Faculty Mentorship of Academic Surgeons

But mentorship may not necessarily be easy for either party. Dr. Flynn relates that “being a good mentor involves having the authority and courage to redirect a mentee away from what’s not good for them. Help them learn from their failures, and your own failures as a mentor.” If an individual is contemplating serving as a mentor, the responsibility is a great one. “There is great power in having a more senior person show interest in you,” said Dr. Flynn. And in looking for potential mentors, it is important to look beyond just one’s own specialty. “The most important factor in mentor-to-mentee pairing is that their values match. A good mentor-to-mentee relationship is more aligned along similar values, not based strictly on specialty or gender, for example.”

Dr. Collins

Dr. Collins is a professor and chairman, department of otolaryngology–head and neck surgery, division chief for pediatric otolaryngology, and interim chair of emergency medicine at the University of Florida College of Medicine in Gainesville.