What is a Nurse Coach?
A certified Nurse Coach is a Registered Nurse with several years of nursing experience, who has taken an accredited course and has passed the Nurse Coach board certification exam through the American Holistic Nurses Credentialing Corporation (AHNCC).
So, What does a Nurse Coach do?
A bit of a misnomer, Nurse Coaches are not necessarily coaches for nurses, rather they are nurses who coach. Nurse Coaches work with their clients to promote and facilitate growth, wellbeing, and healing. They use coaching principles and restorative practices that integrate the body, mind, spirit, emotion, and environment of their client. Nurse coaches operate under the principle that the client is a whole person and the expert in their own lives. They offer encouragement and build on the client’s strengths and inner wisdom in making their own decisions. Nurse coaches partner with the client in facilitating change while offering guidance and resources when supportive or needed.
“When I started this coaching I was feeling a lot of stress and overwhelm from both work and life. I was also feeling a bit stuck or trapped in where I am at in life. Throughout the coaching I was able to put that into words and with Danae’s guidance I came up with specific plans to target areas I was struggling in.” S.S
In general, the coaching industry is widely unregulated (e.g. health or life coaching). So, while Nurse Coaching may reflect similar aspects to these coaching modalities, it differs in that it is regulated on a national level and in that the coach has the background and expertise of a Registered Nurse.
“Danae, thank you for being the guiding light, compassionate listener, and unwavering believer in my potential. Your dedication has made a lasting impact on my journey of growth and self-discovery.” S.B.
FAQ
What are examples of focus areas in nurse coaching sessions?
- Life transitions
- Setting healthy boundaries
- Food and nutrition
- Weight loss
- Relationships
- Emotional regulation
- Exercise and activity
- Management of chronic health conditions
- Sleep
- Stress management and mindfulness
*And MORE…these are just a few limited examples.
What does the Nurse Coach interaction look like?
At the start of the Nurse Coaching relationship, the goal is to establish trust and rapport with one another. Nurse-client confidentiality is always honored. A holistic client assessment will be initially completed. From there, the coaching process involves collaboration with the client giving direction to the desired needs they would like addressed. Goal assessment and progress evaluation is continually monitored. The Nurse Coaching session is a safe place to bring any aspect of health you want to talk about (physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and/or environmental).
What is the difference between Nurse Coaching and Therapy?
While therapy holds such value and can often work symbiotically with coaching, there are some distinct differences to note.
Therapy’s focus is typically on an identifiable issue or diagnosis (e.g. anxiety, depression, bipolar) and subscribes to the idea that there is a problem in need of being fixed. Treatment in therapy is often based on alleviating symptoms. Therapy tends to be retrospective and addresses past pain. In therapy, the provider is in the role of the expert.
Coaching’s focus is on enhancing the quality of life by actualizing potential, goal setting and taking action. The client is considered whole, resourceful, valuable, resilient and the expert in their own life. While the past may be discussed in coaching, it is in service to the present and/or future (the focus of coaching). Coaching is a collaborative process between the Nurse Coach and the client.
Danae Wolf
RN, BSN, NC-BC
Danae Wolf, RN - Coaching 