Few have escaped feelings of grief, burnout and exhaustion this year, and as community healers, physicians shoulder the double responsibility of caring for the health of their own minds, bodies and spirits, so they can provide the best patient care.

To that end, the California Medical Association’s (CMA) wellness initiative (CMA Wellness) offers free and confidential peer coaching – with trained physicians and nurses – to build empowerment around the unique challenges health care workers are facing in the global pandemic.

Coaching is a recognized method of creating resiliency within the health care workforce, and it is a nonjudgmental, engaging, caregiver-centered way of providing emotional support. While not a substitute for therapy or medical care, coaching has been demonstrated to provide several benefits, including relief for emotional exhaustion and reduced levels of self-reported burnout.

CMA Wellness’ peer coaches understand the rigors and emotional stresses of the medical profession and have offered the following advice to help remain calm, centered and empowered:

• Treat yourself as you would treat a friend.
• Allow yourself a moment as you transition from work to home (and vice versa).
• Pay attention to what is good in your life and actively savor it.
• Take a cleansing breath before you enter a patient’s exam room.
• Be kind to others and yourself. We’re all trying our best.
• Give yourself a mindful massage while washing your hands.
• You will provide optimal patient care if you care for yourself first.