College of Nursing, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, Nebraska.
Munroe-Meyer Institute, Omaha, Nebraska.
Am J Prev Med. 2018 Jun;54(6 Suppl 3):S290-S295. doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2018.02.001.
The process of identifying effective responses to the challenges of placing and retaining a rural behavioral health workforce remains elusive. The Virtual Mentorship Network was developed to test the feasibility of using distance technology to connect rural students interested in mental health careers with mentors.
In Year 1, college and high school students were virtually mentored using a near-peer approach both live and asynchronously as a cohort over 7 months. In Year 2, college students only were virtually intensely mentored live over 1 month. High school students were asynchronously provided with informational videos produced by mentors. Program benefits were measured using the Mentoring Functions Questionnaire, and an activity satisfaction survey captured student response to the content and delivery methods. Retrospective analysis of Years 1 and 2 mentoring and satisfaction variables mean differences was performed and overall feasibility assessed.
Mentoring Functions Questionnaire scores, overall interaction, and reported satisfaction significantly improved in Year 2 over Year 1.
These data suggest that distance mentoring is a feasible option, but that the near-peer benefits of virtually mentoring high school and college students together are overshadowed by different mentoring needs expressed for each group. High school students expressed needs for basic information about career possibilities, whereas college student needs are specific to achieving career goals. Shorter mentoring sessions may be more sustainable long-term and focus limited mentoring resources. This project may serve as a professional pipeline model for others who face a critical shortage of mental health providers.
This article is part of a supplement entitled The Behavioral Health Workforce: Planning, Practice, and Preparation, which is sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and the Health Resources and Services Administration of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
确定应对农村行为健康劳动力安置和保留挑战的有效对策的过程仍然难以捉摸。虚拟指导网络的开发是为了测试使用远程技术将对心理健康职业感兴趣的农村学生与导师联系起来的可行性。
在第 1 年，大学生和高中生通过近乎同龄人的方式，在 7 个月的时间里进行远程同步和异步虚拟指导。在第 2 年，只有大学生进行为期 1 个月的远程密集指导。高中生则通过导师制作的信息视频进行异步指导。使用指导功能问卷来衡量项目效益，活动满意度调查则记录了学生对内容和交付方式的反馈。对第 1 年和第 2 年的指导和满意度变量进行回顾性分析，评估整体可行性。
指导功能问卷得分、整体互动和报告满意度在第 2 年显著高于第 1 年。
这些数据表明，远程指导是一种可行的选择，但虚拟指导高中生和大学生的近龄人优势被每个群体表达的不同指导需求所掩盖。高中生表示需要有关职业可能性的基本信息，而大学生的需求则是特定于实现职业目标。缩短指导课程可能更具可持续性，并且可以集中有限的指导资源。该项目可以作为其他面临心理健康服务提供者严重短缺的人的专业人才培养模式。
本文是一个名为“行为健康劳动力：规划、实践和准备”的补充的一部分，该补充由美国卫生与公众服务部下属的物质滥用和精神健康服务管理局以及卫生资源和服务管理局赞助。
