Between clinical practice, teaching and research – a project report on the development and implementation of a career mentoring curriculum for female clinician scientists

OBJECTIVES: Despite the high proportion of female medical students, the leading positions in almost all medical departments are still considerably less often held by female clinicians than by male. The aim of this project report is to introduce a career mentoring curriculum for female clinician scientists at Ruhr-University of Bochum in Germany. METHODS: The career mentoring program was developed for young female clinician scientists who aim for a leading position in academic medicine. We describe and discuss herein its planning and implementation over two years (11/2020-11/2022) focusing on the needs of the target group. RESULTS: The mentoring program is based on an agile twin-track strategy. It includes peer mentoring, content-related input and interdisciplinary three-to-one mentoring by the coordinators. Additionally, the mentees develop and conduct a scientific project to practice their acquired skills in a protected environment. The quality assurance system of the mentoring program includes a continuous evaluation of the mentees’ satisfaction with the content and organisation of the program, whose results serve as the basis of the prompt adjustment of the latter. It also includes an evaluation of the sustainable impact of the program on the mentees’ career development based on an adapted role matrix. The role matrix addresses the mentees to acquire the competencies required for them to become a successful clinician, scientist and academic teacher. CONCLUSIONS: A 2-year innovative and unique career mentoring program for female clinician scientists was developed and already successfully launched. Making use of different mentoring strategies, the program has the potential to promote gender equality and encourage female physicians to pursue a career in academic medicine.