Canadian Medical Education Journal 2020, 11(6) Correspondence: Diane L. Lorenzetti, Health Sciences Library, University of Calgary, 3330 Hospital Drive NW Calgary Alberta, Canada T2N4N1; email: dllorenz@ucalgary.ca e128 Canadian Medical Education Journal Review Papers and Meta-Analyses Peer mentoring in medical residency education: A systematic review Mentorat par les pairs dans la résidence en médecine: une revue systématique Helen Pethrick, 1 Lorelli Nowell, 2 Elizabeth Oddone Paolucci, 3 Liza Lorenzetti, 4 Michele Jacobsen, 1 Tracey Clancy, 2 Diane L. Lorenzetti 3,5 1 Werklund School of Education, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada 2 Faculty of Nursing, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada 3 Department of Community Health Sciences, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada 4 Faculty of Social Work, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada 5 Health Sciences Library, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada Published ahead of issue: October 11, 2020; published: December 7, 2020 CMEJ 2020, 11(6), e128-e137; Available at http://www.cmej.ca © 2020 Pethrick, Nowell, Oddone Paolucci, Lorenzetti, Jacobsen, Clancy, Lorenzetti; licensee Synergies Partners https://doi.org/10.36834/cmej.68751 This is an Open Journal Systems article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0) which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited Abstract Background: Medical residents may experience burnout during their training, and a lack of social support. This can impact their overall wellbeing and ability to master key professional competencies. We explored, in this study, the extent to which peer mentorship promotes psychosocial wellbeing and the development of professional competencies in medical residency education. Methods: We searched six databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, Academic Research Complete, ERIC, Education Research Complete) for studies on peer mentoring relationships in medical residency. We selected any study where authors reported on outcomes associated with peer mentoring relationships among medical residents. We applied no date, language, or study design limits to this review. Results: We included nine studies in this systematic review. We found that medical residents received essential psychosocial supports from peers, and motivation to develop academic and career competencies. Medical residents in peer-mentoring relationships also reported increased overall satisfaction with their residency training programs. Conclusions: Peer-mentoring relationships can enhance the development of key professional competencies and coping mechanisms in medical residency education. Further rigorous research is needed to examine the comparative benefits of informal and formal peer mentoring, and identify best practices with respect to effective design of peer- mentorship programs.