Dr. Haut, Dr. Yeh, Dr. Patel, and Dr. Ziesmann
Left to Right: Dr. Elliott Haut (Senior Mentor), Dr. Purvi Patel (Mentee), Dr. Dante Yeh (Mid-Career Mentor), and Dr. Markus Ziesmann (Mentee)
Drs. Haut, Yeh, Patel, and Ziesmann were matched as a 2019-2020 Mentoring Family in the EAST Mentoring Program. See what they have to say regarding their mentorship and the EAST Mentoring Program.
Testimonial:
Our EAST Mentoring family has stayed in touch consistently throughout the year by all manner of tools - text, email, telephone, Zoom, and a great face-to-face meetup at the EAST Annual Scientific Assembly in January 2020. With everyone's lives (professionally and otherwise) disrupted by COVID this year, the Mentorship topics of discussion have been broad; specific discussions have included COVID of course, advancement of specific research projects, career advancement through formal education, exercise, family, and health. Through an informal relationship where no topic is "off the table", each member has benefited from the relationship in individually valuable ways.Dr. Patel has become more active in surgical education efforts and focused on career development. "As a junior attending, I have appreciated the opportunity to bounce ideas and questions off of leaders in our community. It has been great, especially during the pandemic, to stay connected and gain insights from the group on how to navigate clinical and personal challenges. Along with discussing tough patients, PPE, and research endeavours, we have been able to talk about our families, burnout and our love for Peloton. Thank you EAST for bringing us together." Dr. Ziesmann has used guidance and advice from the group to launch his first major clinical study as a principal investigator. "Seeking guidance from senior colleagues who have 'been there' is invaluable. Trauma presents its own unique research hurdles to overcome; being able to seek feedback and to brainstorm with successful researchers has helped me make tangible progress in achieving my goals, and has helped me to understand the tools available to us as researchers to expand our collective knowledge and further patient care. This feedback and support has been invaluable as an early-career academic surgeon!"
The mentors of the group have found the EAST family mentoring program as a way to connect with different members of EAST. Dr. Yeh, the mid-career member of the family, is "grateful for the opportunity to continue receiving mentorship even though I'm 10 years out from training. This phase of my career has confronted me with different challenges as I move into leadership positions and I have benefited immensely from Elliott's advice and insight. I have been able to effectively counsel Purvi and Markus, as their junior academic faculty experiences are still relatively fresh in my memory. It also helps that we have common research interests. I had already made a lot of friends at my same career stage, but this program has given me an opportunity to develop friendships with people whom I would likely never have casually encountered and I am looking forward to continuing a lifelong friendship with Purvi, Markus, and Elliott. Thanks EAST!" Dr. Haut, as the senior member of the family, is "loving the new EAST mentoring family concept. So many great interactions of peer and near-peer mentoring covering such a wide array of topics. It has been a great way for me to get to know some junior faculty I otherwise might never have met."
Overall, the mentees and mentors have found this relationship to be enriching, with practical knowledge and career advice, and also inspiring, with excitement and admiration of our colleagues. We look forward to watching everyone's respective careers advance and know that those trajectories are higher thanks to the excellent support and framework provided by EAST and the mentorship participants.
Signed: Elliott, Dante, Purvi, and Markus
Statements posted are those of the Mentor and Mentee and do not represent the opinions of the Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma.