Medical Minds Consulting LLC

What Is Coaching Anyway? When I initially got interested in coaching over 10 years ago, there wasn’t a lot of information about coaching physicians. In fact, there wasn’t nearly as much information about coaching in general. Now it seems ubiquitous. Even in the medical space. https://lnkd.in/g_d43i25 #coaching #medical

Physicians (like other high achievers) know how to persevere. We are committed and hardworking. We went through many years of advanced schooling and training, which would not have been possible without perseverance. We are used to enduring physical, mental, and even spiritual hardship. But this admirable trait can lead to trouble.  Sometimes we don’t know when to quit. We associate quitting with giving up or failure, two ideas that are foreign to our identity.  But quitting, defined as “to stop doing something or leave a job or a place, " is not always negative. https://lnkd.in/g2X2VM5x #physiciancoaching #surgeoncoaching #physicianwellness  #surgeonwellness #physiciancoach #orthomastodon

The pattern starts early. On my very first night of Orthopedic call as an intern, my upper-level resident told me to call him for anything, but “...remember, it’s a sign of weakness”.  Ah, the mixed (or not so mixed) messages of training. Do it perfectly every time and don’t require any help. https://lnkd.in/g5uTg45g #physiciancoaching #surgeoncoaching #physicianwellness  #surgeonwellness #physiciancoach

In my residency program, post-op X-rays were often used to evaluate the care delivered to patients. Decision-making, procedural, and surgical abilities were judged based on the accuracy of reduction and fixation. When care happened at night, this assessment was done the following morning, usually by others who were home sleeping in the middle of the night. #physiciancoaching #surgeoncoaching #physicianwellness  #surgeonwellness #physiciancoach #orthomastodon https://lnkd.in/gdQQ6Vwb

Recently, I read a post by another physician online about an experience he had decades ago, soon after he first became an attending in the ER. The experience still troubled him significantly.  The anecdote was one of so many in a long career on the front lines of healthcare, where life and death are often part of the daily events, amidst the otherwise mundane and ordinary. He retained an uneasy feeling about it even after all the interim years. #physiciancoaching #surgeoncoaching #physicianwellness  #surgeonwellness #physiciancoach #orthomastodon https://lnkd.in/gj_Vy226

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Let’s talk about resistance. That sneaky bandit of prosperity that can ruin your day at any moment and how to escape its clutches. The Oxford Dictionary defines resistance as the refusal to accept or comply with something. In Star Trek, when the Borg prepares to assimilate a ship it declares, “Resistance is futile”, meaning the ship has no chance of escape. In coaching, resistance has a different connotation and is readily escapable, but takes some mental effort. It’s not an attack from without, it’s an attack from within when your mind refuses to accept the reality of your situation. #physiciancoaching #surgeoncoaching #physicianwellness  #surgeonwellness #physiciancoach #orthomastodon https://lnkd.in/g8U3nNzC

I had a client recently who has been paying attention to where her people-pleasing gets her into trouble. A lot of people in healthcare have people-pleasing tendencies. Training teaches you to put the needs of others above your own. You are rewarded for it in training and in practice, but it takes a toll over time. #physiciancoaching #surgeoncoaching #physicianwellness #surgeonwellness #physiciancoach #orthomastodon https://lnkd.in/g2q9FnPJ

When I was actively raising children, there were two weekly tasks I dreaded the most: grocery shopping and laundry.  Both tasks had to be done regularly and seemed pointless on some level because it never felt like I made any progress. #surgery #doctors #coaching #physiciancoaching #surgeoncoaching #physicianwellness  #surgeonwellness #physiciancoach #physician #surgeon #orthomastodon https://lnkd.in/ghMxEpdt

Last week I drove to my favorite trails in Point Defiance Park. The roads seemed oddly empty and quiet, even for “the time between the years” as I’ve heard it called.  Perhaps I hadn’t noticed it before, since in medicine it’s always been just another week when most people don’t work, but we always had a full schedule. The day was overcast, as it so often is during winter in the PNW. The trails seemed unusually quiet and dark as well, with fog surrounding the woods and blanketing the Sound. #surgery #doctors #coaching #physiciancoaching #surgeoncoaching #physicianwellness  #surgeonwellness #physiciancoach #physician #surgeon #orthomastodon https://lnkd.in/dFWDSkzH