• Joni L Dirks.
• Joni L. Dirks is the manager of professional development at Providence Health Care, Spokane, Washington.
• Crit Care Nurse. 2021 Feb 1; 41 (1): e9-e16.

TopicVarious approaches facilitate mentoring for critical care nurses.Clinical RelevanceMentoring is an important strategy to help recruit, retain, and develop nurses with critical care expertise. Mentoring benefits nurses at all career stages, from novice to expert. Effective mentoring programs benefit not only mentors and mentees but also organizations and patients by ensuring adequate numbers of nurses with critical care knowledge and skills.PurposeMentoring programs require careful planning to ensure that the objectives of the program align with the needs of the target audience, and that adequate resources are available to support the mentor-mentee relationship. This article identifies opportunities for mentoring in critical care nursing and provides recommendations from the literature for developing an effective program.Content CoveredVarious objectives for mentoring programs are described, including supporting retention, providing clinical development, and planning succession. Program logistics are explored, such as selecting mentors, matching mentors with mentees, setting goals and expectations, and evaluating the program. In addition, the article identifies strategies for overcoming common barriers to mentoring, which include a lack of time and poor access to qualified mentors.©2021 American Association of Critical-Care Nurses.

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