Medical students at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai are getting a lesson in the transformative power of mentorship. As students, they know just how important feedback is to their education. According to Dr. Shelley Wells Collins, it’s valuable to have more than one mentor. They can provide priceless support and advice during various phases of the training cycle. This interdisciplinary method provides students with an understanding of the concepts and tools that can better inform their career trajectories.
Collins implores students to make real connections with their mentors. These mentors can in turn become sponsors, opening doors for the students’ future career progression. Nurturing these relationships is extremely important in order to combat the ongoing crisis in medical education. In fact, most new federal safety regulators have likened the experience to drinking water from a fire hose!
Dr. Valerie Parkas, a faculty member at Sinai, is as excited by Collins’ enthusiasm. She emphasizes that students are supported by a strong system of resources, from career advisors and well-being advisors to clinical mentors and specialty advisors. Receiving and giving feedback, she says, should be a basic requirement in developing the next generation of competent physicians.
The Role of Mentorship in Medical Education
Collins is quick to point out that students need more than one mentor. These mentors can provide customized help tailored to each student’s individual needs. In doing so, this approach truly inspires and guides students. It encourages them to actively pursue experiences that will further enhance their professional journeys.
Collins notes, “Many have likened medical school to trying to drink water from a fire hose.” This metaphor conveys the immediate and drastic, yet manageable tsunami of new information and experiences that students are submerged in. A robust network of mentors will be invaluable in guiding them through this sometimes cut-throat world.
Further, Collins touches on the value of concentrating on what they call the wins, the fails and the fricken’ awesome. I know that every experience is a learning opportunity and each lesson learned makes them stronger and more resilient students. By learning from both successes and failures, students experience and cultivate resilience and adaptability, crucial qualities for any future physician.
Constructive Feedback: A Vital Component
Being on the receiving end of this feedback is an important component of medical education here at Sinai. Parkas goes on to say that learning to give and receive feedback productively can help grow your practice and promote professional development. She continues, “Growing up with this mentality of everyone rising together is fundamental to the medical education experience. This team-based approach creates a culture of care that empowers students to take risks and grow in their learning.
Students gain experience in self-assessment and the valuing of feedback by actively seeking 360-degree feedback from peers and mentors. As Parkas puts it, “Self-reflection and journaling are wonderful ways for students to process what is happening to them throughout their medical education. This practice benefits them individually, but helps them better develop a culture of learning from others.
In an article for Edutopia, Collins expands on the effects of feedback on how students view themselves and their actions. Finding the right mindset makes the feedback process a valuable experience, she thinks. This approach fosters the entrepreneurial mindset that is critical for young people to succeed in their future careers.
The Importance of Self-Reflection
Collins says that self-reflection is an important habit to develop as a medical student. Writing or discussing their experiences helps students to develop perspective. These actions allow them to have more insight into their learning paths.
She insists that students should initiate self-assessments and be open to comments from others regarding their performance. “Then it is helpful to ask for both reinforcing and modifying feedback.” Though simple, this proactive approach gives students the ability to control their own skill development.
Parkas concurs with this idea by stressing that the first academic hurdle, setback or achievement can offer extremely valuable experiences. She advocates for the idea that the first patient experience—good or bad—holds lessons to be learned. It’s these lessons that serve all of our students so richly. Through thinking critically about these experiences, students can develop greater self-awareness about what they do well and what they need to work on.
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