Submitted by Kasey Boehmer, MPH
We’ve been talking with wellness coaches at Mayo Clinic a lot about the idea of “capacity coaching,” which marries some traditional elements of wellness coaching with the concepts of minimally disruptive medicine. Capacity coaches have conversations with patients that help them build capacity for both health and life, and when integrated with the care team, provide a point person for helping the team understand the current state of the patient’s workload-capacity balance. The Zablocki and Hines VAs are just kicking off a pilot in their women’s health clinics to implement the ICAN Discussion Aid in their practice for patients with diabetes or diabetes and depression and designate a member of the team as the capacity coach. I spent time discussing these ideas with Dr. Kathryn Havens of the Zablocki VA after our kickoff workshop together. Dr. Havens will have some thoughts regarding the workshop and the pilot here soon as well. More to come!
