"A lifelong journey:" a phenomenological exploration of faculty perceptions about coach training at an academic medical center.

BACKGROUND

Coaching in academic medicine may help learners develop lifelong learning skills. Studies typically evaluate the impact on coachees and program outcomes. Limited information is available about educating faculty to integrate the role of coaching. We explored a faculty coach training program at an academic medical center in the southern region of the United States.

METHODS

Twenty faculty members in the college of medicine completed the 34-h training program meeting alternate weeks from May to November 2021. We collected data from reflections during training, a post-training survey, and three post-training focus group discussions making this a qualitatively driven mixed methods research. We used a transcendental phenomenological approach for the qualitative analysis entailing deriving essential meaning of the participants' training experiences and perceptions about coaching.

RESULTS

We identified 3 themes (1) perceptions, skills, and understanding of coaching, (2) perceived additional benefits from coach training, and (3) effective instructional practices to teach coaching. Under the first theme, participants expressed improved understanding about the process of coaching in academic medicine, noted the importance of listening to the whole person without judgment, questioning with curiosity, vulnerability, self-awareness, and reflection for building trust. Perceived additional benefits included personal development and illuminating discoveries. Sub-themes for effective instructional practices were learning community encompassing mindfulness, psychological safety, social cohesion, experiential and interactive learning, and suggestions. Faculty experienced internal transformation while learning coaching and felt they had the capacity to influence personal and professional development of learners and colleagues. The concepts reflection, awareness, growth, and relationship were threaded throughout the three themes.

CONCLUSIONS

The training evoked self-awareness and opportunities for personal growth. The newly trained coaches expressed the beginning of an internal transformation to embody being a coach and demonstrated willingness to influence personal and professional development of learners and colleagues. Effective instructional practices to teach coaching included mindfulness practice, psychological safety, social cohesion, and experiential and interactive learning. Based on these findings, it may be summarized that in the process of training to be a coach, the faculty not only recognized the benefits of coaching for learners but also realized individual personal benefits.