National Mentorship Network for Support of Minoritized General Surgery Residents in the US

BACKGROUND: More than one-third of surgery residents-most of whom identified as non-White-report a lack of meaningful mentorship at their home institution. The purpose of this study was to (1) develop a program to assist residents who lack mentorship at their home institutions, (2) evaluate a national mentorship network 1-year postimplementation, and (3) identify areas for improvement. STUDY DESIGN: The Association for Academic Surgery (AAS) and the Surgical Education Culture Optimization based on National comparative Data (SECOND) trial partnered to create a national mentorship network to address the lack of local mentorship. A total of 123 resident mentees were recruited through SECOND trial intervention programs, and 85 mentors were recruited and trained through AAS. Residents were matched with faculty mentors outside their institutions based on desired mentor qualities. After 1 year, participants were surveyed. RESULTS: Residents were 73.2% female, 61.4% non-White or Hispanic, and 13.6% lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer; 95.1% identified with at least 1 minoritized identity. One-year evaluations were completed by 44 residents (35.8%) and 38 faculty (44.7%). Of 44, 30 (68.2%) residents were enrolled due to unmet mentorship needs at their home institution, with 53.3% (16 of 30) wanting an identity-concordant mentor. Of 44, 34 (77.3%) resident respondents had met with their mentors. Mental health was addressed by 44.1% (15 of 34) of pairs; 64.7% of residents rated their mentors as a good fit, and 44.1% reported their mentors had provided them with opportunities they would not have otherwise had. Of faculty, 68.4% agreed, "Participation in this program has been meaningful to me." Suggestions for improvement included participation reminders (39.7%) and discussion guides (25.3%). CONCLUSIONS: A national mentorship network may help compensate for the lack of local identity-concordant mentorship.