Mentoring the mentors in global health research: Johannesburg, South Africa 2016

March 31, 2016

The 2016 Mentoring the Mentors in Global Health Research workshop held in Johannesburg, South Africa on the 10 & 11 of March was co‐hosted by the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (Wits), the UCGHI GloCal Health Fellowship, and the UJMT Fogarty Global Health Fellowship. The primary objective of the workshop was to create a community of senior mentors in biomedical and behavioral global health research and to build supportive mentoring programs with a cohort of mentors at their respective institutions across the Southern African region.

Eight faculty members from Wits, the University of Zambia (UNZA), the University of California San Francisco (UCSF), and the University of North Carolina led the highly interactive two‐day workshop with thirty‐two mid‐career and senior mentors from twelve institutions based in countries across Southern Africa (Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe) participating.

The workshop integrated a number of topics, including: 1) setting goals and expectations for the mentor‐mentee relationship; 2) developing a mentoring philosophy; 3) enhancing communication strategies; 4) identifying and resolving challenges; 5) mentor and mentee evaluation strategies; 6) time management; 7) mentoring in the context of diversity; and 8) work‐life balance issues.

Reports back from the participants and faculty members are very positive, and plans for future cross‐ collaboration and ongoing training are in the works.