From Teaching to Mentorship that develops medical students’ potential, helping them grow happily in their own way

Programme overview and mission

Mission: to develop medical teachers as mentors who support medical students through relationships that are safe (psychological safety) and bounded, that grow into a learning community (Community of Practice / CoP), and to build long-term collaboration with medical education networks at national and international levels.

EMCE does not end in the classroom. Participants return to mentor two real medical students and to run a wellbeing project in their own institution, with a faculty advisor/coach and a buddy alongside them throughout the course.

Course objectives

1. 1

   To develop medical teachers’ knowledge and the skills required to be mentors who can support and advise medical students systematically.

2. 2

   To enable medical teachers to apply mentoring skills in practice with medical students and in their own units.

3. 3

   To support medical teachers to become growth educators, motivated to bring about change (change agents), and to take a role in changing medical education at the national level.

4. 4

   To build a network and community of practice (Community of Practice) of faculty advisors in the CPIRD network who can share learning and support one another on a continuing basis.

5. 5

   To develop the handbooks or guidelines needed to support and assist medical students in several domains: the academic domain (cognitive and psychomotor), the affective domain, behaviour and professionalism, and mental health.

Why this course is not like other training courses

We know that you already teach well. But being a mentor, the person students trust both on days when they are doing well and want to go further, and on days when they are confused, discouraged or have lost their way, calls for a different set of skills from lecturing to cover the objectives.

Tools are options, not fixed formulas

Transformative Learning + Facilitation · Satir · Enneagram · CBT-awareness + Psychological first aid · Professionalism + Resilience. You learn to know and understand each of them, and to choose among them for the person in front of you, rather than memorising them and using the same approach with everyone.

Conceptual framework and evidence

EMCE is designed to align with the national direction of medical education in Thailand and with international frameworks. The concepts the course draws on are summarised below, with the reference list at the end of the page. Quotations from Thai-language sources are our own translations.

EMCE believes that transforming education builds the nation

What you will take back

Not just knowledge, but a new way of being a teacher, one you try out with your own medical students while the course is still under way.

Strengths of the programme, in line with AMEE

These elements are practices that the AMEE Guides recommend but that most faculty development programmes still lack. EMCE sets out to build all four into the course design from the start · Read the summaries of all 11 AMEE Guides (in Thai)

The 5-module pathway: one core tool per module

Each module follows the sequence understanding yourself → understanding medical students → applying it in practice, and the core skills are practised repeatedly across the modules in a spiral. Select a module to see its objectives, content and the thinking behind it.

1. 1

   M1 · Foundations of mentorship and learning that transforms people

   How a mentor differs from a teacher and an assessor

   25–28 Jan 2027

   Transformative Learning + Facilitation
   Objectives, content and the thinking behind the moduleFoundation of Mentorship & Transformative Learning

   Establishes who a mentor is, and teaches the art of designing spaces in which people can genuinely ‘change from within’.

   Objectives — by the end you will

   • Position your own role clearly (mentor / facilitator / advisor / supervisor)
   • Apply learner-centred & lifelong learning principles in caring for medical students
   • Use Transformative Learning (Mezirow) and Facilitation as the basis for designing learning
   • Have the core mentoring skills: presence, self-awareness, rapport & psychological safety, active listening, questioning, reflection & feedback, contracting/goal setting
   • Be able to design a ‘classroom for change’

   Content & workshops

   • Conceptual positioning of mentorship
   • Principles of Transformative Learning + Facilitation
   • Mentoring skills: attending, dialogue, active listening, questioning, reflection/feedback, authentic relationship, contracting
   • TL skill & design in the classroom: trigger/dilemma, safe container & ground rules, sequencing, holding the ‘groan zone’, debrief, reintegration & closure, cautions (manipulation/re-traumatisation/cultural)
   • Applying TL skill & design in teaching · activities · advising · meetings

   The thinking behind it

   In the first module we want you to see, before anything else, that ‘being a mentor’ is not the same as being a teacher or an assessor: a mentor walks alongside medical students and helps them grow gradually from within. We therefore begin with Mezirow’s Transformative Learning, which holds that people genuinely change their perspective when they meet a situation that unsettles their existing beliefs and someone helps them question and reconsider it; this is the heart of facilitation. We then give you a compass through Daloz’s support–challenge model (too much support and students do not grow, too much challenge and they lose heart, so the two must be balanced) and the ‘four mentor positions’, so that you know when to act as facilitator, coach, observer or role model.

