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Derek Smith
Mentoring Activity
08/06/2014
The Role of a Mentor in HealthCare and Medical Dosimetry
Mentor, guide, supporter, advisor, teacher are just a few words that describe someone who can
truly impact the life of a student by sharing their knowledge. Medical Dosimetry is a continually
evolving and incredibly intricate field of work. The role of a mentor in a medical dosimetry
program is exceptionally crucial. A mentor is someone who has the patience and dedication to
communicate their skills and knowledge to a student. There are many aspects however that help
a mentor and mentee relationship to be successful. Sometimes managing the balance of
professional and personal relationships can be difficult. A poor relationship between the mentor
and the mentee can lead to problems such as disregard, abuse of power, and an overall poor
education. Both an advantageous and an inadequate education can impact the medical dosimetry
profession remarkably. What you learn here in the clinic is so much more useful than reading a
textbook Its a different world.
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Molding a student through personal experience and knowledge requires a well-rounded
and dedicated mentor. A mentor must have the ability to guide a student in the right direction to
eventually allow the student to discover their own answers.
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A mentor has the difficult task of
being a practical educator that is willing to listen, accessible, constructive, specific, and
supportive.
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It sounds like a daunting task when described in such a way, but this is why being a
mentor is such an admirable role model to the student. We want you to be comfortable and
competent enough to enjoy the field.
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A mentor significantly must have the best intentions to
teach a student and all the other traits of a successful mentor can come naturally.
The impact a mentor has on a student can be potent. The mentor can open opportunity,
inspire, and inform. Youre always going to have a lifetime resource.
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These words ring truth
to the fact that a mentor can make a lifelong impact. The mentor-mentee bond is an intricate
balance between professionalism and friendship. To have a successful relationship the mentee
needs to feel comfortable enough to ask questions and accept constructive criticism. A medical
dosimetry student is lucky enough to be exposed to numerous personalities and its important for
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the student to find the mentoring style they are most comfortable with to yield maximum results.
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The role of the mentor-mentee relationship in medical dosimetry is crucial to the future impact of
the career. If we can produce another good dosimetrist in the field thats satisfaction to be able
to produce a well-rounded student. We want you to feel comfortable and enjoy it, and not feel
overwhelmed. We want you to be happy about being in the field in the end.
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The field of medical dosimetry requires a student to know every aspect of the profession
to understand the clinical implication of each plan. I think you have to learn how to do
everything. Simulation, treatment, bookwork, you have to know it all because when you leave
we want you to be able to do everything on your own and go into a clinic and be an asset to them
by being able to jump in with asking questions about the flow of the department rather than
planning questions like how to treat a breast or prostate.
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The field of medical dosimetry faces
many variables in software, planning techniques, treatment machines, physician constraints, and
patient anatomy. It is important for a student to gain the important underlying details that are
involved in using dose modifying tools that produce an ideal treatment plan. Managing a full
time medical dosimetry job while mentoring a student can become quite a task. While managing
time for a mentee is just one difficulty in mentoring, the other problems that can arise from
mentoring are unfortunately vast.
Mentoring can be a very successful form of education when the right aspects are put
forth, but too often there are situations where manageable problems form a barrier between the
mentor and student. These barriers can stem from ethnicity, language, gender, generation, or
status.
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If a problem results from the mentor-mentee relationship the student unfortunately can be
impacted in an enormously negative way. The solution to these problems may not always be met,
but the impact can force a student to quit or seek another profession which in turn depletes the
future contribution of those students to any profession involved.
The role of a mentor will always be important to bridge the gap between didactic
definitions and clinical competencies. The mental and social science behind a mentor-mentee
relationship is what can either produce a successful apprentice or a scholar lost in the
multifaceted transition from student to professional. Medical dosimetry is a very involved career
that requires the full participation from both the mentor and the mentee. Textbooks dont always
reflect the variables that every patient presents. Like many healthcare professions, the medical
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dosimetry career entails a knowledge from the beginning phases of a patient treatment to the end.
This deeper knowledge often requires the student to experience the patient emotions, treatments,
and kind-heartedness. This tool can not only benefit a student conceptually but also
psychologically. The mentor has the purpose of guiding the mentee to that realization with their
patience, knowledge, and compassion. The purpose of a mentor has long been the tool to
enhance the future of a profession. Were always learning from each other
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Most professionals
at some point will serve as a mentor to colleagues, family, friends, or even superiors. The impact
of a strong mentor-mentee relationship is evident in the research, technology, and healthcare that
has evolved from primitive to progressive as the mentor continues to influence a curious
scholars ambition just one step further.







