Advantages of Working with a Professional Coach

The American Medical Women’s Association (AMWA) offers one-to-one coaching for women physicians as an invaluable member benefit to further your professional growth and boost your career advancement.  Since you have chosen to pursue a career in medicine or healthcare—clinical, research, or management—embracing continual development will assure that you are advancing as desired, achieving full career satisfaction, and receiving the credit you deserve.

The corporate world has estimated that the ROI (return on investment) of 1:1 professional coaching is up to 700%. —Matt Symonds  Forbes.com.  Unlike therapy, effective professional coaching does not have a predetermined agenda and makes no assumptions about your needs. When committing to physician coaching, you are setting out on a process aimed to accelerate your growth through the insights gain toward attaining your desired goals, fulfilling your career aims, and arriving at a satisfying work/life balance.

Choosing 1:1 coaching allows you to focus on bringing the best qualities of yourself out personally and professionally. Whether you want to reassess your career choice, find greater professional fulfillment, tackle signs of burnout, gain confidence in returning to work, or address an issue that has you stalled, working with a physician coach is a wonderful way to allow yourself to move forward. Coaching provides an avenue to help you refine your professional skills and gain greater confidence whether you are just launching your career or striving for senior leadership roles. Consider professional coaching an integral tool wherever you are along your professional path.

Why Not Give Coaching a Try?!     SCHEDULE A SESSION

Not Yet Convinced—

Working with an AMWA Physician Coach affords you the opportunity to speak candidly and confidentially about the issues you find challenging in your lives — be they personal or professional. This type of “safe space” allows you to share your thoughts, fears, concerns, hopes, and dreams and feel confident your aspirations will be met with curiosity, encouragement, and a spirit of discovery.

Coaching is recognized and valued in many professions as an effective tool for people to align themselves with their strengths and passions, learn new skills, and develop plans to achieve career goals. By deciding to work with a coach, you are affirming that you are worth investing in yourself, that your dreams and goals are valid and important, and you have a guide to attain your intentions so you don’t have to figure it out alone. You may want to work with your coach on reconnecting with who you are and what’s most important to you, or in discovering new and effective ways of getting what you want, having more impact, and living a more fulfilling life.  Individual professional coaching affords you the opportunity to build resilience, or avoid or recover from burnout

We can all agree that women physicians invest a lot of time, effort, and finances to become knowledgeable, capable practitioners.  AMWA champions professional coaching as a wise, even essential, investment that will pay off with you having a satisfying and fulfilling career, and a more gratifying work/life balance. What do you have to lose—We’ve made it very easy to give coaching a try.

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Tracy Asamoah, MD
Child and adolescent psychiatrist and writer

I am a certified physician coach with additional training in Embodied Awareness and Leadership Through Emotional Awareness. After nearly 10 years of practice, I opened a private practice in psychiatric and coaching practices as well as write for a variety of platforms including GoodRX, Psychology Today, Psychotherapy.net, Better Humans (a Medium Publication), and KevinMD. As a coach, I partner with women physicians who are feeling stuck, helping you to clarify your personal and professional identity. Together, we will design an action plan to grow towards the life you envision. My approach is to support you in clarifying your strengths and values, using this increased awareness to develop a learning agenda and create an action plan to take full advantage of your internal and external resources.

Dr. Asamoah completed medical school at the University of California at San Francisco and did both a general psychiatry residency and a child and adolescent fellowship at the David Geffen UCLA School of Medicine. She was an assistant professor at both the University of New Mexico School of Medicine and the Texas A&M School of Medicine and she worked in a variety of treatment settings including outpatient community-based clinics, and inpatient and residential treatment settings.

Karen Barnard MBBCh, MPH, CPCC, ACC
Founder and Principal of Dr. Karen Barnard LLC

I completed my coaching certification at the Co-Active Coaches Training Institute and I am an associate certified coach (ACC) through the International Coaching Federation. My approach to coaching is to help physicians connect to your courageous self and to lead “from the inside out”. I listen for your dormant dreams, reconnect you to your inner courage, and help you shed old beliefs that may be standing in the way of your success.

I am an adjunct assistant professor of medicine at Duke University School of Medicine in Durham, North Carolina, and board certified in internal medicine and in endocrinology, diabetes, and metabolism.

