SHM Converge Scientific Abstract ePoster Gallery-Minding the Gap: Assessing Mentorship Preferences of Early-Career Academic Hospitalists

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This needs assessment examined mentorship and scholarly engagement among academic hospitalists at UC San Diego, focusing on early-career faculty. Using a 14-item survey sent to all 78 hospitalists and a 60-minute focus group with eight early-career physicians, the team found meaningful gaps in the existing mentorship model.<br /><br />Survey results showed a 69% response rate and revealed dissatisfaction with scholarly engagement, especially among early- and mid-career faculty. Although 70% of respondents wanted to strengthen their academic portfolios, mentorship was identified as a major barrier. Comments most often highlighted concerns about mentorship and career development. Notably, simply having a mentor was not associated with greater satisfaction in academic success.<br /><br />The focus group identified several key needs. Participants wanted mentorship that was more personalized, with better matching between mentors and mentees. They also asked for easier, real-time access to resources, clearer promotion criteria, and stronger community and peer support. The team concluded that the traditional dyad mentorship structure, largely shaped by senior faculty, did not fully align with the needs of newer hospitalists.<br /><br />In response, the division implemented several action items: online “Mini-Mentor Bios” to help faculty find compatible mentors, mentor/mentee training workshops, a shared Microsoft Teams resource site, annual promotion workshops, examples of successful promotion files, and expanded peer mentorship and social community-building efforts.<br /><br />Overall, the study highlights a significant mismatch between existing mentorship structures and the expectations of today’s early-career academic hospitalists. Ongoing evaluation will be important to determine whether these changes improve mentorship quality, scholarly engagement, and career advancement.

Asset Subtitle

Meghan Sebasky

Meta Tag

Author List Gregory B. Seymann, Meghan Sebasky, Pedro Ramos, Robert El-Kareh, Sarah F. Horman

Category Innovations

Concept Mentorship

Concept Early-career academic hospitalists

Concept Academic success

Concept Mentorship ecosystem

Concept Faculty Satisfaction

Distinguished Non-Finalist

Presenter Organization UC San Diego

Presenting Author Meghan Sebasky

Track Education

Keywords

mentorship

academic hospitalists

scholarly engagement

early-career faculty

career development

promotion criteria

peer support

mentor matching

faculty survey

UC San Diego

Mentorship

Early-career academic hospitalists

Academic success

Mentorship ecosystem

Faculty Satisfaction