Understanding Healthcare Coaching
In the complex and demanding world of healthcare, professionals often find themselves needing support that goes beyond traditional mentoring or therapy. Enter coaching—a transformative approach that’s gaining traction among healthcare workers seeking to overcome challenges and unlock their full potential. But what exactly does coaching involve, and how does it differ from other forms of professional support?
The Partnership Approach to Coaching
At its core, coaching is about partnership. As Grizelda Anguiano, a pediatrician and coach, explains in our recent podcast: “Coaching with healthcare professionals or anyone—it’s establishing that partnership. It’s when we meet, we say ‘What would you like to talk about today?’ And then we really get into finding a solution as far as being really specific about a goal that each client wants to talk about.”
This client-centered approach distinguishes coaching from other forms of professional development. A coach doesn’t direct or prescribe solutions—instead, they create a space for exploration and discovery. The focus remains firmly on what the client wants to achieve and how they can get there.
Klaus Grim, an emergency medicine physician assistant and coach, adds that coaching offers “a very confidential space and freeing space where you can say anything and everything, and we are constantly making progress and forwarding the actions that we’re trying to have.”
How Coaching Differs from Mentoring, Consulting, and Therapy
One of the most common questions about coaching is how it differs from other professional relationships. Understanding these distinctions helps clarify what a coach truly is:
Coaching vs. Therapy
Grizelda offers a helpful analogy: “Therapy is like looking into your rearview mirror and going into the past and what’s going on and why did that happen. And then coaching is like looking through your front dash, the front window—there’s so many possibilities.”
While therapy often focuses on healing past wounds and understanding psychological patterns, coaching is primarily future-oriented and action-focused. That said, coaching can be “therapeutic” without being therapy, as Grizelda notes: “Coaching is not therapy, but it is therapeutic.”
Coaching vs. Mentoring
“Mentors…provide that guidance grounded on their own professional journeys or their specific expertise,” Grizelda explains. A mentor typically shares their personal experience and wisdom, offering a roadmap based on their own path.
In contrast, a coach helps you create your own map, believing that you are the expert on your life and career. While mentors tell you how they did it, coaches help you discover how you can do it in your own unique way.
Coaching vs. Consulting
Consultants are “specialists—they’re going to say, ‘Okay, this is what you got to do. Use these methods,'” according to Grizelda. Consultants provide expert advice and solutions based on their specialized knowledge.
Klaus emphasizes this distinction: “A lot of these other things like mentoring, consulting specifically, it’s a lot of times giving advice, which is not something we do from a coaching perspective.” Instead of giving answers, coaches ask powerful questions that help clients find their own solutions.
The Unique Role of Coaching in Healthcare
Healthcare professionals face unique challenges that make coaching particularly valuable in this field. Some key aspects of healthcare coaching include:
1. Understanding Healthcare Culture and Challenges
“Our background coming from healthcare…we do know what others are doing,” Grizelda notes. Healthcare coaches with clinical backgrounds understand the realities of “applying to go into school…raising a family while you were getting training, the student debt that we’ve got.”
This shared experience creates an immediate connection and understanding that allows coaching to address the specific pressures of healthcare work.
2. Helping Navigate Burnout and Stress
Healthcare professionals often operate in level four energy—the caring, compassionate energy that draws many to medicine. But as Grizelda points out, “When that level four, that care, compassion, service—the downside to it, that’s where our burnout comes.”
A coach helps healthcare workers recognize these patterns and develop strategies to maintain their compassion without sacrificing their wellbeing.
3. Developing Leadership at All Levels
“Many people say they’re not leaders—’I’m not the C-suite’ or ‘I’m not a leader’—but the truth is we are all leaders,” Grizelda emphasizes. “We’re leading our families. We’re leading even if it’s your division or if it’s your household.”
Coaching helps healthcare professionals recognize and develop their leadership capabilities, regardless of their formal title or position.