Yashoda Bhaskar, MD
Board Certified in Internal Medicine
Diplomate of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine
ICF Certified Life Transformation Coach (ACC certification in process)
Certified Money Coach

A retired hospitalist, I am an International Coach Federation certified coach for women physicians, especially for those who aspire to leadership roles. My commitment stems from recognizing that women physicians are severely under-represented in the leadership space, yet have natural talents and abilities that too often go unrecognized or are not given a chance to develop. I also believe that financial freedom is key to gaining control of one’s professional and personal life, giving you more choice to create a work-life balance that works. I also focus on other essential leadership skills such as how to lead teams, resolve conflic,  and have courageous conversations.

Dr. Yashoda went to medical school in India. She took a break to be a stay-at-home parent in Kuwait where her husband worked at the medical school. When she returned to the US, she was able to complete an Internal Medicine residency in El Paso Texas.  She was board certified in internal medicine and a diplomate of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine.

Jessie Benson, DO
Certified Life Coach

My coaching practice focuses on helping women physicians identify the life you want and then I support you as you build it. I help you figure out what you love and what is holding you back from having it. I practiced anesthesiology and critical care medicine for about a decade and then I left clinical medicine to pursue my dream life. In addition to practicing as a Certified Life Coach for women, I am a professional artist, mindfulness teacher, and, most recently, owner and baker of my solopreneur bakery. I live a life I truly love and I love helping women do the same.

Stella K. Evans, MD, FAAP
Adjunct Associate Clinical Professor, Department of Pediatrics, University of Minnesota
Pediatrician, M Health Fairview Clinics – University Children’s, Minneapolis, Minnesota

As a certified life coach and Master Trainer of Neurolinguistic Programming, I employ a variety of techniques to guide you in developing strategies to examine and transform belief systems about relationships with time, money, other people, and most importantly—yourself.  My areas of expertise include limiting belief change work, deep dive thought work for advancement in leadership and new habit formation.

Dr. Evans graduated from Ohio State University College of Medicine and Public Health and completed a pediatric residency at the University of Minnesota.  She has been in pediatric practice since 2005 with a focus in complex care. In addition, she volunteers hours via a ‘helpline’ application for physicians set up in the Twin Cities after the recent suicide of a family practice resident.  Dr. Evans has appeared on several podcasts, including “Empowering Women Physicians”, “NextLevel Physicians”,  and “Doctor Me First”.

Elisabeth Fontaine, M.D, Dip. ABLM, FACLM, BOG, ACC
Telehealth lifestyle medicine physician

I am certified in both obstetrics/gynecology and lifestyle medicine. After practicing as an Ob/Gyn for 27 years, I founded a Lifestyle Medicine Clinic in Vermont in order to improve the health of the population and I co-founded RiseVT (www.risevt.org)  a statewide community intervention initiative. My passion is to “coach a village to health” so I am committed to helping healthcare practitioners thrive in the moment, find balance in self-care to prevent burnout, and explore what is in your way to become your best self. As a leader in women’s health and wellbeing, my goal is for you to build confidence and take control of your leadership presence and define your career direction by stretching your mind to think differently, resulting in balance with work and life. The future is uniquely complex, requiring us to lead and act differently.  It is time to bring your dreams alive in what is next for you.

Dr. Fontaine completed her medical degree and training in obstetrics and gynecology (Ob/Gyn) in Canada and is board certified by the American Board of OB/GYN. She completed a Fellowship from Dukes University in Business Leadership and Integrative Health. She is also board certified in lifestyle medicine and a Fellow of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine.  www.plantbasedtelehealth.com.

Melinda (Mindy) Gillis, MEd, PCC
Human Relations Advisor at the Mayo Clinic
CEO of Mindy’s Executive Coaching LLC

I am a professional certified coach (PCC) with the International Coach Federation and a certified executive coach through MentorCoach. I have more than 10 years developing physician leaders through courses and coaching in an academic healthcare system as an Advisor in the Leadership and Organization Development group. My passion is to coach physicians/physician leaders by developing a creative partnership with you to capitalize on igniting your creativity, leadership, passion, and drive. I aim to help you improve your leadership capabilities to achieve professional, team, organizational, and personal goals. It’s all about assisting you to harness your greatness and discover unrealized talents.

Ms. Gillis earned a master’s degree in Education specializing in Leadership and Organization Development.

