Information for Mentors

What are the expectations? Mentors will provide their mentee with about one hour of support and interaction per month or as much as agreed upon. Most of this interaction will take place via phone, text, and email, and other web-related tools (for example, Zoom). Mentors will work with their mentee to determine what kind of support will be most useful—specific feedback related to their condition, how they are handling any stress, family or social-circle issues. This is done always with the understanding that the mentor is not a medical or counselling professional. You are just someone sharing from your own personal experiences.
How long will the commitment be? We ask our mentors to make commitments of at least six months to one year to ensure that the mentee can fully benefit from the relationship. If a mentor must leave the relationship early, we request at least one month notice so that ALF can provide a replacement mentor with a similar background.
What if the relationship is not going well, or I am concerned about it? ALF will provide our full support to resolve the situation in a positive and satisfactory manner. Monthly check-ins with ALF are one way to address any early issues, but if the relationship issue cannot be resolved, it can be ended without any problem,

COMMIT TO AT LEAST ONE INTERACTION/HOUR OF SUPPORT per month.
Take responsibility to initiate the relationship.
Set aside time for the mentoring process and honor all appointments.
Invite the mentee to meetings or activities, as appropriate. Schedule meetings with planned topics.
Be flexible on meeting times and places.
Arrange frequent contacts through telephone, email, face-to-face, etc., as appropriate
Respond to emails from your mentee quickly, within a few days of receipt.
Keep information that your mentee has shared with you confidential. If something concerning the mentee needs to be discussed with others, it should first be discussed within the mentoring relationship.
Establish open and honest communication and a forum for idea exchange.
Foster creativity and independence. Help build self-confidence and offer encouragement.
Provide honest and timely feedback to your mentee.
Provide opportunities for the mentee to talk about concerns and ask questions.
Above all, LISTEN.

Try to give advice on everything. You don't have to have a response for every topic that arises.
Encourage your mentee to depend totally upon you. This relationship should be just one of a few support systems the mentee has in place.
Provide your personal history, problems, animosities, successes, failures, etc unless they are appropriate for the discussion.
Be too busy when the mentee needs your friendship or your support. If you do not have time, give the mentee a heads up, so that they know when they can reach you.
Criticize. Everyone living with a chronic disease or condition has ups and downs. Be patient with your mentee, and offer your encouragement and support.