   TheoryTransformative Learning (Mezirow) · Facilitation MentorDaloz support–challenge · 4 mentor positions · mentor ‘off-line’ AMEE167 · 20 · 104
2. 2

   M2 · Understanding yourself and the process of change

   Knowing your inner world before understanding others

   15–18 Mar 2027

   Satir change model
   Objectives, content and the thinking behind the moduleSelf-understanding & Change Process Model

   Know your own mind deeply enough to stay steady amid medical students’ turmoil.

   Objectives — by the end you will

   • Be a mentor who is attuned to yourself (self-awareness · self-reflection · self-discovery)
   • Understand the Satir change process model and the mentor’s coping stances
   • Know your scope & boundaries (mentor ≠ therapist) and the referral pathway
   • Understand and normalise the chaos that medical students go through as they grow
   • Communicate congruently and draw on the mentee’s resources for change

   Content & workshops (Satir)

   • Grounding · self-exploration · self-awareness
   • Iceberg mapping · stance-to-resource reframe
   • Congruent & empathic communication
   • Exploring the drives behind behaviour + using the mentee’s resources

   The thinking behind it

   Before we can care well for other people’s inner lives, we need to know our own. This module therefore invites you to explore your inner world through Satir’s approach, which sees what we show outwardly as only the tip of an iceberg, with feelings, expectations and beliefs hidden beneath. Once we understand our own process of change, we can stay steadier amid medical students’ turmoil. Another tool we use is the Johari window, which helps reveal our own ‘blind spots’, an important foundation for giving and receiving feedback openly.

   TheoryReflective practice · Johari window Mentorself-awareness: using yourself as an instrument (Personal Interpretive Framework) AMEE133 · 167 · 132
3. 3

   M3 · Drive, motivation and individual differences

   Reading each medical student’s motivation

   17–20 May 2027

   Enneagram
   Objectives, content and the thinking behind the moduleUnderstanding Individual Drive, Motivation & Differences

   Read what drives each kind of person, then adjust how you care for them to fit the person in front of you.

   Objectives — by the end you will

   • Understand your own drives, strengths and weaknesses as a mentor
   • Understand individual differences and choose suitable ways to communicate (DISC / Four Directions / Enneagram / MBTI / StrengthsFinder)
   • Read a mentee’s strengths and weaknesses through the Enneagram
   • Design an individual development and care plan for a medical student (growth path)

   Content & workshops (Enneagram)

   • type identification · bias mapping · type-informed feedback · growth-path mentoring plan
   • Adapting communication and motivation to individual differences
   • Caring for medical students who ‘seem hard to manage’ by understanding their drives rather than judging them
   • Cautions: boundaries · limitations · reducing stigma

   The thinking behind it

   Each person is driven by different motivations, and what fires one person up may leave another stressed. This module therefore helps you understand the ‘drive’ of different medical students, with the Enneagram as a tool for reading differences. The real foundation, however, is Self-Determination Theory, which holds that people are motivated from within when they feel that they ‘can do it’ (competence), have ‘freedom to choose’ (autonomy) and feel ‘connected to others’ (relatedness). Once you understand this, you can adapt your mentoring to the person in front of you instead of applying the same formula to everyone.

   TheorySelf-Determination Theory (motivation) Mentorreading differences + adapting to the person (tool-flexibility) · mentee agency AMEE167 · 133
4. 4

   M4 · Psychological support, wellbeing and crisis

   Knowing when to listen and when to refer

   6–9 Jul 2027

   CBT-awareness + Psychological first aid
   Objectives, content and the thinking behind the modulePsychological Support, Wellbeing & Crisis Response

   Know when you can listen and support a student yourself and when you must refer, while looking after your own wellbeing along the way.