The Energy Leadership Approach to Coaching
At Transforming Healthcare Coaching, professionals use the Energy Leadership Index (ELI) model, which offers a unique lens for understanding how we show up in different situations.
Understanding Energy Levels
“We think of energy as, how are you experiencing life? Where are you more…catabolic, more destructive with certain parts of situations or aspects of your life, or are you more anabolic?” Klaus explains.
The model identifies seven levels of energy, from highly catabolic (destructive) to highly anabolic (constructive). Understanding your default energy patterns provides powerful insights for growth.
The Surprising Self-Discovery
Many clients are surprised by what the assessment reveals. “For me, it was very surprising to find when I’m stressed, where I’m showing up,” Grizelda shares. “It was like, ‘What? I’m a victim and I come from conflict? Like, no, that’s not me. I love and I serve and I care.'”
This awareness becomes a foundation for change. “Once you really get into the coaching, you start to talk the language…and that way, in the moment, you get to choose how you want to change your response when you’re with a patient or when you’re with one of your colleagues,” Grizelda adds.
When Might You Need Coaching vs. Therapy?
Understanding the difference between these approaches helps clarify when coaching might be the right choice versus therapy:
Consider Coaching When:
- You have a clear vision for your future and need support getting there
- You’re ready to take action and create change
- You’re functioning well but want to optimize aspects of your professional or personal life
- You want to develop specific skills or achieve particular goals
- You’re seeking accountability and structure for your growth
As Grizelda explains: “If you ask the question, ‘Okay, where would you like to be five years from now, two years from now?’…if they can see the vision and they can see the possibility that something else can be, then…they’re ready for coaching.”
Consider Therapy When:
- You’re struggling with significant trauma or mental health issues
- You need to understand and process past experiences before moving forward
- You’re having difficulty with daily functioning
- You’re experiencing persistent symptoms that interfere with your life
“If they can’t have that growth mindset to say ‘This is where I’d like to go’ and create those goals to move forward, then they may need to have therapy,” Grizelda notes. “Especially if there’s some significant trauma or they’re persistently having difficulty, especially getting out of bed or doing…activities of daily living.”
Importantly, coaching and therapy aren’t mutually exclusive. “That doesn’t mean that they can’t have a coach along with their therapist,” Grizelda points out. Many people benefit from both simultaneously, addressing different aspects of their lives with each approach.
The Transformative Power of Coaching
For many healthcare professionals, the coaching experience leads to profound shifts in how they approach both work and life.
One of the most powerful aspects is the realization that we can choose how we respond to challenges. “If I have less of this [catabolic energy], then I have more room for those more anabolic levels. And that’s empowering when we can choose what we can show up [as],” Grizelda explains.
Klaus reinforces this idea: “We can choose the way we show up.” This simple but profound realization empowers healthcare professionals to take control of their experience, even in demanding and stressful environments.
Is Coaching Right for You?
With a clearer understanding of coaching, you might be wondering if this approach could benefit you. Consider these questions:
- Are you looking to create positive change in your professional or personal life?
- Do you have goals you’d like to achieve but aren’t sure how to get there?
- Are you feeling stuck or unfulfilled in some aspect of your career?
- Do you want to develop your leadership capabilities?
- Are you seeking a better balance between your work and personal life?
- Are you ready to take action toward creating the life and career you want?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, coaching might be a valuable resource for you.
Taking the Next Step
Understanding coaching represents the first step in determining whether this approach aligns with your needs and goals. As you consider your options, remember that the right professional partnership empowers you to discover your own answers and create meaningful change.
For healthcare professionals interested in exploring coaching further, Transforming Healthcare Coaching offers a team of experienced coaches who understand the unique challenges of healthcare work. To learn more about their approach or to book a free discovery call.
Remember that investing in your personal and professional development isn’t selfish—it’s essential for sustaining the energy and passion that brought you to healthcare in the first place. As the podcast hosts remind us, “Together, we can transform healthcare, one person at a time.”
