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The SD4H Training Program held a Mentorship Workshop from June 3 - 4, 2021 at the Kisumu Hotel. The aim of this workshop was to strengthen and enhance mentoring skills and techniques for the SD4H mentors and faculty at Maseno University (MSU). The workshop was conducted using a hybrid model with physical and online participation. The facilitators of the Mentorship Workshop were drawn from the collaborating institutions for SD4H including Drs. Pauline Andang’o, Bernard Guya, Louisa Ndunyu, Erick Nyambedha, and Collins Ouma from MSU, Drs. Craig Cohen and Sheri Weiser from UCSF and Dr. Elizabeth Bukusi from KEMRI. The following were the objectives of the workshop:

  1. Develop a culture of mentorship at MSU.
  2. Identify facilitators and barriers to mentoring at individual and institutional level.
  3. Explore concepts of diversity (gender, age, ethnicity) within the MSU context that may affect the mentoring-mentee relationship.
  4. Share well-developed and published tools, techniques, and resources regarding mentoring fundamentals.
  5. Establish a cohort of mentors in research to support cross-collaboration and ongoing training at MSU.
  6. Develop individual mentoring and action plans to support mentoring.

The following key steps were to be the starting point for the Mentorship Program at MSU:

 Operationalize the MSU Mentorship Policy

  1. Cascade the MSU Mentoring Policy to the Schools
  2. Establish a Mentoring Unit
  3. Carry out seminars and workshops every three months
  4. Develop implementation guidelines
  5. Pool resources from grants
  6. Develop an online mentorship workshop course for MSU staff and students
  7. Have a postgraduate course on career development and mentoring
  8. Mainstream the culture of mentorship by having annual school deliverables, incentivized at the school and university level (commendations; financial and non-financial; awards and recognitions for mentors; mentorship as part of promotions)
  9. Establish a faculty mentoring programme with the following goals:
    1. Establish meaningful relationships
    2. Create a positive onboarding experience