For all of you academic skeptics out there, this post is for you. I am you. I love the field of medicine’s skepticism, requirement of evidence, and high standards. This separates us from other healing professions. You can imagine my reticence to now tell you all that I am a life coach - an area that has no government regulation, no universal standards, no board exam. I believe in it, but that certainly should not convince you to believe in it. Fortunately, life coaching is being studied within medicine. The evidence is consistently showing that life coaching is useful and effective. Below are a few recent articles supporting the efficacy of life coaching. Some of the tools used in life coaching are based on cognitive behavioral therapy techniques, an area in psychology which has been consistently shown to be effective. You can think of life coaching as CBT for the highly functioning person. A quick lit search of CBT will provide you with additional evidence for the efficacy of these techniques.
Smith, J. Surgeon Coaching: Why and How. J Pediatr Orthop 2020 Jul; 40 Suppl 1:S33-S37.
Aboalshamat et al. The effect of life coaching on psychological distress among dental students: interventional study. BMC Psychol. 2020 Oct 14;8(1):106.
Cameron et al. Executive/life coaching for first year medical students: a prospective study. BMC Med Educ. 2019 May 22;19:163.
Stein et al. Implementation of a Coaching Program by a National Surgical Association. J Surg Educ. 2022 Nov-Dec;79(6):1471-1479.
Fainstad et al. Effect of a Novel Online Group-Coaching Program to Reduce Burnout in Female Resident Physicians: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Netw Open. 2022 May 2;5(5).
Ahn et al. Coaching Health Care Leaders and Teams in Psychiatry. Psychiatr Clin North Am. 2019 Sep;42(3); 401-412.
Mann et al. “It’s Nice to Know I’m Not Alone”: The Impact of an Online Life Coaching Program on Wellness in Graduate Medical Education: A Qualitative Analysis. Academic Medicine 97(11S):p S166, November 2022.
Steketee et al. A mixed-methods study to test a tailored coaching program for health researchers to manage stress and achieve work-life balance. Transl Behav Med. 2022 Mar 17;12(3);369-410.
Samora et al. Coaching, Separate from Mentoring, May Provide Skill Acquisition, Improved Well-Being, and Career Advancement in Orthopaedic Surgery: AOA Critical Issues. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2022 Sep 7;104(17):e76.
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