Two for the Price of One: Enhancing Personal Growth & Professional Development Through Small-Group Mentoring

Occupational therapy entry-level education is filled with opportunities for experiential learning. However, once one completes their occupational therapy degree, fewer opportunities exist for participation in mentored experiences. Mentoring in healthcare professions is not new; it has resurged over the past 15 years (Doyle et al., 2019), documenting the nature of mentorship for practicing clinicians, the design of programs to promote professional advancement, and the effectiveness of these programs. More research is needed to explore mentorship’s impact on occupational therapy practice. A mentorship program offered by the STAR Institute utilizes a small group format. Mentorship content is focused on sensory integration and processing and involves a combination of classroom instruction, discussion, clinical reasoning, and reflection based on on-site clinical learning experiences (Schoen et al., 2021). This presentation aims to present findings from the qualitative portion of a mixed methods study to understand participants’ experiences and impact on their clinical practice.

DESIGN: This descriptive study utilized a post-program survey. Participants self-selected from those who completed the mentorship training. Thirty participants responded to four open-ended survey questions. Qualitative data analysis was conducted using ATLAS.ti Web, four raters, and strategies to ensure trustworthiness.

FINDINGS: Several categories/themes emerged from the transcripts. Themes included positive experiences related to implementation, confidence, and application of new skills.

CONCLUSION: This mentorship and its instructional content supported the participants’ confidence and ability to implement content from the training specific to assessing and treating children with sensory integration and processing differences. Impact Statement: Regardless of the content, small group mentorship may be essential to current continuing education practices in occupational therapy.

References

ATLAS.ti Scientific Software Development GmbH [ATLAS.ti Web, v3.15.0]. (2022). Retrieved from https://atlasti.com

Doyle, N, Gafni Lachter, L., & K. Jacobs, K. (2019). Scoping review of mentoring research in the occupational therapy literature, 2002–2018. Australian Occupational Therapy Journal, 66(5), 541–551. https://doi:10.1111/1440-1630.12579

Pitney, W. A., & Parker, J. (2019). Qualitative research in the health professions. Slack Incorporated. https://doi.org/10.1080/07380577.2022.2095475

Schoen, S. A., Gee, B. M., & Ochsenbein, M. (2021). Preparing advanced clinicians and practitioners: a model for mentorship in occupational therapy practice. Occupational Therapy International, 2021. https://doi: 10.1155/2021/3394478