Characteristics of Volunteer Coaches in a Clinical Process Improvement Program

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Quality Improvement
• Clinical Leadership Development
• Interprofessional Education

Background:

• The Partners Clinical Process Improvement Leadership Program trains clinicians and administrators in quality improvement.
• Graduates serve as volunteer peer coaches, offering mentorship.
• Understanding factors influencing coach participation is crucial for program sustainability.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify factors associated with volunteer coach participation in the program.
• To gather insights for improving and sustaining the peer coaching model.

Main Methods:

• A review of the coach characteristics from the course database was conducted.
• A survey of frequent coaches was administered.
• Statistical analysis identified associations between coaching and demographic/programmatic factors.

Main Results:

• Out of 516 graduates, 117 (23%) volunteered as coaches.
• Administrators were more likely to coach than physicians (OR: 1.75, P = .04).
• Coaching participation was significantly associated with occupation, course taken, and course location.

Conclusions:

• A peer graduate volunteer coach model is effective for quality improvement mentorship.
• Promoting repeat coaching and clinician engagement is key to maintaining an experienced coach pool.
• Strategies should focus on supporting diverse and sustained participation in the coaching program.