Hallmarks of a healthy mentorship

Finding the right mentorship program is never easy. New graduates are more educated than ever on how we deserve to be treated as practicing veterinarians. We’re asking for higher pay, reasonable hours, and–most importantly–good mentorship. As a result, most employers are offering these things in order to meet the high demand for vets. So, how are we to know which practices just look good on paper and which are truly going to support us through the daunting transition from student to doctor?

Green flags

When you start searching for your first job as a vet, it feels a bit like internet dating. Your inbox is overflowing with messages from recruiters and practice owners trying to stand out and get your attention. Thankfully, the red flags are easy to spot: after-hours emergency calls, suspiciously large signing bonuses, “fast-paced” work environments… the list goes on. But once you get past the job listings and sit down face-to-face with potential mentors, it becomes increasingly important to look for the green flags that will make one job stand out above the rest. I was lucky to find mentorship in my first job that provided the level of support I needed to thrive.

My list of mentorship green flags:

Meaningful conversations about mental health

The mental health crisis in veterinary medicine is often talked about over the course of a lunch meeting and then slips away into the background due to the demands of the job. As a new grad, I knew I would struggle with building confidence and battling imposter syndrome. I was so worried that I would get overwhelmed and not know how to cope with every tough situation. After speaking with my mentor during the interview process, those fears started to fade. I saw that the workplace culture was very open to talking about mental health, and knowing that early on made me feel comfortable talking about my feelings and asking for support when I needed it.

Commitment to work-life balance

“We’re all work to live, not live to work kind of people.”

This was another green flag from the first interview at my clinic. I work with incredible veterinarians who care deeply about the animals and people that they serve, but they also know that work is not the top priority in life. We all take a lunch break every day, leave work on time as much as possible, and never take medical records home. My mentors have shown me a level of work-life balance that I had rarely seen before in this profession, and I hope that it soon becomes normalized in every vet clinic.

Open-ended mentorship timeline

My contract for my first job promised me three months of formalized mentorship. This is a fairly common timeline along which new grads are expected to transition from a training phase to functioning as a full doctor. However, the real learning process extends far beyond the first few months. While I encourage all new grads to sign a mentorship contract to make sure minimum standards are met, it’s also worth having a conversation with your mentorship team about their willingness to provide guidance beyond a set time period. I have been practicing for several months now, and though I am more independent, I still frequently ask questions and rely on my mentors to be my safety net as I encounter new challenges.

Valuing input from the new grad

Feelings of unpreparedness and insecurity are overwhelming as a new grad, so it’s easy to forget what we bring to the table as associate veterinarians. My mentors reminded me from day 1 that I was coming in with the most up-to-date knowledge in the veterinary world. Even when I felt like I knew nothing at all, they asked for my thoughts on their cases and treated me as their equal. Simple acts of collaboration made me feel valued as a new doctor and reminded me that I’m not the only one who needs help sometimes.

Putting it into practice

Each individual is going to have a different skill set and confidence level as they start their career, but at the end of the day, we all have the same goal. We all need mentors who show support for us as people first and veterinarians second.

Mentors should take the time to ask new grads how they’re doing, not just with medicine but with balancing the demands of an emotionally taxing profession. Ask where they could use extra support and figure out ways to provide it. If you help them feel comfortable communicating with you early on, it will tailor the mentorship to their needs and prevent the frustration of a first job that doesn’t live up to expectations.

Being a new veterinarian is hard. We’re managing a wide variety of cases for the first time and learning how to take care of ourselves in a stressful career. The ideal mentorship program should understand all aspects, providing guidance in clinical cases and support for our well-being as we navigate life as a new grad vet.