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Workforce Career Development in Public Health, Health Education, and the Health Services: Insights from 30 Years of Cross-Disciplinary National and International Mentoring

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  • Holly Blake

    (School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG7 2HA, UK
    NIHR Nottingham Biomedical Research Centre, Nottingham NG7 2UH, UK)

Abstract

This paper presents my personal experiences of cross-disciplinary national and international academic mentoring over 30 years in a higher education setting, supporting 605 mentees in public health, health education, and the health services. I supported mentees at diverse career stages through (a) one-to-one mentoring relationships ( n = 231 mentees; from the UK, Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia, and Australasia; academics, industry, and healthcare professionals), (b) a cross-faculty structured mentoring programme ( n = 52; junior faculty), (c) a cross-institutional interprofessional internship programme including mentoring and public health placements ( n = 302 interns; from five universities), and (d) an interprofessional learning programme in workplace health called WHIRL, which was embedded within Test@Work, a public health innovation bridging health promotion practice, research, and industry and involving peer mentoring and mentor support ( n = 20; volunteer healthcare trainees). In this paper, I outline the broader concept of mentoring, together with an overview of mentoring types, uses, and benefits. The diverse contexts in which mentoring occurs are discussed: (i) micro-mentoring, (ii) inducting new staff, (iii) peer mentoring, (iv) career transition moments, (v) career advancement mentoring, (vi) diversity mentoring, (vii) knowledge sharing mentoring, (viii) collaborative learning and support mentoring, and (ix) leadership development mentoring. The challenges of mentoring are presented alongside suggested actions to take. I advocate for mentoring evaluation and provide a worked example of measuring the outcomes of one-to-one mentoring using The Career Support and Psychosocial Support Scales (online survey; n = 103 mentees; from 22 countries). Finally, I reflect upon the diversity of mentoring experiences, with activities and benefits categorised into six key areas: interpersonal relationships; networking opportunities; enhancing knowledge and skills; employment, reward and recognition; support for under-served groups; and convening communities of practice.

Suggested Citation

  • Holly Blake, 2025. "Workforce Career Development in Public Health, Health Education, and the Health Services: Insights from 30 Years of Cross-Disciplinary National and International Mentoring," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 22(5), pages 1-24, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:22:y:2025:i:5:p:729-:d:1648579
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Catrin Evans & Ruth Pearce & Sarah Greaves & Holly Blake, 2020. "Advanced Clinical Practitioners in Primary Care in the UK: A Qualitative Study of Workforce Transformation," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(12), pages 1-19, June.
    2. Sarah Somerset & Catrin Evans & Holly Blake, 2021. "Accessing Voluntary HIV Testing in the Construction Industry: A Qualitative Analysis of Employee Interviews from the Test@Work Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(8), pages 1-14, April.
    3. Holly Blake & Sarah Somerset & Katharine Whittingham & Matthew Middleton & Mehmet Yildirim & Catrin Evans, 2020. "WHIRL Study: Workplace Health Interprofessional Learning in the Construction Industry," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(18), pages 1-20, September.
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