US surgical residents who were matched with senior doctors as mentors say the program made a difference to their study habits, career choices and how they approached personal issues during training.

A large majority of surgical residents in a Pennsylvania health system report positive experiences after a year with the program that matched the residents with faculty mentors, according to a survey.

Participants typically stated they were satisfied with the program, saw improvements in their self-identified areas of weakness and believed the matching process had been effective.

Before this ‘Mentor Match’ program was adopted at Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Centre in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, mentorships were informal and initiated by residents.