The evaluation of a 12-month health service manager mentoring program in a corrections environment.

Mentoring programs are believed to positively influence the professional development of nurses where a system is provided to promote skill and knowledge base enhancement within a supportive relationship between mentor and mentee. This study aimed to evaluate a 12-month health manager mentoring program within a correctional facility in New South Wales, Australia. Over the period of the mentoring program, there was an improvement in professional behavior and a decline in the rating of supervisees. Work stress increased and job satisfaction decreased over the 12-month period, although not to a statistically significant level. Qualitative feedback suggested that participants found the program to be useful.