Mentorship in a Mental Health Facility, Essay Example

Mentorship is significant for young professionals because it advances their career. Mentors are leaders. Also, mentors help people to become great leaders. Mentors inspire people to help others. Currently, I am working in a mental and behavior facility. At my workplace, the patient population is comprised of patients who have depression, anxiety disorders, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and substance abuse problems. When I joined the facility, an elderly woman in her 50s who has worked in that place for more than 20 years approached me and asked if I need any help knowing the basics of the place. I accepted and she said that she would mentor me through the process.

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My mentor focused on my strengths, weaknesses, and goals. Often, we talked about what I needed to achieve. Besides, she told me that when she started working for the facility, she wished she had effective communication skills. She affirmed that she made a lot of mistakes with patients in the past that almost cost her her job. She taught me that engaging in discussions and practicing non-verbal communication is the key to improving communication skills. Moreover, she offered insights on the way she makes decisions to improve patient outcomes. Besides, she taught me how to employ therapeutic models such as behavioral therapy for quality purposes in patient health. My passion in providing services to mental health patients enabled me to heed into her pieces of advice, which made me advance in my career.

The experience offered me a myriad of benefits. For example, the process has improved my communication skills. Weiss, Tilin, & Morgan (2014, p.46) indicate that due to the diverse networks in healthcare organizations, communication is significant because it makes people express their thoughts accordingly. Besides, I have developed strategies for dealing with patients who are mentally ill. For instance, with the schizophrenic patients, I have learned to be patient with them and understanding their needs. In fact, my patience levels have increased. Furthermore, I have benefited in a way that I have become empowered regarding making decisions. My mentor taught me to cultivate my thoughts by employing mediation to make rational decisions. Also, the mentorship process has enabled me to have a sense of direction concerning achieving my goals. Weiss, Tilin, & Morgan (2014, p.41) affirm that focusing on work-related goals is a key to success.

I might mentor other providers who wish to advance in the field of mental health. The reason is that I benefited from my mentor and I would want to pass those benefits to another person. Leith, Kirvan, Verma, Lewis, and Robertson (201, p.1) affirm that due to the deteriorating management model for patients in the Canadian health care system, the Northwest Territories Department of Health and Social Services has come up with strategies in mental health. The first is to come up with systematic processes to share client information between providers and the second is to establish consistent minimum competencies and service levels for programs and providers in mental health. I would mentor other providers by first learning about their strengths and weaknesses. After recognizing their strengths, I would work on their weaknesses and attempt to work on them because the mental health sector requires a professional person. Most importantly, I would offer insights on the way to work with mental health patients and the way they should make decisions to improve patient outcomes.

References

Leith, E., Kirvan, C., Verma, J. Y., Lewis, K., and Robertson, S. (2012). Re-imagining

Healthcare: The Northwest Territories Transitions to an Integrated Chronic Disease Management Strategy. Healthcare Quarterly. Retrieved from http://www.longwoods.com/content/22772

Weiss, D., Tillen, F. J., & Morgan, M. J. (2014). The Interprofessional Health Care Team:

Leadership and development. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.