| One of our healthcare clients just completed the first cohort of their Front-Line Nurse Mentoring Program. As I was compiling their final evaluations, I was struck by the data.
While identifying as time-challenged, the participants valued the program’s time-intensive components the most and requested more of them! Participants reported favoring:
And when asked about recommendations for improving the program, 48% requested more structured mentor-mentee activities. But when they got to the question about challenges they faced in completing the program, 100% reported “time.” Isn’t it ironic? The most significant barrier participants encountered was time, yet they urged us to include more time-intensive activities! Amazingly, when we helped our client create this program, we had to convince her to include the mid-point and final presentations in the structure. She resisted, desperate to ensure the program wasn’t burdensome on her participants. And then, those same participants critiqued her program for its lack of more demands on their time! Sadly, while people are busy, they are also lonely. A sociological study revealed:
Why should we care professionally? Because declines in social connectedness…
Whereas social connections, connectedness, and confidants:
So, we should not be surprised that essential, front-line nurses in a pandemic valued social connections and requested even more of them. While time is not a fundamental human need, belonging is. © 2021. Ann Tardy and Mentor Lead. www.mentorlead.com | www.anntardy.com |