ONCOACH, a prospective study to evaluate the impact of coaching in improving the well- being of oncologists

Abstract Background: The primary endpoint of this pilot program was to determine the feasibility and acceptability of a coaching program in the training of oncologists. Methods: From November 2019 to May 2020, residents or young doctors had a coaching session, once a month for 6 months. Students completed a survey assessing demographic characteristic, stress evaluation, anxiety or/and depression (by the Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale (HAD) and PHQ scale 9) and burnout. Results: Of the 20 eligible students, 90% (18/20) enrolled. Among them 33.4% (6/18) had five sessions with each coach and 55.6% completed all sessions (10/18). The majority of participants (72.2% of learners; 13/18) perceived the program was highly valuable, with 50% (9/18) of learners who would like to do coaching again. They found that coaching beneficial and they recognized that it was beneficial for feeling more comfortable at work (66.6%), to get the important messages across (50%) and to reduce stress at work (55.5 %). The stress evaluated by the short 9-item Psychological Stress Measurement questionnaire decreased during the coaching training (p = 0.0446) and remained stable after coaching training at M12 (p = 0.4). Anxiety, depression and burn-out was remained stable during and after the coaching. Conclusion: This pilot study demonstrated preliminary feasibility and acceptability for coaching and had positive impact on stress reduction.