   Objectives — by the end you will

   • Understand the distress commonly seen in medical students (burnout · academic distress · anxiety/depression at an introductory level · warning signs) and the systemic factors behind it
   • Know your role and its limits (scope & boundary)
   • Look after your own wellbeing and recognise your own burnout (CBT self-help · self-care · grounding)
   • Carry out recognise–support–refer: grade distress (normal → supportive care → immediate referral/red flag), support with CBT-awareness + Psychological first aid, and refer through a warm handoff

   Content & workshops

   • self burnout check + CBT self-help mapping (thoughts–feelings–behaviours)
   • supportive conversation & Psychological first aid role-play
   • referral role-play (warm handoff) + opening a red-flag conversation
   • Application: caring for medical students with real burnout or distress + responding to crises (Psychological first aid)

   The thinking behind it

   Mentoring often comes with moments when medical students are vulnerable. This module prepares you to ‘know when to listen and when to refer’. We draw on CBT at the level of awareness (not so that you practise psychotherapy) and on Psychological First Aid, so that you can offer initial psychological support safely. The key is the ‘boundary line’ (scope & boundary): a mentor is not a therapist, and mentors’ care for themselves matters just as much (AMEE warns clearly about emotional burden and burnout). We therefore train you to use a referral system linked to the centre’s psychiatrist, and to understand ‘levels of care’ (levels of supervision): which matters you can handle yourself and which need a professional.

   Theoryrecognise–support–refer · wellbeing · CBT-awareness + Psychological first aid Mentorboundaries (mentor ≠ therapist) · self-care · referral system AMEE167 (Table 2) · 27 · 104
5. 5

   M5 · Professionalism, resilience and challenging medical students

   Responding with dignity, with a remediation framework

   16–19 Aug 2027

   Professionalism + Resilience
   Objectives, content and the thinking behind the moduleProfessionalism, Resilience & Difficult Learners & Remediation

   Handle difficult conversations and challenging medical students systematically and with dignity.

   Objectives — by the end you will

   • Understand professionalism and conduct yourself professionally (boundary · dual relationship · power differential · ethics: fairness/due process/confidentiality)
   • Recognise your own reactions: separate ‘the student’s problem’ from ‘what triggers us’
   • Classify medical students’ difficulties along four axes (Academic · Psychomotor · Attitude/Professionalism · Mental), then choose recognise–support–refer
   • Use remediation systematically (identify the problem from evidence → set goals → plan → follow up → reassess) + GROW + Appreciative Inquiry + documentation/due process

   Content & workshops

   • problem-type triage (classifying the four types from case studies)
   • difficult conversations / feedback in challenging situations
   • coaching a difficult learner (GROW) role-play
   • remediation plan design

   The thinking behind it

   The final module is the real thing at its most challenging: having difficult conversations, responding to medical students in difficulty, or helping someone who is struggling to get through. We provide a framework of professionalism and remediation so that difficult conversations remain constructive and preserve the dignity of everyone involved. For feedback we do not leave you to guess: we use the R2C2 model, which starts with the relationship, then moves to the content, and closes with a development plan. And because this work takes an emotional toll, we also include resilience and Appreciative Inquiry (taking strengths as the starting point), as well as ‘a dignified exit’ for cases in which a student may genuinely not be suited to this path.

   TheoryProfessionalism · Remediation · Resilience MentorR2C2 feedback · Appreciative Inquiry AMEE133 · 27 · 132 · 20

See the day-by-day schedule for all five modules (in Thai)

References

Medical education and conceptual frameworks

1. ชัยรัตน์ ฉายากุล, นภัสสร รุ่งเรือง, วรรณลดา มงคลธง, editors. รายงานการประชุมแพทยศาสตรศึกษาแห่งชาติ ครั้งที่ ๑๐ [Proceedings of The 10th National Conference on Medical Education] [Internet]. Bangkok: Chulalongkorn University Press; 2025 [cited 2026 Sep 30]. 240 p. Available from: https://www.md.chula.ac.th [in Thai]
2. วิจารณ์ พานิช. แพทยศาสตรศึกษาเพื่อสุขภาวะของพหุชน [Medical education for the wellbeing of all]. In: ชัยรัตน์ ฉายากุล, นภัสสร รุ่งเรือง, วรรณลดา มงคลธง, editors. รายงานการประชุมแพทยศาสตรศึกษาแห่งชาติ ครั้งที่ ๑๐ [Proceedings of The 10th National Conference on Medical Education]. Bangkok: Chulalongkorn University Press; 2025. p. 35–9. [in Thai]
3. Frenk J, Chen L, Bhutta ZA, Cohen J, Crisp N, Evans T, et al. Health professionals for a new century: transforming education to strengthen health systems in an interdependent world. Lancet. 2010;376(9756):1923–58. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(10)61854-5 · Open-access copy: Harvard DASH
4. Frenk J, Chen LC, Chandran L, Groff EOH, King R, Meleis A, et al. Challenges and opportunities for educating health professionals after the COVID-19 pandemic. Lancet. 2022;400(10362):1539–56. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(22)02092-X
5. Inner Development Goals. Inner development guide [Internet]. [place unknown]: Inner Development Goals; 2025 [cited 2026 Sep 30]. Available from: https://innerdevelopmentgoals.org/framework/
6. Amabile TM, Kramer SJ. Inner work life: understanding the subtext of business performance. Harv Bus Rev. 2007;85(5):72–83, 144. PMID: 17494252
7. ธีรัญญ์ ไพโรจน์อังสุธร. เป้าหมายการพัฒนาด้านใน หรือ IDG (Inner Development Goals) คือ อะไร [What are the Inner Development Goals (IDG)?] [Internet]. InnerCorner.com; 2025 [updated 2025 Nov 17; cited 2026 Sep 30]. Available from: https://www.innercorner.com/HomeRoom/Content/The-Inner-Development-Goals [in Thai]

