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PRESIDENT’S
MESSAGE

Coaching in Medicine:

The Physician Coach and

The Executive Coach

By Rodolfo “Rudy” Molina, MD, MACR, FACP, 2021 BCMS President
and Nora Vasquez, MD

Some of you are already familiar with the role of a coach and most advocacy in medicine. In
of you have heard about coaching, in general. Yet when I have asked fact, physician coaching
my colleagues to define what a coach is to them, I am confronted with made such a profound impact on me that I decided to certify as a pro-
a puzzled look as though the answer lies in plain sight but not tangible fessional coach. I now coach and guide my fellow physician colleagues
at the moment. As I began to look into what the role of a coach is, I on their own journey of wellness and career fulfillment. My mission is
became further confused after I saw a TED video by Atul Gawande to “Empower and Heal the Healers.” I coach medical students, residents
entitled, “Want to get better at something? Get a coach.” After watch- and attending physicians at premier universities, organizations and hos-
ing it, I found what he called a coach, I called a mentor. And yet in pitals in the United States and Canada. I also enjoy coaching individual
Gregg Thompson’s book, The Master Coach, he clearly states that the doctors and other health care professionals, including physician assis-
role of a coach is not a mentor but something different. As it turns tants and nurses.
out, there are different types of coaches. We will discuss the roles of As a professional coach, I help empower physicians to realize their
at least two different types. The first is the Physician Coach and then full potential. I use high-performance coaching to teach my clients
next month’s article will explore the role of an Executive Coach. Both, how to elevate their personal and professional growth so they can
I believe, are very important to us as physicians who are often asked reach their goals quickly. I coach on a variety of topics, such as over-
to wear different “hats.” The format is Q & A, and we start with Dr. coming burnout, imposter syndrome, perfectionism, enriching rela-
Nora Vasquez, a Physician Coach. I remember reading a JAMA arti- tionships, time management and leadership development.
cle describing the Physician Coach as a new normal. With that in When I coach, I also utilize the Maslach Burnout Inventory tool.
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mind, here is what I found out. This tool is a survey that measures and compares burnout among
health professionals nationwide. The analysis from this data reveals
Part 1. The Physician Coach that coaching mitigates burnout by decreasing emotional exhaustion
1. How were you introduced to physician coaching? and improves the sense of personal accomplishment and self-efficacy.
What is a physician coach? Many of the testimonials from my participants state that they have
I was first introduced to physician coaching while attending a med- learned to “love and value their work.” They have also stated that
ical conference that discussed the benefits of coaching. The panel of coaching helped them create a “better work-life balance.” Most im-
speakers discussed how coaching can help physicians create a better portantly, they gain further insight and strategies to overcome the bar-
work-life balance and also help them reach their professional goals. riers that prevent wellness, growth and fulfillment in their lives.
As an Internist, I had enjoyed leading and serving in multiple univer-
sity and community health clinics for over a decade. At that time, I 2. How does a coach improve physician wellness?
had started feeling the symptoms of burnout and I also wanted to pur- Wellness has been defined as “the complex and multi-faceted nature
sue new leadership opportunities. However, I was feeling uncertain of physicians’ physical, mental and emotional health and well-being.”
as to what the next step should be in my career. It was then that I de- While physician wellness has often evoked images of yoga and mind-
cided to hire my first physician coach which was one of the best deci- fulness, we now recognize that adding a professional physician coach
sions of my life. is a game changer. In a recent randomized clinical study published in
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Physician coaching helped me clarify my values and priorities. It the Journal of the American Medical Association, professional coaching
helped me fine-tune my vision for how I wanted to fuse leadership and was determined to be an effective intervention that reduces emotional

8 SAN ANTONIO MEDICINE • May 2021