Assessor or mentor? Role confusion in professional education.

This paper reports on research conducted as part of a multi-professional study involving nursing, medicine and midwifery, which aimed to investigate both mentee and mentor perceptions of the mentorship role and the context within which it is conducted. It is well recognised that mentorship plays a vital part in the support and training of healthcare professionals. Documentation published by regulatory bodies regarding the mentorship role and changes in it's implementation in practice has resulted in confusion among practitioners. This study consisted of questionnaires and semi-structured telephone interviews with both mentors and mentees, within three healthcare professions and focuses on the responses from the nursing profession. The mentors participating in the study struggled with their dual role as assessor and mentor and found conflict within this responsibility. The role of assessor was poorly recognised and the complexity of being both an assessor and a supporter/friend is discussed.