Mentoring in family medicine: Consultation needs of family medicine trainees

Background and objective: More than 600 trainees in family medicine (FM trainees) have participated in the VerbundweiterbildungPius (VWBplus) since this rotation network programme has been implemented in 2009. Mentoring as need-based support and counselling is an essential element of this programme. The aim of this study was to identify FM trainees' most frequent reasons for counselling in order to explore the qualifications and requirements to be a mentor. Methods: 141 e-mails written between December 2009 and July 2014 were analysed according to Mayring. This procedure generated thematic categories of common reasons for seeking counselling. Results: 32 % of all VWBplus participants asked mentors of the programme for advice. The most frequent questions (38 %) related to job vacancies, the application process and employment contracts. The second most common inquiries (30 %) referred to participation in the VWBPlus as well as contents of education meetings within the VWBplus. Other questions pertained to general aspects of postgraduate training in family medicine (16 %), individual conflict consulting (10 %) and funding applications (6 %). Conclusion: The results of the needs assessment survey reveal that a mentoring programme needs competent advisors with experience in family medicine. While FAQ lists are helpful in answering general questions, specific requests such as, for example, a personal crisis require individual counselling provided by a mentor.