title: Policies, activities, and structures supporting research mentoring:  a national survey of academic health centers with clinical and translational science awards.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To document the frequency of policies and activities in support of mentoring practices at institutions receiving a U.S. National Institutes of Health's Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA).
  
  
  METHODS
  The study consisted of a 69-item survey with questions about the inclusion (formal or informal) of policies, activities, and structures supporting mentoring within CTSA-sponsored research (i.e., KL2 programs) and, more broadly, in the CTSA's home institution. The survey, conducted from November 2010 through January 2011, was sent to the 55 institutions awarded CTSAs at the time of the survey. Follow-up phone interviews were conducted to clarify responses as needed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Fifty-one of 55 (92%) institutions completed the survey for institutional programs and 53 of 55 (96%) for KL2 programs. Responses regarding policies and activities involving mentor criteria, mentor-mentee relationship, incentives, and evaluative mechanisms revealed considerable variability between KL2 and institutional programs in some areas, such as having mentor qualification criteria and processes to evaluate mentors. The survey also identified areas, such as training and women and minority mentoring programs, where there was frequent sharing of activities between the institutional and KL2 programs.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  KL2 programs and institutional programs tend to have different preferences for policies versus activities to optimize qualification of mentors, the mentor-mentee relationship, incentives, and evaluation mechanisms. Frequently, these elements are informal. Individuals in charge of implementing and maintaining mentoring initiatives can use the results of the study to consider their current mentoring policies, structures, and activities by comparing them with national patterns within CTSA institutions.
authors.affiliation: Office of Faculty Professional Development, College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, New York, USA.
authors.forename: Robert E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Tillman
authors.forename: Susan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jang
authors.forename: Zainab
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Abedin
authors.forename: Boyd F
authors.initials: BF
authors.lastname: Richards
authors.forename: Brigitta
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Spaeth-Rublee
authors.forename: Harold Alan
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Pincus
mesh_terms: D000046:Academic Medical Centers; D003142:Communication; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D008611:Mentors / Q000193:education* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008913:Minority Groups; D009316:National Institutes of Health (U.S.); D016134:Organizational Policy; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D057170:Translational Research, Biomedical / Q000193:education* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D014481:United States