Eyeworld

Cornea Society News – published quarterly by the Cornea Society 6 Novel mentorship program: A new Cornea Society University initiative tionship forms naturally. I was fortunate enough to meet both of my influential mentors at my home institutions. I found mentors that I could relate to and who both had careers I wanted to emulate. For many, this doesn't hap- pen naturally despite a lot of effort on the mentee's part. Furthermore, most institutions and organizations lack a formal mentoring program. I am often approached at this step and asked: 1) What makes a mentor/mentee relation- ship work? and 2) What avenues exist to find an appropriate mentor? Defining what makes a mentor/ mentee relationship work is difficult because it is different for every person. It will also change throughout one's career. When I started out, I needed guidance on choosing my subspecialty. My needs changed when I needed to find my first job and many new questions arose: academics vs. private practice, small vs. large practice, location, etc. Sometimes a desirable mentor lives close by and is able to advise you on the local envi- T he origin of the word mentor dates back to Homer's poem The Odys- sey. In the poem, "Mentor" was a friend of Odysseus and adviser of his son Telemachus. The definition in modern English reflects this origin with mentor defined as a "wise and trusted counselor or teacher." Mentorship is such an important part of medicine and ophthalmology in particular. Cornea Society University (CSU) is dedicated to providing medical edu- cation and professional development education for young cornea specialists, which includes both those in training and those in their first 5 years of prac- tice. Through CSU events, I have had the chance to interact with many young cornea specialists. We often discuss gaps in education and specific needs during these formative years. One of the most frequent requests I hear when I speak with these young physicians is the need for mentorship. Finding a mentor can be challeng- ing. Sometimes a mentor/mentee rela- ronment and local job opportunities. Sometimes a mentor has specific expe- rience in a new technology or surgical procedure you want to incorporate into your practice. It is wonderful to find one mentor who can guide you throughout your career and help you every step of the way. One mentor, however, may not be able to advise you on all of your different needs. Everyone will travel down a different path, and it is often more desirable to have multiple mentors along the way. Our newest CSU initiative is dedi- cated to filling this gap on mentorship. When asked what avenues exist for finding an appropriate mentor, I now have an answer. The Defined Scope Mentoring Program is being led by Peter Veldman, MD, and is sponsored by CSU and the Cornea Society. Peter has designed a defined mentorship program for young cornea specialists that will be rolled out in the next few months on the CSU website. The Defined Scope Mentoring Pro- gram will facilitate targeted mentorship engagements between junior and more senior members of the Cornea Society. Initially, the prospective mentee will complete a worksheet identifying a topic of interest and detailing their needs and goals for a mentor/mentee relationship. The mentee will then be paired with a volunteer mentor with expertise in the specific subject matter. Unlike a typical mentoring relationship, this pairing will have specific guidelines and a defined timeframe, typically around 4 months in length. During that period, the pair will meet several times, either remotely or in person, with the goal of providing high impact and goal-oriented mentor- ship in a defined period of time. Our in- tention is to provide valuable guidance to our junior members and increased integration of junior and senior mem- bership. Although mentorship is important throughout one's career, it is particularly important in one's first 5 years out of training. CSU is proud to introduce a new initiative focused on mentorship within the Cornea Society. CN T he PDF to Au- thor program provides an auto-generat- ed email to the lead author with a link to his or her recently published article. The email is generated and sent when the issue is published online. Any article published in an issue that went live on or after April 16 will have the article email alert sent to the lead author. CN by Jessica Ciralsky, MD Cornea journal news

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