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ENCOURAGING SERVICE THROUGH COLLABORATION
Reaping the benefits of mentoring
by Jane Palmer “An incredible opportunity.” That’s how Julie Snethen describes her participation in two leadership programs offered by the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International. Every chance she gets—from conversations with friends to her keynote address at her chapter’s induction ceremony—she tells other nurses about her positive experiences with the Chiron Mentoring Program and Leadership Academy: Nurses Investing in Maternal-Child Health. “I think a lot of people don’t realize there are these rich opportunities through Sigma Theta Tau that will help them develop professionally,” says Snethen, assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM). When she enrolled in the Chiron program in 2003, Snethen was taking on a new faculty role at UWM. Marion Broome, now university dean and professor at Indiana University School of Nursing, served as her Chiron mentor. The two were already well-acquainted, as Broome was Snethen’s major professor when she earned her doctorate at UWM eight years ago. “The Chiron program allows participants to learn more about themselves and others, to identify their own strengths and how to mobilize them, and how critically important the network of colleagues is in providing critique and support when facing the challenges of becoming a leader,” Broome says. Snethen’s Chiron project included three components: teaching, research and publication. One of her responsibilities at UWM was to develop and teach a new pediatric nursing class. She consulted with her mentor about class activities and case study preparation. Broome also advised Snethen in conducting a meta-analysis of obesity interventions in children, and the study was published in the February issue of Journal of Pediatric Nursing (Snethen, Broome, & Cashin, 2006). The Chiron program set the stage for the mentor-mentee relationship and enhanced the opportunities for interaction between the two nurses. Snethen highly values Broome’s mentorship. “She is phenomenal—an amazing woman,” Snethen says. “She’s very nurturing and supportive. She might say, ‘That’s great. Now let’s change it this way. You’re really making progress.’ It encourages you to try harder, because she is so positive—she gets you excited about what you’re doing.” Broome, in turn, has high regard for her protégé. “Julie possesses every characteristic necessary to become a leader in the discipline,” Broome says. “She asks the right (albeit challenging) questions, embraces input and guidance from others, has a great sense of humor and never takes herself too seriously. She is a caring person who ‘encourages the heart’ and ‘models the way’ when working with others.” After Snethen completed her Chiron project, Broome encouraged her to apply to the Maternal-Child Health Leadership Academy (MCH), a collaboration of the honor society and Johnson & Johnson Pediatric Institute. Broome told her the academy would give her the opportunity to be mentored by others as she continued to develop her leadership skills in maternal-child nursing. At first, Snethen hesitated to apply for a second leadership program so soon after finishing Chiron, but then she considered the source of the advice. “Marion never steers me wrong,” she says. “I know that if she suggests something, it will be good.”
Snethen is glad she followed Broome’s recommendation. She and her mentor, Rachel Schiffman, a UMW nursing professor, were accepted into the MCH class of 2004. For her project, Snethen developed an obesity-prevention program at the Silver Spring Neighborhood Center in Milwaukee, a large clinic located in an area with few health care resources. Snethen had both an on-site mentor, Schiffman, and a Chiron faculty mentor, Linda Finke, who at that time was the honor society’s director of professional development. “Both of them did a wonderful job of helping me,” Snethen says. The Silver Spring Neighborhood Center offers a nurse-managed clinic, as well as a day care facility, food bank and adult education classes. Located in a large, inner-city public housing complex, the center offers “one-stop shopping” for nearby residents, says Finke, who is now dean of the School of Health Sciences at Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne. “Julie learned the importance of community leaders and their influence in the success of a project aimed at that community,” Finke says. “She developed relationships with the clinic staff, who were also trusted within the community. Through her connection to these key folks, Julie was able to gain the trust of potential participants for her project.” The obesity-prevention program involved teaching children and their mothers about proper nutrition. From a statistical standpoint, the outcomes were not impressive, but the knowledge she gained from completing the project was significant. “The outcome really was the process—we learned a lot,” Snethen says. “We learned that you don’t have control over some things. I thought [the families] would all start eating fresh fruits and vegetables. Some did, but for other families, the program was a way for them to get a break from the kids.” Snethen also learned that many staff members are needed when a program involves young children. The participation of student nurses and graduate students allowed nearly a one-to-one ratio between staff and participants. Schiffman, her mentor at Silver Spring, complimented Snethen’s leadership. “She cares deeply about the health and well-being of children and their families,” Schiffman says. “She is an active learner and, although she accepts suggestions readily, she can articulate rationales for her choices if necessary. The MCH Leadership Academy provided a good foundation for leadership and team building. We could take the principles and apply them to developing a community-university partnership, which has its own unique set of challenges.” The MCH program includes two site visits, each lasting one to two days, in which the faculty mentor assigned to the mentee/mentor pair travels to the “home” environment to discuss the project. The mentee often assembles the entire project team for those visits, to allow the faculty mentor to view the dynamics among group members. “[The site visit] allowed us another opportunity to engage the staff at the center where Julie was doing the project,” Schiffman says, “and validated the changes we had to make in response to changes in the environment.” Finke, the Chiron faculty mentor for Snethen’s project, stressed the importance of analyzing the needs of a community before implementing a program. “Julie assessed the system she was collaborating with to implement her change project and developed an intervention aimed to meet identified community needs,” Finke says. “Julie’s approach is an important example for others working with underserved communities.” In addition to the Chiron and Maternal-Child Health programs, the honor society offers the Omada Board Leadership Program, which prepares nurses to serve on the board of directors for nonprofit organizations. Nancy Dickenson-Hazard talks about these mentoring programs in the adjacent video clip, and more detailed information about the three programs is also available in the Third Qtr. 2006 issue of Reflections on Nursing Leadership. A successful leadership program provides an inspiring, thought-provoking environment for participants to interact with and learn from their mentors and colleagues. Because of her positive experience with Chiron and MCH, Julie Snethen is eager to spread the word about the honor society’s programs. “I feel very fortunate to have been able to do both programs,” Snethen says. “They were a really good experience for me.” The personal qualities and characteristics of participants also contribute to a program’s success. “Julie Snethen is a mentee par excellence,” Broome says. “It is such a pleasure to work with her—I always grow some after our interactions.” Finke agrees. “I really enjoyed getting to know Julie and doing the site visit with her and those working in the center,” she says. “Julie has a bright future ahead of her.” RNL Jane Palmer, assistant editor of Reflections on Nursing Leadership, also serves as editorial coordinator for the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International. References |
