Lifelong development in medicine: a thematic analysis of coaching goals throughout medical careers

Objectives Healthcare grapples with staff shortages and rising burnout rates for medical students, residents and specialists. To prioritise both their well-being and the delivery of high-quality patient care, it becomes imperative to deepen our understanding of physicians’ developmental aims and needs. Our first aim is, therefore, to gain comprehensive insights into the specific developmental aims physicians prioritise by examining the coaching goals they set at the beginning of coaching. Since physicians face distinct roles as they advance in their careers, our second aim is to highlight similarities and differences in developmental aims and needs among individuals at various medical career stages.Design We conducted a qualitative analysis of 2571 coaching goals. We performed an inductive thematic analysis to code one-half of coaching goals and a codebook thematic analysis for the other half. Our interpretation of the findings was grounded in a critical realist approach.Setting Sixteen hospitals in the Netherlands.Participants A total of 341 medical clerkship students, 336 medical residents, 122 early-career specialists, 82 mid-career specialists and 57 late-career specialists provided their coaching goals at the start of coaching.Results The findings revealed that coachees commonly set goals about their career and future, current job and tasks, interpersonal work relations, self-insight and development, health and well-being, nonwork aspects and the coaching process. Furthermore, the findings illustrate how the diversity of coaching goals increases as physicians advance in their careers.Conclusions Our findings underscore the significance of recognising distinct challenges at various career stages and the necessity for tailoring holistic support for physicians. This insight holds great relevance for healthcare organisations, enabling them to better align system interventions with physicians’ needs and enhance support. Moreover, our classification of coaching goals serves as a valuable foundation for future research, facilitating a deeper exploration of how these goals influence coaching outcomes.