In person: Elaine Joyal (left) and Jennifer Riley (right). On Zoom, top row from left: Karen Lourence, Ann Tardy and Rose Allain. On Zoom, bottom row from left: Megan O’Connell, Pam Cormier and Monica Tucker-Schwartz.

On June 22, staff gathered for a celebration of the Brigham Mentors Program and shared the benefits of having or being a mentor as part of professional development and well-being.

The program paired 28 mentors and mentees in 2022, and 15 so far this year, with more welcome to join.

Through the program, mentors (Brigham nurses with at least one year of experience in their current role) share advice, feedback, career successes and lessons learned with mentees. The program also helps both mentors and mentees build connections and a sense of community while supporting one another.

Among those mentor–mentee pairs in attendance were Jennifer Riley, MSN, RN, IBCLC, and Monica Tucker-Schwartz, DNP, RN, NEA-BC.

“It’s been an amazing experience, and I’m so lucky to have Monica as my mentor,” shared Riley. “She helped me with some tangible goals, and she’s been a wonderful example for me. Monica has helped me work through some difficult situations and conversations, and she’s pushed me to try new things.”

Tucker-Schwartz has enjoyed serving as a mentor to Riley.

“It has been such a joy to help Jen make connections, both locally at the Brigham and across Mass General Brigham, to help her work on her goals,” she said.

The pairing was just as helpful and inspiring for Tucker-Schwartz as it was for Riley.

“There is a lot of learning for the mentor in this process as well,” added Tucker-Schwartz. “Jen has taught and inspired me a lot. I had a personal goal of joining a board of directors, and Jen inspired me to apply and go for it. I’m happy to share that I was just recently inducted to the board of directors for the Organization of Nurse Leaders’ New England chapter as secretary for the next two years. I don’t think that I would have gone for it at this time if it hadn’t been for Jen’s own insights, experiences and leadership.”

Maddy Pearson, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, senior vice president, Patient Care Services, chief nursing officer and Beth V. Martignetti Distinguished Chair in Nursing, spoke about the importance of mentorship.

“I was lucky enough to have two mentors in my formative years as a nurse and a nurse leader,” she shared.  “I’ve since mentored many nurses, including one of our nurse leaders here at the Brigham through this program. That has been very rewarding.”

Pearson encourages those interested in joining the Brigham Mentors Program to sign up or reach out to learn more about it.

“The connections, relationships and support that mentorship nurtures are important to well-being at work,” she said. “We sought to create this program to enrich nurses’ professional growth and experience at the Brigham, and we hope to reach as many people as possible.”

If you are interested in joining the Brigham Mentors Program, learn more here (this link is available to employees of Mass General Brigham).