Current Mentors:
Best, Allan
Bryce, Elizabeth
Egan, John
Frankish, C. James
Kidd, Catherine
Lau, Frances
Niks, Marina
Odegard, Larry
Poureslami, Iraj
Rootman, Irv
Spiegel, Jerry
Wagman, Lezlie
Yassi, Annalee
Past Mentors:
Altman, Jack
Altow, Debby
Arbogast, Mike
Balka, Ellen
Bruce, Ted
Canam, Connie
Chase, Mark
Corbiere, Marc
Crocker, Barbara
Edwards, Nancy
Ford, Laurie
Goldner, Elliot
Hariri, Nellie
Hawe, Penny
Henderson, Angela
Joy, Janet
Kopec, Jacek
MacLeod, Hugh
Ostry, Aleck
Papineau, Danielle
Poole, Gary
Pratt, Daniel
Raine, Kim
Rajani-Datoo, Anisha
Ratner, Pam
Saunders, Sharon
Sheps, Sam
Thorne, Sally
VanWynsberghe, Rob
Walsh, Geoff
Wilson, Douglas
Wister, Andrew
Zumbo, Bruno
Mentoring:
PCHR has both academic and community mentors. Academic mentors are affiliated with a post-secondary institution, and include professors, instructors, visiting scholars, post-doctoral fellows, and research associates. Community mentors are drawn from community-based institutions (e.g., health regions, health unions), non-governmental organizations, the private sector, and, where appropriate, the lay public. Mentors may assume one or more of the following role: cluster member, cluster co-convener, steering council member, working group member, and/or primary mentor.
The overarching purposes of PCHR mentors are:
- to provide guidance to the learning process,
- to assist in understanding how to navigate the systems of the partnering organizations and universities, and
- to provide networking opportunities to learners and other mentors.
Primary Mentors
In addition to the cluster-based learning and learner profiles, primary mentors are a PCHR cornerstone. Primary mentors are a very valuable source of guidance for the learners. It is important that learners and their primary mentors establish good working relationships, such that the mentor knows the learner’s goals and work well, and the learner is familiar with the mentor’s work and expertise. This relationship depends upon good communication. The primary mentor must be familiar with the learner’s Profile and have discussed it with the learner. It is also recommended that learner and mentor revisit the Learner Profile regularly. Mentors also provide important feedback on the direction and quality of the learner’s work.
For the primary mentor and the learner, the Learner Profile can be used to assess progress. This assessment may be based on:• the work produced by the learner;
• the mentor’s assessment of the learner’s contributions to cluster-based activities;
• ongoing interactions between the learner and primary mentor.
Because of their central role in PCHR, mentors must be provided with ongoing support. This year, at least two events will be targeted to mentors: a mentor orientation in the Fall and a mentor gathering/workshop in the Spring.
*Your feedback on what works well, and how we can provide better support, is much appreciated; please forward your comments to faye.pedersen@ubc.ca
Mentor Roles
PCHR provides mentors with a range of opportunities for involvement. Mentor experience and time availability, along with program needs, will inform how mentors are engaged in the PCHR program. While there will be mentors who participate at all levels, this is not realistic for others. Therefore, mentor involvement can occur in one or more levels tailored to PCHR and mentor needs.
Cluster Involvement
i) Being a cluster member in one of our clusters
The mentor takes a lead role in guiding the interdisciplinary learning cluster through the process of clarifying the comunity-identified problem, turning this into a realistic research question and setting a plan for completing the cluster agreed upon deliverables. This work occurs at a group level and could involve providing feedback on written material, collecting and/or developing background material, and/or doing organizational scans and stakeholder engagement.
Requirements:
- Regular attendance at cluster meetings (approximately one per month)
- Available by e-mail for occasional input
ii) Being a cluster co-convener in one of our clusters
Requirements:
- Being a cluster member (see above)
- Attending approximately four Steering Council meetigs per year, or arranging for an alternate cluster member to participate in some of them.
- Preparing for and attending approximately two Learner Recruitment and Selection Committee meetings per year, or arranging for an alternate c cluster member to participate. Tasks for selection include reviewing and ranking applications for the following cohort of learners and
interviewing short-listed candidates for the cluster.
Mentoring Learners
iii) Being a primary mentor
The primary mentor meets individually with a learner. to provide additional individualized support to the learner outside of the cluster group and/or overall cross-cluster program activities. Although generally primary mentors will be cluster members in the same cluster as their learner, there may be cross-cluster learners who will have a cross-cluster mentor.
Requirments:
- Accepting the title of primary mentor for one or more learners
- Collaborating with the identified learner(s) on the development and continuous improvement of their learner profile (learners will receive general instructions on how to create their profile during their orientation)
- Ensuring that the learner(s) understands their individual cluster or cross-cluster assignment
- Ensuring that the learner(s) is (are) contributing their contracted time commitment to program activities
- Addressing any concerns that the learner(s) may have
- Meeting with the learner(s) one-on-one at least once per term
- Providing the Managmeent Team with accountability information regarding the learner(s) for PCHR's annual report to CIHR
- Assessing year-end Learner Presentation
iv) Being a secondary mentor
Being a resource person for a learner who is looking for a mentorship in a particular area (e.g., statistics, ethics, policy making).
Cross-Cluster Involvement
v) Being a working group member
The working groups may include learning innovation, evaluation and business strategy/sustainability.
Requirements:
- Regular attendance at committee meetings (approximately 4 per year)
- Available by e-mail for occasional input
- Volunteering to assist with various tasks (optional)
vi) Being a Presenter for or taking part in cross-cluster events
These include seminars, workshops, the learner presentation days, etc.
vii) Participating in Mentor Support and Development
Mentors will be invited to attend periodic workshops and discussion sessions (approximately two per year) with each other. These will address topics such as the mentoring relationship, assessment and accountability, and the effective provision of feedback. These events are intended
to provide support for mentors and seek their input to strengthen the program.
Time Commitment
For cluster mentors, involvement is heaviest in the first quarter of the twelve-month learning cycle, which begins in September of each year. While some PCHR cluster projects are multiyear in nature, others begin with new learners and a new community-identified problem each year. Prospective mentors should be aware that their level of involvement will vary depending on the learning cycle. The following is what is generally found to be true for cluster mentors, but is not meant to be prescriptive, and does not reflect time commitments of cross-cluster mentors, which would be steadier throughout the year.
September – December
The cluster brings on new mentors and learners and thus begins the process of group cohesion, understanding the research problem and the context/systems within which the problem exists. Mentor involvement at the cluster level is significant during this period. One-to-one learner/mentor meetings are likely to be more frequent during this period.
January – April
Depending on the deliverables identified by the cluster learners and mentors, the amount of cluster work will likely lower during this period. Larger amounts of learner time are dedicated to research activities with occasional one-to-on meetings with their mentors for guidance. Expect the time commitment to be one-half to two-thirds of that of the first quarter.
May – August
Mentor involvement decreases significantly during this period if the focus of the cluster deliverable is a traditional research project. Mentors are engaged by learners to assist in preliminary findings, project completion, and final evaluations. Other clusters that select alternative deliverables such as community presentations/consultations may require more mentor involvement. Time commitment may be as low as 20% of the time committed in the first quarter
