In my attempt to understand doctors and their transitioning process, I couldn’t shake this one theme away that kept coming up. Almost every source I interviewed or researched for an article had this theme. What’s this theme you may ask? It’s mentors! Or rather the relevance of mentors for doctors transitioning to other fields and for those wanting to remain in clinical service.
I recently heard Disruptive Doctor’s (DD) Managing Director Dr. Selina Chew say that she never had a mentor or a leader to look to for guidance while in clinical service. She pretty much had to resolve whatever problems she was facing at work all by herself. I’m sure she was not alone in this experience. But when she left clinical service, she met a number of people who were forthcoming and helpful in mentoring her
Research has indicated that doctors do so much better in clinical service when there is a mentor to talk to. But it could also be true that in certain cultures, mentorship or offering support and encouragement is severely “underdeveloped” within clinical service. This is counterproductive as it affects the emotional wellbeing of doctors and subsequently, their performance.
Having a mentor while in clinical service helps enormously in stress reduction, and in the transitioning process of doctors into relevant areas. Mentorships have also been known to be helpful in the areas of recruitment, retention, and underperformance. In clinical circles, mentoring is defined as,
“The process whereby an experienced, highly regarded, empathic person (the mentor), guides another individual (the mentee) in the development and re‐examination of their own ideas, learning, and personal and professional development. The mentor, who often, but not necessarily, works in the same organisation or field as the mentee, achieves this by listening and talking in confidence to the mentee”—SCOPME 1998.
Perhaps because there is a lack of a mentoring exposure while in clinical service that doctors for the most part, struggle with the idea of having a mentor. Never has mentorship been more crucial than in considering career decisions and when pivoting to another field where one’s medical education and experience can be put to good use.
But there are some obvious problems when it comes to doctors and mentoring in our culture:
1. Doctors tend to be mentor-resistant
A doctor who pivoted to finance cautioned that the main problem with doctors transitioning to other fields is their “mentor-resistance”. He was emphatic when he said, “Get the ego out of the way!” There is a general understanding that doctors are capable of mastering whatever fields they set their hearts on, but are they willing to take advice, guidance, and direction from an experienced someone?
2. The Need to be Humble
Whatever the field a doctor transitions to, there’s much to be learned from it. It could be finance, ICT, the pharma industry, medical devices, bio-medical, and more. A steep learning curve is required of the doctor. Paying the price of learning and obtaining the necessary certification in the field is one thing. But, it is quite another to humbly offer a listening ear to someone who’s transitioned to or been in a field for a longer period of time. The latter takes a person so much farther in their journey.
3. Learning from as Many Mentors as Possible
Doctors would also benefit from listening to more than just one or two mentors. It would be wise to listen to as many doctors who are willing to offer guidance and professional development. This is in order to stay ahead of the game, whatever one’s career choice might be.
Good mentors offer reflective listening and empathy, direct and honest feedback, a respectful attitude, eagerness to invest in others, enthusiasm in sharing expertise and most of all, relevant expertise, and knowledge in a field. In return, they obtain deep satisfaction from knowing they’ve helped someone else in pivoting to a particular field.
Seeing the relevance of mentoring for doctors, Disruptive Doctors (DD) has launched its first ever Career Development Mentorship (CDM) Program. Whether you’re a doctor who wishes to remain in clinical service, or one wishes to pivot to another field, if you’re in need of a mentor, this program is for you.