AMEE Guides

8. Ramani S, Kusurkar RA, Lyon-Maris J, Pyörälä E, Rogers GD, Samarasekera DD, et al. Mentorship in health professions education – an AMEE guide for mentors and mentees: AMEE Guide No. 167. Med Teach. 2024;46(8):999–1011. doi:10.1080/0142159X.2023.2273217
9. Ramani S, Könings KD, Ginsburg S, van der Vleuten CPM. Meaningful feedback through a sociocultural lens. Med Teach. 2019;41(12):1342–52. doi:10.1080/0142159X.2019.1656804
10. van Lankveld T, Thampy H, Cantillon P, Horsburgh J, Kluijtmans M. Supporting a teacher identity in health professions education: AMEE Guide No. 132. Med Teach. 2021;43(2):124–36. doi:10.1080/0142159X.2020.1838463
11. van Schalkwyk SC, Murdoch-Eaton D, Tekian A, van der Vleuten C, Cilliers F. The supervisor’s toolkit: a framework for doctoral supervision in health professions education: AMEE Guide No. 104. Med Teach. 2016;38(5):429–42. doi:10.3109/0142159X.2016.1142517
12. Kilminster S, Cottrell D, Grant J, Jolly B. AMEE Guide No. 27: effective educational and clinical supervision. Med Teach. 2007;29(1):2–19. doi:10.1080/01421590701210907
13. McLean M, Cilliers F, Van Wyk JM. Faculty development: yesterday, today and tomorrow. Med Teach. 2008;30(6):555–84. doi:10.1080/01421590802109834
14. Ross MT, Cameron HS. Peer assisted learning: a planning and implementation framework: AMEE Guide no. 30. Med Teach. 2007;29(6):527–45. doi:10.1080/01421590701665886
15. Harden RM, Crosby J. AMEE Guide No 20: the good teacher is more than a lecturer – the twelve roles of the teacher. Med Teach. 2000;22(4):334–47. doi:10.1080/014215900409429
16. Challis M. AMEE Medical Education Guide No. 19: personal learning plans. Med Teach. 2000;22(3):225–36. doi:10.1080/01421590050006160
17. Kassab SE, Taylor D, Hamdy H. Student engagement in health professions education: AMEE Guide No. 152. Med Teach. 2023;45(9):949–65. doi:10.1080/0142159X.2022.2137018
18. Sandars J, Patel R, Steele H, McAreavey M. Developmental student support in undergraduate medical education: AMEE Guide No. 92. Med Teach. 2014;36(12):1015–26. doi:10.3109/0142159X.2014.917166
19. Taha MH, Abdalla ME, Cameron E, Dharamasi S, Strasser R, Taylor D, et al. Leadership as a catalyst for advancing social accountability in health professions education: AMEE Guide No. 187. Med Teach. 2026;48(3):344–56. doi:10.1080/0142159X.2025.2534074

Learning science

20. Ambrose SA, Bridges MW, DiPietro M, Lovett MC, Norman MK. How learning works: seven research-based principles for smart teaching. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass; 2010. ISBN 978-0-470-48410-4. LCCN 2010003939