initiative are to increaserecruitment, retention and the capacityto educate health sciences professionals,to foster a culture of lifelong learning andto be sensitive to the needs of manydiverse groups. We organized theInitiative around three teams:

• Advisory Committee;

• Project Manager and Project Team:consisting of COUTH staff, a researchconsultant and a communicationsconsultant; and

• Resource Teams: an ever-expandingnetwork of preceptor/mentorchampions and end-users – healthprofessionals, educators, managers,leaders and students – whocontribute via their participation inworkshops and ongoing feedback.

Initiative ActivitiesBaseline Needs Assessment

“The clear message: ‘You’re responsiblefor your own career development, but wesupport you in your endeavours.’Responding to this shift may require yourorganization to rethink its philosophy ata very deep level.” 2(p. 109)

One of our first tasks was collaborationwith the British Columbia Institute ofTechnology to develop a baseline needsassessment for preceptoring andmentoring in BC. This Internet-basedsurvey was sent to health authorities,post secondary educational institutionsand professional associations across BC.

A 46% (41/90) response rate representeda variety of health and education stake-holders. The key findings were as follows:

• BC has a varied pattern ofpreceptoring and mentoring thatdepends on the profession andlocation. Many groups are eitherproviding this or in the developmentphase.

• Preceptor and mentor programs arefacilitated through education, healthor professional organizations.

• Organizations such as Children’s &Women’s Health Centre of BC arerecognized centres of excellence inpreceptoring.

Communications“Learning has always been a people-to-people experience, so it stands to reasonthat a computer-mediated people-to-people process may be just what isneeded.” 3(p. 175)

We learned that a communication plan isessential for ongoing dialogue withstakeholders to establish best practicesin preceptoring and mentoring and tofoster buy-in, use of and feedback onresources. We developed a three-prongedapproach: a series of e-newsletters; adisplay, brochures and bookmarks; andmany face-to-face speaking opportunitiesat workshops, conferences and meetings.

Knowledge Management and Web Site Development“It is difficult to imagine healthcareleaders of the future who do not embracethe new information technologies,especially the Internet, as part of the waythey run their practice or manage theirdepartments.” 4 (p. 262)

We chose the Internet as the majorvehicle to meet the Initiative’s objectivesbased on feedback from the baselinesurvey, Resource Teams, AdvisoryCommittee, and on the assumption thatuse of Internet technology will continueto grow rapidly. A web developmentcompany was contracted and we launchedthe Preceptor & Mentor Initiative website (http://www.couth.bc.ca/pm) inJanuary 2002.

The Internet is a practical solution to thesubstantial knowledge managementaspect of an educational program.Knowledge management includes: (1) extensive literature review andcollection of preceptor and mentorresources; (2) new knowledge in the formof information (frameworks, best practices)and materials (a resource clearinghouse); and (3) disseminating knowledgethrough Internet technology. 5 (p. 334)

The concept and organization of the website is based on prior COUTH work onstrategies to support preceptors andmentors. The web site targets two usergroups:

• Managers – who are planning,implementing and evaluatingpreceptor/mentor programs.

• Preceptors/mentors – who areseeking information and support intheir roles.

One year into the Initiative, we have foundthe following advantages and challengesof using the Internet for our project:

Advantages• Can identify, survey and

communicate with stakeholders.

• Dynamic and flexible because newknowledge is constantly beingidentified and can be disseminatedquickly.

• Web site can be “in progress” yetknowledge accessible.

• Accessible to diverse groups(regardless of location, users can“pick and mix” what they need).

• Discussion Forum allows linkages todevelop between people and acrossorganizations.

• E-copyright protects, not controlsuse of resources.

Challenges• People need access and technical

support to computers, software andtraining.

• Some health professionals perceiveprinted materials in binders as easierto use and more familiar.

In order to overcome these challenges,we are continuing to work with stakeholders

Healthcare Management Forum Gestion des soins de santé 39

to support use of this technology, addinga “how-to” tutorial to the web site, anddeveloping a set of on-line preceptor/mentor reference materials.

Workshops“Given the nature of the target audience,face-to-face speaking opportunities willbe the strongest ‘selling’ and educationtool.” 6(p. 5)

By the end of June 2002 we had held eightResource Team workshops around BC topromote and facilitate the Initiative andpreceptoring/mentoring, and obtainfeedback.

Next StepsOver the coming year the Project Teamwill sustain the momentum of theInitiative through updating and evolvingthe web site, continued networking withstakeholders, and encouraging develop-ment and adoption of preceptor/mentorbest practices. Informal feedback to dateindicates that as more people discoverthis Initiative there is a correspondingincrease in preceptor/mentor activities,less duplication and new focus on bestpractices.

Preceptor and mentor programssupported by comprehensive frameworkssuch as this Initiative help people adaptand change themselves, teach and learn.One of the deliverables of the Initiative isa comprehensive evaluation. To bringobjectivity to this critical function, anevaluation framework was developedalongside the project by UBC’s Centre forHealth Services and Policy Research. Theevaluation will be completed in March2003 and Part II of this article will outlinethe framework and results of our programevaluation.

AcknowledgementsWe wish to thank the BC Ministry of Health for sponsoring and theBC Ministry of Advanced Education for supporting the Preceptor &Mentor Initiative for Health Sciences in BC, COUTH for making a “home”for the Initiative and the many dedicated health sciences professionals,educators, leaders, managers and students we’ve met across BCwho inspire us.

References and Notes1. Galbraith MW, Cohen NH, editors. Mentoring: New Strategies

and Challenges. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass; 1995.

2. Izzo JB, Withers P. Values Shift: The New Work Ethic and Whatit Means for Business. Toronto: Prentice Hall Canada; 2000.

3. Dertouzos M. What Will Be. San Francisco, CA: HarperEdge;1997.

4. Coddington DC, Fischer EA, Moore KD. Strategies for theNew Health Care Marketplace: Managing the Convergenceof Consumerism and Technology. San Francisco, CA:Jossey-Bass; 2001.

5. Higgins JM. Innovate or Evaporate. New York, NY: NewManagement Publishing Co. Inc.; 1995

6. Bartz L. Components of a Communications Plan for thePreceptor & Mentor Initiative for Health Sciences in BC.Vancouver, BC; August 2001. (unpublished)

For Further ReadingVisit us at the Preceptor & Mentor Initiative for Health Sciences in BCweb site http://www.couth.bc.ca/pm

Baseline needs assessment survey

http://www.health.bcit.ca/couth/