Mentoring to Support Healthcare Professional and Medical Career Progression and Leadership Development
Jenny Proimos, Helena J. Teede, Belinda Garth
Correspondence: belinda.garth@monash.edu
Med J Aust 2026; 224 (3) || doi: 10.5694/mja2.70169
Published online: 22 March 2026
Abstract
Mentoring programmes are increasingly used in the health sector to provide career support and guidance for health professionals. However, a number of mentoring experiences and programmes fall short of their potential, with variable outcomes reported. This article summarises the mentoring literature, which clearly demonstrates that mentoring is an important evidence-informed component of advancing women in leadership. We provide a perspective on mentoring in the context of promoting gender equity within workplaces and propose a new nuanced and integrated model to consider for the advancement of women in leadership.