Chapter 5: Development and Evaluation of an Online Coaching Model for Medical Students' and Doctors' Mental and Physical Well-being Management

Purpose: To demonstrate how an online coaching intervention can support well-being management (mental health and mood) of medical students, by increasing psychological awareness, emotional management, and healthy/positive action repertoires.

Design/methodology/approach: A two-group randomized control trial design using a waitlist as a control was used with a sample of 176 medical students. Half were randomly assigned the 5P© coaching intervention and the remaining half assigned to the waitlist group, scheduled to receive the intervention after the initial treatment group completed the intervention. Participant baseline data on stress, anxiety, depression, positive and negative affect, and psychological capital were obtained prior to commencing the study, after completion of the first treatment group, and again postintervention of the waitlisted group, and then at the end of the year.

Findings: Coaching the students to reflect on their emotions and make solution-focused choices to manage known stresses of medical education was shown to decrease medical student stress, anxiety, and depression, thereby increasing the mental health profiles of medical students.

Research limitations/implications: The findings suggest that an online coaching tool that increases psychological awareness and positive action can have a positive effect on mental health and mood of medical students.

Practical implications: The framework developed and tested in this study is a useful tool for medical schools to assist medical students in managing their well-being, thereby decreasing the incidence and prevalence of mental illness in medical students. The implications of this research are significant in that positively affecting the psychological well-being of medical students could have a significant effect not only on each medical student but also on every patient that they treat, and society as a whole. Better mental health in medical students has the potential to decrease dropout rates, increase empathy and professionalism, and allow for better patient care.

Originality/value: This study contributes to the literature on online coaching for improved psychological well-being and emotional regulation, mental health, and medical students. It is one of the first studies using a coaching protocol to make a positive change to the known stress, anxiety, and depression experienced by medical students worldwide.