Authors (including presenting author) :
Mo KC, Cheung PY, Lai KW, Cheung TK, Tsang HC, To YL
Affiliation :
Physiotherapy Department, North District Hospital (NDH)
Introduction :
With over 60% of our staff being young in middle-level or entry-level positions, fostering a caring and mentoring culture is crucial for building a successful team and achieving the Hospital Authority's (HA) vision of "Happy Staff" and values of "Committed Staff" and "Teamwork".
The "North Star mentorship Program" was launched in October 2023 in NDH Physiotherapy Department. The program aims to support new Resident Physiotherapists and develop the mentoring skills of our Advanced Practice Physiotherapists. No mandatory structured group activities were planned. Instead, informal meetings, attachments and leisure activities in pair were arranged by mutual agreement between mentor and mentee. To strengthen our mentors, skills training workshops were arranged in collaboration with NTEC CIPS Centre (North).
Objectives :
To review the content of the “North Star Program” and enhance the support provided to newly graduated Resident Physiotherapists.
Methodology :
Questionnaires were distributed to mentors and mentees who participated in the program, data was synthesized and interpreted.
Result & Outcome :
A total of 14 mentorship pairs participated in the program in 2023/24. The majority of colleagues (60%) participated as mentors have more than seven years of practice, all of them have been working in major clinical teams inside the department, half of them had previous mentoring experiences.
For mentors, all returns showed positive feedback that the program is beneficial and 90% mentors recommended the program for the next cohort of new graduates. The majority of mentors navigated the department and hospital for their mentees, shared their career pathway and provided emotional support. Some mentors also shared their academic development, facilitated social networking and assisted in goal setting.
For mentees, 81% of them agreed that their mentors provided constructive feedback, and satisfied with the support they received. 77% reported their mentors motivated them to improve through the program and were supporting and encouraging, also introduced them instructional strategies that they were not aware of before.
More than 70% of pairs reported that limited time and lack of quiet meeting space were challenges. Suggestions for improvement included group activities, regular swapping of pairings, and mandatory meetings in the first few months.
The “North Star Program” has shown promise results in supporting new Resident Physiotherapists and developing mentoring skills for our Advanced Practice Physiotherapists. Despite the challenges reported, the program has provided a valuable foundation for building a caring department.
