This is a guest blog from Kate Henry – Health and Wellbeing Coach Programme Lead, Trainer/Supervisor, Researcher at Know Your Own Health, a PCI accredited training programme which provides all the skills needed to deliver Health & Wellbeing Coaching, together with support to put the skills into practice to achieve high-quality outcomes.
Recently I was going through the FAQ section on the website for the nascent Professional Body for Health and Wellbeing Coaches in the NHS. One of the questions that had been put forward was: “What are the top tips for how to survive/thrive in the role?” As someone who trains and supervises coaches, I have lots of top tips to offer in answer to this question. However, the one that sprang instantly to mind was:
“Believe in the patient, that they have the resources within themselves to improve their own health and wellbeing outcomes – and trust the process”
I think what was underlying my inclination to pick this as a top tip was that it reflects something that I see so many new coaches struggle with – and so many more experienced coaches recognise, usually with relief and a sense of greater enjoyment and reward in their role. Underneath it is the basic tip to ‘do less, support more’. Less in terms of talking, in terms of action, in terms of advice, suggestions, etc. Health and Wellbeing Coaching in the NHS is all about supporting self-management – facilitating, not fixing.
The ease with which a coach can do this relies heavily on the belief that the patient sitting in front of them does have the answers within themselves. It also means respecting the patient’s autonomy and the reality that it is the patient who is the one who is having to manage their health and wellbeing on a day-to-day basis. Building the patient’s confidence to do this effectively, in a way that works for them, is more important than giving them a resource or piece of advice that they may or may not feel able to act on. Not that coaches can’t pass on resources or suggestions when these might prove helpful; however, there is a time and a way to do this that doesn’t undermine the patient’s role.
This may sound simple, and in many ways it is. But simple doesn’t mean it’s easy to do.
For one thing, it does take skill to support patients to self-manage effectively in a way that empowers them to improve their own health and wellbeing outcomes and build their confidence to do so. And, importantly, to be able to do this on a sustainable basis.
It also represents a 180-degree shift in the way the NHS can be said to have seen its role, i.e. to fix. And to a large extent that is still the role of our health services. However, many of the chronic or long-term conditions that the NHS is now confronting on a daily basis are not fixable in the same way that an acute medical condition may be. The progression of many of these conditions, in a positive or negative direction, often relies heavily on how well patients are managing their health conditions as well as on other factors in their lives, including lifestyle choices or the impact of health inequalities. Health and Wellbeing Coaching provides a valuable complement to the clinical treatment of long-term conditions – helping to ensure that patients are not simply passive recipients of clinical care but feel able to be active and engaged participants in the management of their health and wellbeing. This leads to another top tip for Health and Wellbeing Coaches surviving/thriving in the role.
Coaches are working in a ‘fixing’ environment while being trained to adopt a ‘facilitating’ mindset. This presents additional challenges for the coach and it’s essential that the role of the coach is properly recognised and supported within the system if coaches, and the role, are to survive and thrive. For coaches my top tip in this respect would be:
“Your biggest teachers, once you’ve completed your training, are patients, along with ongoing support from your trainers/supervisors.
Take time to reflect on your skills after your sessions with patients – what worked well, what didn’t – and continue working with trainers/supervisors to support
that reflection so that you build your confidence in the role and, in turn, are able to train and supervise others in the skills and mindset.”
And for the wider healthcare system, there is a different challenge. The improved outcomes, and potential cost-savings, from patients being able to self-manage effectively are well-documented. Even without the literature, it makes sense. The challenge for the system is how to support those who are supporting the patients. My top tip for the wider system would therefore be:
“Work together to ensure that coaches are getting the training, supervision and support
they need to ensure that the patients and the NHS are able to realise the best outcomes
and the greatest cost-savings from the introduction of coaching to the health system.”
I hope the emergence of a dedicated Professional Body for NHS Health and Wellbeing Coaches will help to support that – for the coaches, for their employers, and for the patients and healthcare system as a whole.
Kate Henry
HWBC Programme Lead, Trainer/Supervisor, Researcher
Know Your Own Health
www.kyoh.org
HWBC Programme Lead, Trainer/Supervisor, Researcher
Know Your Own Health
www.kyoh.org