Rethinking Psychological Safety: Exploring “Educational Safety” Through Learners’ Experiences in a Peer Mentorship Context
By Laura Nimmon, PhD
We are excited to welcome Dr. Laura Nimmon, Associate Professor and Scientist at the University of British Columbia, who will present Rethinking Psychological Safety: Exploring “Educational Safety” Through Learners’ Experiences in a Peer Mentorship Context. The session will take place on Thursday, April 2, 2026, at 12:00 PM EDT, for the fifth and final week of the IAMSE 2026 Spring Webcast Audio Seminar Series titled “‘Tough But Fair’ Standards with Support: Empowering Success.”
This series is tailored for medical educators, particularly those teaching in the pre-clerkship curriculum. We’ll explore how to set ambitious, yet achievable, standards for your students, fostering the rigorous foundation future physicians need. Beyond just raising the bar, this series provides you with practical strategies to ensure your students not only meet these high expectations, but truly excel. Discover how to balance a demanding curriculum with the essential guidance that empowers the next generation of medical professionals.
The full IAMSE Spring WAS schedule can be found on the website.
Below we look at the fifth week’s presentation:
Laura Nimmon, PhD
Rethinking Psychological Safety: Exploring “Educational Safety” Through Learners’ Experiences in a Peer Mentorship Context
Presenter: Laura Nimmon, Associate Professor and Scientist at the university of British Columbia
Session Date & Time: April 2, 2026, at 12:00 PM EDT
Session Description: Psychological safety is widely recognized as essential to effective learning in health professions education, yet much of the literature defines it by its absence—focusing on mistreatment rather than exploring learners’ own conceptions of what psychological safety is. In this talk, I present findings from a study exploring how medical students experience psychological safety within a peer mentorship learning context. Students described safety as “not feeling judged,” which allowed them to be more present, take learning risks, and build authentic relationships. I propose reframing psychological safety as educational safety—a relational construct that can help us build learning environments that foster trust, mentorship, vulnerability, and support.
As always, IAMSE Student Members and Trainees can register for the series
for FREE!
If you are an IAMSE student member or trainee, please contact support@iamse.org for information about registering at no cost.