The Rheumatologist
COVID-19 NewsACR Convergence
  • Connect with us:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Feed
  • Home
  • Conditions
    • Rheumatoid Arthritis
    • SLE (Lupus)
    • Crystal Arthritis
      • Gout Resource Center
    • Spondyloarthritis
    • Osteoarthritis
    • Soft Tissue Pain
    • Scleroderma
    • Vasculitis
    • Systemic Inflammatory Syndromes
    • Guidelines
  • Resource Centers
    • Axial Spondyloarthritis Resource Center
    • Gout Resource Center
    • Psoriatic Arthritis Resource Center
    • Rheumatoid Arthritis Resource Center
    • Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Resource Center
  • Drug Updates
    • Biologics & Biosimilars
    • DMARDs & Immunosuppressives
    • Topical Drugs
    • Analgesics
    • Safety
    • Pharma Co. News
  • Professional Topics
    • Ethics
    • Legal
    • Legislation & Advocacy
    • Career Development
      • Certification
      • Education & Training
    • Awards
    • Profiles
    • President’s Perspective
    • Rheuminations
    • Interprofessional Perspective
  • Practice Management
    • Billing/Coding
    • Quality Assurance/Improvement
    • Workforce
    • Facility
    • Patient Perspective
    • Electronic Health Records
    • Apps
    • Information Technology
    • From the College
    • Multimedia
      • Audio
      • Video
  • Resources
    • Issue Archives
    • ACR Convergence
      • Gout Resource Center
      • Axial Spondyloarthritis Resource Center
      • Psoriatic Arthritis
      • Abstracts
      • Meeting Reports
      • ACR Convergence Home
    • American College of Rheumatology
    • ACR ExamRheum
    • Research Reviews
    • ACR Journals
      • Arthritis & Rheumatology
      • Arthritis Care & Research
      • ACR Open Rheumatology
    • Rheumatology Image Library
    • Treatment Guidelines
    • Rheumatology Research Foundation
    • Events
  • About Us
    • Mission/Vision
    • Meet the Authors
    • Meet the Editors
    • Contribute to The Rheumatologist
    • Subscription
    • Contact
  • Advertise
  • Search
You are here: Home / Articles / The REF: A Facilitator of Mentoring

The REF: A Facilitator of Mentoring

March 18, 2011 • By By E. William St.Clair, MD

  • Tweet
  • Email
Print-Friendly Version / Save PDF

The ACR Research and Education Foundation (REF) has made a substantial commitment to supporting career development through its many grant programs, such as the preceptorships for medical and graduate students and residents, the Rheumatology Scientist Development Award, the Rheumatology Investigator Award, and the Career Development Bridge Funding Award, provided in collaboration with the Arthritis Foundation. Also integral to this portfolio is our Clinician Scholar Educator Award, which supports physicians and health professionals who are dedicated to the goal of enhancing the educational experience. While these funding opportunities help to ensure the future of rheumatology, they are only a piece of the puzzle. An equal, if not greater, investment is needed to ensure the presence of both formal and informal mentoring relationships that guide us through our careers.

You Might Also Like
  • The Value of Mentoring in ARHP
  • The REF Preceptorship Experience
  • REF and AF Partner to Provide an Additional “Bridge Funding”
Explore This Issue
March 2011

Reflecting on my own experiences as a mentor and mentee, these roles are ever shifting in life’s journey. What skills do I need to be a good mentor? What lessons are learned from my mentoring mistakes and successes? What are the dilemmas faced by mentors today? What motivates me to be a mentor?

ad goes here:advert-1
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

I have grown to appreciate effective mentorship. My mentors took the time to know me personally and understand where I stood in my development. Each provided a climate conducive to learning, involved me in formulating my goals, and encouraged me to identify a variety of resources to accomplish my learning. We learned collaboratively in a supportive and challenging environment. I discovered in the process that mentoring is not simply an intellectual transaction.

Although I never took a formal course, I have learned about mentoring from my own mistakes and successes. One mistake I have made is failing to establish specific learning goals, making it difficult to determine if the mentee is properly focused. I have also agreed to overly ambitious goals or sorely underestimated the time to realize these goals, setting up a failure scenario. I also fight constantly to avoid projecting my own priorities, albeit with good intentions. The effective mentor must encourage mentees to formulate their own learning objectives while steering clear of the temptation to “clone oneself.”

ad goes here:advert-2
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

I recall one recent experience acting as a clinic preceptor for Erin Wilfong, an MD/PhD student at Duke University in Durham, N.C. Erin began working with me on a weekly basis after her first year of medical school while completing her PhD research and dissertation in chemistry. Erin worked hard to earn my trust—reading about the patients and their diseases ahead of time, enduring the entire day’s schedule, and rarely missing a clinic. This time allowed me to get to know Erin. She has a natural inquisitiveness about her, likes a challenge, makes the extra effort, and does not give up easily until she finds an answer. This mentoring relationship probably worked so well for both of us because it fit so nicely to my natural style of teaching. I am gratified to report that Erin has decided to pursue a career in rheumatology.

Pages: 1 2 | Single Page

Filed Under: Education & Training, From the College, Workforce Tagged With: ACR Research and Education Foundation, Fellows, Mentoring, rheumatologistIssue: March 2011

You Might Also Like:
  • The Value of Mentoring in ARHP
  • The REF Preceptorship Experience
  • REF and AF Partner to Provide an Additional “Bridge Funding”
  • 2007–2008 REF Award Recipients

Rheumatology Research Foundation

The Foundation is the largest private funding source for rheumatology research and training in the U.S.

Learn more »

Simple Tasks

Learn more about the ACR’s public awareness campaign and how you can get involved. Help increase visibility of rheumatic diseases and decrease the number of people left untreated.

Visit the Simple Tasks site »

American College of Rheumatology

Visit the official website for the American College of Rheumatology.

Visit the ACR »

The Rheumatologist newsmagazine reports on issues and trends in the management and treatment of rheumatic diseases. The Rheumatologist reaches 11,500 rheumatologists, internists, orthopedic surgeons, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, and other healthcare professionals who practice, research, or teach in the field of rheumatology.

About Us / Contact Us / Advertise / Privacy Policy / Terms of Use / Cookie Preferences

  • Connect with us:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Feed

Copyright © 2006–2023 American College of Rheumatology. All rights reserved.

ISSN 1931-3268 (print)
ISSN 1931-3209 (online)