Guidance for male mentors to support the safety and success of female mentees

Abstract

Women constitute the majority of students at US schools and colleges of pharmacy but make up only a minority of senior faculty members. In academic pharmacy, male mentors play an essential role in supporting the professional success of female mentees. These male mentors must recognize their role in creating safe and equitable environments for female mentees to learn and collaborate. They should respect the unique experiences and concerns of female mentees, particularly regarding sexual violence and harassment, and conduct themselves in a manner that prioritizes safety. They should also strive to develop the same interpersonal connections with female mentees that they work to develop with male mentees, realizing that maintaining inequitable personal distance from women undermines their professional success. Specific suggestions for balancing the potentially competing concepts of mentee safety and personal connection are offered by the authors, a male faculty mentor and female student mentee pair.