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References
1. Discussion with Doug Vaughn, CMD Medical Dosimetrist at the McLaren-Flint Cancer Care
Institute. August 5, 2014.
2. Lenards N. Professionalism & Mentoring. Mentoring. [SoftChalk]. La Crosse, WI: UW-L
Medical Dosimetry Program; 2014.
3. Richardson, J. What makes a good mentor. UCLA Web site.
http://polaris.gseis.ucla.edu/jrichardson/documents/mentor.htm . August 2005. Accessed
August 3, 2014.
4. Baerlocher M, OBrien J, Newton M, Gautam T, Noble J. The mentor-mentee relationship in
academic medicine. European Journal of Internal Medicine. 2011; 22(6); 166-167. doi:
10.1016/j.ejim.2011.05.018 .
5. Discussion with Renee ONeal, CMD Medical Dosimetrist at the McLaren-Flint Cancer Care
Institute. August 5, 2014.
6. Straus SE, Chatur F, Taylor M. Issues in the mentor-mentee relationship in academic
medicine: a qualitative study. Journal of the Association of American Medical Colleges.
2009; 84(1); 135-139. doi: 10.1097/ACM.0b013e31819301ab
7. Bickel J, Rosenthal SL. Difficult issues in mentoring: recommendations on making the
undiscussable discussable. Academic Medicine. 2011; 86(10): 1229-1234. doi:
0.1097/ACM.0b013e31822c0df7












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Appendix A
Derek Smith
Interview with Doug Vaughn, CMD (transcript)
August 5, 2014

Q: What do you feel is an effective form of mentoring?
A: Being honest and full disclosure so you understand what youre getting into, Id appreciate
that if I were mentored
Q: When you are Mentoring what are goals that you hope to meet?
A: Helping you learn little intricacies like how a wedge will affect your plan, opening MLCs
thing the software wont be able to tell you what to do. Knowing this is probably as important if
not more important than just learning the software.
Q: What do you feel you gain from mentoring?
A: We like you and we want you to be successful, so we gain personal satisfaction if you leave
competent and comfortable enough in the job to enjoy it as well.
Q: Do you feel that providing your own perspective of a definition or technique is more useful
than what would be found in a textbook? Please Explain.
A: Textbooks wont include the various expectations of physicians. What you here in the clinic
is so much more useful than reading a textbook Its a different world
Q: How do you feel mentoring effects a student?
A: Youre always going to have a lifetime resource.





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Appendix B
Derek Smith
Interview with Renee ONeal, CMD (transcript)
August 5, 2014

Q: When you are mentoring what are goals that you hope to meet?
A: I think you have to learn how to do everything. Simulation, treatment, bookwork, you have to
know it all because when you leave we want you to be able to do everything on your own and go
into a clinic and be an asset to them by being able to jump in with asking questions about the
flow of the department rather than planning questions like how to treat a breast or prostate.
Q: What do you feel you gain from mentoring?
A: Personal satisfaction. If we can produce another good dosimetrist in the field thats
satisfaction to be able to produce a well-rounded student. We want you to feel comfortable and
enjoy it, and not feel overwhelmed. We want you to be happy about being in the field in the end.
Q: Why do you feel mentoring is important to a medical dosimetrist?
A: It helps us continue to learn
Q: Do you feel you still need a mentor at times?
A: Oh Definitely! Were always learning from each other