The Mentor Connection in Nursing

Book excerpt: Success. Job satisfaction. Leadership. How are these developed and nurtured in a nursing career? Can mentors make a difference? They can and do, according to this book---edited by two pioneering researchers in the field of nursing mentorship. Here they explore the conceptual and practical aspects of mentorship and what it means in nursing. They are joined by more than a hundred nurses, including nurse leaders such as Beverly Malone, Marla Salmon, and Joyce Fitzpatrick, who contribute stories, essays, and personal reflections on mentorship. Their voices, in addition to the editor's research, suggest that nurses are inventing a new, evolving, and very meaningful paradigm, which reaps mentorship's classic benefits: career success and advancement personal and professional satisfaction, enhanced self-esteem and confidence, preparation for leadership roles and succession, and strengthening of the profession. The book describes the dynamics of both informal mentor relationships and structured mentorship programs, such as those used in schools of nursing to help disadvantaged students. In addition to looking at education, the book describes how mentorship plays a role in the practice setting, in professional organizations, and with peers and groups, and how it promotes international and cross-cultural understanding.