Amie Langbein DO, PCC, CDWF
Executive and Leadership Coach

I am an executive and leadership coach, board certified family physician, consultant, educator, and respected speaker who specializes in transformational coaching to create insight-driven, meaningful change. I received certification through The Coaches Training Institute and I am a certified Brené Brown Daring Way™ facilitator, a certified Conscious Business Coach, and a graduate of the Great Story Coaching program. Additionally, I have completed extensive training in mindfulness-based stress reduction and self-compassion. I coach physicians on stress reduction, resiliency strategies, and skill-building to mitigate burnout, through enhancing self-awareness, self-care, and self-compassion. My approach is to be empowering, empathetic, and inspirational and I will believe in you wholeheartedly, even when you are challenged to believe in yourself.

Dr. Langbein graduated from Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, completed a psychiatry internship at Hahnemann University Medical Center and a family practice residency at Delaware Valley Medical Center. Thestorydoc.com

Asha Padmanabhan, MD, FASA
Medical Director of Anesthesia, Bethesda West Hospital in Boynton Beach, Florida

As a Master Certified Physician Development Coach trained at the Physician Coaching Institute, I work with women physicians in leadership skills, career growth and transformation, and career resilience. My coaching philosophy is based on The Three dimensions of a Confident Physician Leader: who is Confident, True to herself, Balanced in her career ambitions and personal life, and multidimensional. Having been in leadership roles for over 12 years, including Chief of Department and other roles, I bring a wealth of experience to my coaching. Having personally dealt with the many challenges of being a female leader in medicine, my insight into the challenges we face has made me uniquely capable of coaching women who are either thrust into leadership unprepared or are seeking leadership but unsure how and where to start.

My coaching style is informed by leadership experience I have gained through training at leadership academies such as the Physician Leadership Academy (South Florida), and The Envision Chiefs Leadership Training. Dr. Pahmanabhan holds several leadership positions including Treasurer and Executive Board Member of the Florida Society of Anesthesiologists and Vice Chair of the Committee of Women Anesthesiologists in the American Society of Anesthesiologists.

Cheryl Sivan, RN, CPCC, PCC
Director of Navistree Consulting
VP International Sales and Operations at Teleradiology Solutions
Partner & COO at Matrix Radiology and Partner & CEO at MediCrew

I am a Certified Professional Co-Active Coach and a Professional Certified Coach through the International Coach Federation, focusing on healthcare professionals and entrepreneurs. I believe curiosity and a judgment-free environment help set the stage for you to gain insights that inspire you to maximize your potential.

Having lived abroad for 15 years in Europe and India, I was exposed to multiple healthcare models. I am a registered nurse in intensive care and emergency medicine with a bachelor’s degree in nursing and doing graduate course work in an advanced nurse practitioner program.

Nora Vasquez, MD
Founder/Owner of Renew Your Mind MD

I received Physician life coach training from the Life Coach School in Plano, Texas and I am a graduate of the 2020 Texas Medical Association’s Leadership College. I use high performance coaching to elevate your personal and professional growth so you can reach your goals quickly. Areas of focus include overcoming burnout, imposter syndrome, perfectionism, healing relationships, time management, and enhancing leadership skills.

After 12 years of practice in health clinics, she realized a new mission to “Empower and Heal the Healers”. She is passionate about advocating for physician health and wellness after overcoming her own burnout. As a Mexican American, she understands the unique challenges women physicians face in modern medicine. She is dedicated to providing culturally inclusive coaching with maximum impact

Dr. Vasquez earned a double bachelor’s degree in zoology and Spanish from the University of Washington in Seattle. She completed a National Institute of Health (NIH) Academy Fellowship to study health disparities She earned a medical degree from the University of Washington School of Medicine and completed an internal medicine residency at St. Vincent Hospital in Indianapolis. Learn More HERE

Kristin Yates, DO, FACOG
Obstetrician/Gynecologist and co-owner of a private practice

In addition to my clinical work, I am a professional coach for women physicians with a passion for helping you to overcome self-doubt and create a sustainable and fulfilling career in medicine. I believe that all women are born to be leaders. My coaching philosophy is centered on love and presence. I have provided coaching to a variety of women-led organizations as well as created a variety of courses and retreats. She is certified through The Life Coach School.

Dr. Yates completed a doctor of osteopathy at Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine and completed her Ob/Gyn residency at the Western Pennsylvania Hospital in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.