The AAQHC mentoring program brings like-minded health professionals together to create a dynamic and personal way to learn and up-skill.

As a mentor, you have the opportunity to share your perspective and give back to your profession. As you connect with your mentee, you will have the chance to review and validate what you know and explore this with a new perspective. Our mentors have reported feeling great satisfaction and pride in being able to assist in the career of another health professional.

As a mentee, you will learn about yourself and relationships with others. The program is set up to help you explore what you do well or could do well, and how to maximise your talents. You will benefit from connections with others in your field through your mentor, and learning from the experience your mentor provides. You can choose our mentor based on your interests.

Mentee Application Form 

Benefits of our mentor program
Critical ingredients to a successful mentorship
Coordination of the program
Selection process

Our mentors will benefit from:

 1. Learning – the conversations offer opportunity for learning as the mentee may have different knowledge and experience which may enhance your own. The program also serves to strengthen facilitation skills which can support the development of more effective professional and personal relationships.

2. Chance to pay back – this is a chance to give back to the profession and support others to professionally and personally grow and develop.

3. Review and validate – the program offers an opportunity to review and validate what you know and explore this with the mentee as you look at topics together.

4. Energising – an opportunity to make a positive difference on another person’s growth and development can provoke positive feelings or pride, satisfaction, contentment and excitement.

5. Contributing to the success of the AAQHC – this program is a significant product offered by the AAQHC. Its success is dependent on the contribution of the mentors and is a critical recruitment and retention strategy, for without members, the AAQHC cannot exist.

6. You will leave the world a better place – Taking the time to help others, sharing your knowledge and wisdom developed from many years’ experience working in the health industry can make a significant difference, one person at a time.

Our mentees will benefit from:

1. Learning new things about yourself – the program provides an opportunity for self-reflection through the use of open-ended questioning and can provide you with new insights about yourself and your relationships with others.

2. Making more of your strengths and exploiting your hidden talents – the program provides you with an opportunity to explore what you do or could do well and provide you with some strategies to maximise and extend your talents.

3. Expanding your personal network – the program provides an opportunity to increase your connections with others in the program and/or others that the mentor may know.

4. Career satisfaction – the program enables you to see your successes and potential opportunities resulting in increase career satisfaction. 

There are a number of critical ingredients that need to be in place to support an effective and successful Mentoring Program:

1. Purpose – both mentor and mentee need to develop an agreed understanding of the purpose on why they are together and meeting. There is common agreement on the work that will be undertaken, and there is recognition of when the purpose has been met and goals of the relationship have been met.

2. Communication – occurs in a manner that is mutually agreeable and within agreed timeframes. A number of active communication skills are required to enable an effective partnership including, active listening and responding; monitoring of nonverbal language; clarifying questions and concepts; and providing opportunity for feedback.

3. Trust – is critical and includes maintaining confidentiality of information, honesty to act and follow through on promises and sharing of yourself to explore possibly difficult questions/issues.

4. Process – the program occurs in a staged approach: planning; building relationships/negotiating agreement; developing and maintaining the momentum; and ending the relationship. To be successful participants need to plan together to carefully move through each stage. The AAQHC has identified a number of tools and resources from the literature to support implementation of each stage of the process.

5. Progress – the mentee must take responsibility for the progress of the mentoring relationship. The mentee works actively to firstly identify appropriate goals and build competencies to reach those goals and identifying interesting learning experiences and explores these with the mentor.

6. Feedback – the way of receiving feedback has been agreed to and the information received reinforces the efforts of both. 

Coordination of the Program

The AAQHC Council Mentoring Coordinator has oversight for the coordination of the program and the provision of support for mentors/mentees during their participation in the program. The Mentoring Coordinator can be contacted by emailing: aaqhc@aaqhc.or.au to discuss the program further.

Selection process

Mentors – Fellows and Associate Fellows of the Association have been invited to participate as mentors as this group have demonstrated significant experience and success in the quality, safety and risk management roles. Mentors have been asked to describe their qualifications, experiences, interests and key elements of their careers. This information has been collated together and is provided to mentees to allow them to choose mentors with similar interests and goals. The Mentoring Coordinator will match mentors with mentees and if the preferred mentor is unavailable will suggest alternative mentors. The Mentoring Coordinator is responsible for liaising with both participants to ensure all are willing to participate.

Mentees – Any member can apply to participate in the Mentoring Program.