Mentoring Young Academic Surgeons, Our Most Precious Asset

Abstract

Picture the following. It is late June and the new surical interns have just started on the service. At one of he orientation sessions, the program director makes the ollowing remarks: “This is a tough program but surgeons ave to be tough. There is no room for mistakes—we annot afford to have patients die. We will monitor your rogress on a monthly basis to be certain that you do your ob by the book and that you do it well. If you can’t cut it e will find someone who can—we had 500 applications or six positions this past year.” In another city miles away, a second program director ddresses a different group of new surgical house officers. We are here to help you become the best you can be,” she ays, “and we recognize that excellence is not created vernight. While we have high expectations of you, we now that each of you will make mistakes in the months head. Together, we will try to learn from these mistakes o that, whenever possible, they can be avoided in the uture. One of our primary goals is for each of you to evelop greater initiative, independence, and selfonfidence. We measure the success of our residency by oth the professional and personal quality of the sureons that complete the program.” Based on the above dialogues, which program is ore appealing to you? Which scenario best represents he personality of training program in your departent? In the long run, which program is likely to roduce better surgeons? Power, control, and subservience rule the first interhange between faculty and young trainees. In marked ontrast, the second exchange is governed by trust, comitment, and empowerment. It describes the kind of nvironment in which we would all like to work. It emodies many of the essential characteristics of mentoring.