Transcript University of Kansas Medical Center

KUMC Faculty
Educating Kansas’
Healthcare Workers
for over
Years
Mentoring:
Reading the Signs & Knowing Where to
Refer Your Mentee for Personal Problems
Affecting Their Performance
Elizabeth C. Penick, PhD
William F. Gabrielli, Jr., MD, PhD
Issues
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When and when not to be concerned.
Medical illness.
Personal issues.
Performance issues.
Healthy lifestyle development.
Match of training, skill, and expectations.
Success measurement issues.
Mentor & mentee match.
When and When Not to Be Concerned
 Does the Mentee want you to be concerned?
 Is the situation likely to resolve itself spontaneously with
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patience?
Is the problem so concerning that something needs to be
done?
Is the situation such that if intervention didn’t occur an
invaluable opportunity might be missed?
Is the situation one that should be addressed in another venue
and if addressed could you harm the mentor-mentee
relationship?
Do you need to wear an “Institutional” hat?
Medical Issues
 Is there a depression, thought disorder, mania, eating disorder,
or severe anxiety disorder present?
 Severe persistent sleep disturbance, sadness, loss of
interest in most pleasurable activities, difficulty with
concentration, excessive preoccupation with weight and/or
appearance, consistent and excessive irritability, reckless
behavior, fanciful activities, significant false fixed belief
systems, disturbances of perception, substantially
interfering worry, obsession, rituals.
 Do these symptoms consume a substantial amount of
energy and focus and significantly interfere with social or
occupational performance, or have significant other medical
consequence?
Medical Issues
 Are there other significant unaddressed medical
conditions that impair performance?
 Inadequately controlled diabetes, asthma,
hormonal, gynecological, GI, musculoskeletal,
neurological, or other illness or condition.
 Is the impairment causing substantial interference
on a consistent or very frequent basis and likely to
continue to do so?
Personal Issues
 Are there personality issues that interfere with
performance?
 Examples: narcissistic, antisocial, paranoid,
dependent, avoidant, obsessive-compulsive.
 Is this character consistent and sufficiently severe to
make usual mentoring and professional
relationships difficult?
 Is there an alcohol or substance abuse issue?
Gambling addiction?
Performance Issues
 Is performance in typical or usual professional dimensions not
up to standard?
 Were expectations not correct?
 Were predictor measures not correct?
 Has there been a change in ability?
 Are the measures correct?
 Has there been insufficient resource or is there unexpected
interference?
 Are the performance measures improving in the direction of
target, following a stable trajectory, or falling behind?
Healthy Lifestyle Development
 Are there ways to encourage healthy lifestyle
improvements?
 Time out for family/social activity, arts, sports,
other intellectual activities and other pursuits.
 Proper attention to healthy diet, sleep, exercise
activities—a well rounded life.
 Work in its place can actually be more productive
because work-time can be more efficient.
Match of Training, Skill,
Expectations
 Do the expectations match background, skill,
and training?
 Insufficient prior training, mentoring, or
knowledge can be a setback.
 Inability to complete the expected tasks
can be very difficult. Can the skill be
acquired?
Success Measurement
 Are we judging performance accurately and
fairly?
 Do we have the correct method of
assessment?
 Are we choosing the right measures of
success?
 Is there success in one dimension that
compensates for lack of success on
another?
Mentor & Mentee Match
 Do the Mentor and Mentee belong together?
 Is there a compatible working
relationship? Fit?
 Are there differences in style or
expectation that interferes?
 Does the mentor have a medical, personal,
or professional conflict that inhibits
maximal mentee development?
RED FLAGS: GENERAL
 Any major change in your mentee’s
affect or behavior that concerns you.
RED FLAGS: SPECIFIC
 Mood/ Tension/ Emotional Reactions
(depression, apathy, withdrawn, agitation)
 Concentration/ Attention/ Follow Through
(distractibility, problems with memory, avoidance)
 Looks Stoned/ Alcohol on Breath
(erratic, disheveled, unexpected financial problems)
 Interpersonal Interactions
(with mentor, with family, with others)
Responses
 Trying to be sensitive to the needs of the
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mentee.
Use appropriate targets/goals.
Facilitate availability of resources.
Offer examples of successful approaches.
Encourage lifestyle changes that facilitate a
better quality of life.
Set milestones and celebrate success.
Periodically ask if another mentor might be able
to add to what is already accomplished.
Resources
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Medical
Counseling
Role Models
Time Management and other Skills
training activities
 Additional educational training.
KUMC Faculty
Educating Kansas’
Healthcare Workers
for over
Years