Group Coaching in Academic Anesthesiology: Extending the Conversation to Faculty

By Aileen Adriano, MD and Karen Souter, MB BS FRCA MACM PCC CMC

Coaching began to take on new significance in medicine with the shift toward competency-based education in the early 2000s. This shift made clear what many educators already understood: learners progress at different rates and along individualized pathways. Traditional models of mentorship and advising, while valuable, may not always address these differences. Coaching emerged as a structured, learner-centered approach that emphasizes reflection, goal setting, and growth—making it a natural fit for modern medical education.

Medical schools and residency programs quickly recognized this potential and began to invest in coaching initiatives. These efforts extended beyond helping students achieve competencies, expanding into areas such as professional identity formation, resilience, and well-being. Professional identity formation—the process by which physicians internalize the values, norms, and responsibilities of their profession—is not a one-time milestone but an evolving process that continues throughout a physician’s career (Cruess et al., 2014). Coaching provides a valuable framework to support this journey, offering physicians a dedicated space to reflect and recalibrate their work with their personal and professional values.

As momentum for coaching grew, national organizations stepped in to strengthen the movement. The American Medical Association (AMA) published the Coaching in Medical Education Faculty Handbook in 2017, providing guidance for faculty seeking to develop coaching skills. Institutions such as Stanford University launched “COACHME” in 2021 - a program designed to certify physicians as coaches and further integrate coaching into academic medicine. These initiatives reflect a growing recognition that coaching is not just an educational enhancement, but an essential strategy for developing adaptive, resilient, and fulfilled physicians.

What began as an effort to better support students and residents quickly raised a broader question: if coaching benefits learners, why shouldn’t practicing physicians have access as well? In academic medicine, coaching was once largely reserved for executives and hospital leaders. Today, however, physicians at every career stage navigate the complex demands of clinical care, teaching, research, and the pursuit of professional and personal fulfillment. Expanding coaching to all physicians recognizes that growth and development are lifelong processes. Importantly, evidence shows that coaching can help reduce burnout and distress while enhancing overall well-being and effectiveness (Dyrbye et al., 2019).

In academic anesthesiology and other specialties, coaching offers a structured but flexible approach for physicians to reflect on their goals, navigate competing priorities, and align their professional paths with their strengths and values. The Society for Education in Anesthesia (SEA) will launch a group coaching initiative this fall to help physicians do just that (SEA Group Coaching Program https://www.seahq.org/group-coaching-program).

Group coaching, much like individual coaching, is built on the belief that each participant is intelligent, resourceful, and able to determine their own path. Participants bring their goals and aspirations to the process, while facilitators and peers provide accountability, support, and perspective. Through guided reflection, small group exercises, and shared dialogue, participants explore their professional identity, clarify values, and design a roadmap toward future success—whatever success looks like to them. Just as importantly, group coaching fosters connection, creating a safe and confidential environment where participants can learn, grow, and support one another.

We invite you to join this group coaching experience and take the opportunity to pause, reflect, and renew your energy while moving closer to your own vision of fulfillment and growth. Coaching has already transformed the way we approach medical education, and its expansion into the professional lives of academic anesthesiologists holds great promise—supporting more sustainable, purposeful careers at every stage of the journey.

References

1. American Medical Association. Coaching in Medical Education: A Faculty Handbook. AMA; 2023.
2. Cruess RL, Cruess SR, Boudreau JD, Snell L, Steinert Y. Reframing medical education to support professional identity formation. Acad Med. 2014;89(11):1446–1451
3. Stanford Medicine. COACHME: Coaching in Medical Education. Stanford University School of Medicine.Available at: https://med.stanford.edu/coachme.html.
4. Dyrbye LN, Shanafelt TD, Gill PR, et al. Effect of a professional coaching intervention on the well-being and distress of physicians: A randomized clinical trial. JAMA Intern Med. 2019;179(10):1406–1414