Mentoring in Nursing and Healthcare

Helen M. Woolnough is Senior Lecturer in Psychology, Leeds Beckett University, UK. Sandra L. Fielden is Senior Lecturer in Organisational Psychology, Manchester Business School, University of Manchester, U.K

Notes on Author ix

Introduction xi

1 Gendered Career Development within Nursing and Healthcare 1

Education 1

The labour market 2

Gendered Careers 4

The Person-centred Approach 6

The Organisational Structure Perspective 8

Gender Differences in Career Development and the Meaning of Success 10

Gender Differences in the Career Progression of Nurses and Healthcare Professionals 11

Summary 13

References 13

2 Mentoring as a Career Development Tool 23

Defining Mentoring 23

Functions of Mentoring 25

Mentoring Phases 26

Competencies of Mentors and Mentees 28

Informal vs Formal Mentoring 30

Alternative Forms of Mentoring 32

Does Mentoring Really Work? 34

Drawbacks to Mentoring 36

Summary 38

References 39

3 Diversity in Mentoring: Gender, Race and Ethnicity 45

The Case for Diversity 45

Diversity in the NHS 47

Gender and Mentoring 48

Barriers for Women to Acquiring a Mentor 48

Cross-gender Mentoring Relationships 50

The Role of Gender in Formal and Informal Mentoring Relationships 52

The Role of Race and Ethnicity in Mentoring Relationships 53

The Impact of Mentoring Relationships for White and BAME Women 55

Summary 57

References 58

4 Mentoring in Nursing and Healthcare 63

Cultural of Nursing 63

Perceptions of Nursing 64

Mentoring in the NHS 66

Mentoring in Nurse Education 68

The Value of Mentoring throughout a Developing Career 69

Mentoring across the NHS 73

Summary 75

References 75

5 Designing and Implementing a Formal Mentoring Programme 81

Definition of Mentoring Applied to the Challenging Perceptions Programme 82

Objectives of the Programme 83

Recruitment of NHS Mental Health Trusts 84

Recruitment of Participants and Control Group 87

Recruitment of Mentors 88

The Matching Process (Mentees’ Selection of Mentors) 89

The Seven Main Elements of the Challenging Perceptions Programme 89

Summary 96

References 97

6 Evaluating Formal Mentoring Relationships 101

Evaluation in Practice 101

Data Collection 104

Qualitative Data Collection 104

Quantitative Data Collection 110

Ethical Considerations 113

Data Analysis 115

Summary 117

References 118

7 Does Mentoring Work? The Realities of Mentoring from the Perspective of both Mentee and Mentor 123

Career Development Outcomes 123

Breaking the Glass Ceiling 126

Personal Development Outcomes 129

The Mentoring Relationship 131

Benefits for Mentors 135

Summary 139

References 140

8 The Challenging Perceptions Programme and the Long-term Benefits of Mentoring 145

Formal Mentoring Programmes 145

Mentee Case Studies 146

The Challenging Perceptions Programme 148

Key Lessons 152

Evaluation Limitations 154

Future Programme Development 157

Summary 158

References 160

Afterword 165