A life coach
Medical, educational, emotional and motivational support play a vital part in helping diabetes sufferers to manage their condition effectively.
Working closely with patients and healthcare professionals in Bolton, the Design Council team found that, despite excellent medical and educational support, many diabetes sufferers failed to manage their condition effectively because of a lack of ongoing emotional and motivational support.
‘Having created the deck of agenda cards, we had found a way of opening up dialogue between diabetes patients and their healthcare providers,’ says Jennie Winhall. ‘But our research had also led us to the conclusion that much of the support needed by diabetes patients might be better off coming from someone outside the medical profession – a third party change agent, more like a life coach.’
Several factors pointed the team towards the idea of a life coach-style helper
- consultant diabetologists gave feedback that called for a new kind of care worker to connect with patients on a one-to-one basis
- behavioural psychologists showed evidence that care professionals armed with even rudimentary motivational interviewing skills can have a positive impact on people trying to change their behaviour
- a pilot scheme assessing the benefits of regular motivational phone calls for diabetes patients gave positive results
- and the success of the Design Council’s work Kent where personal trainers helped community groups initiate and maintain healthy activities.
‘The concept emerged that we could help create a personal trainer for people with diabetes, or indeed any chronic condition that requires an ongoing commitment to lifestyle and behavioural changes,’ says Winhall.
The team began to research how this one-to-one approach might work in reality, interviewing charity counsellors, career and life coaches to find out what they do, what qualifications and training they receive and the tools and techniques that get the best results.
‘This information helped us build a job description for the new role and an assessment of suitability, which was based on an individual’s empathetic abilities rather than any clinical or professional credentials,’ explains Winhall.
There were a number of factors to consider if the concept was going to work. ‘Trainers should have a firm grasp of diabetes and its care issues and have experience of coaching. We envisaged a short, accredited training course and the role could offer flexible work styles for full and part-time, voluntary and paid positions, trainees and professionals. Personal trainers would be mobile workers, helping groups and individuals in their homes and connecting to colleagues and patients by mobile phone and the internet.’ Crucially, personal trainers would work closely with health professionals, but would remain outside the structures of the healthcare system.
The team also reflected on the importance of choice, and the benefits of being able to match patients with the personal trainer that was right for them.
Taking their inspiration from off-the-shelf, packaged gift experiences like balloon flights or rally driving from companies like Red Letter Days or Virgin Experience Days, the team came up with the idea of advertising personal trainer profiles at the chemist. Each point-of-sale profile would include a picture of the trainer and information about their professional approach and coaching style. A voucher from their GP would entitle a diabetes patient to choose a trainer from the selection on display at their local pharmacy. Patients could then interview their potential trainer over the phone before making their final selection.
The Design Council team presented their ideas at the next professional workshop with senior healthcare practitioners from Bolton NHS. Following positive feedback, some animated discussions and some new ideas, the personal trainer idea began to solidify into a workable concept – called Me2. ‘The diabetes coach concept struck a chord with both patients and professionals,’ concludes Winhall. ‘We have only designed a prototype service, but we believe that a small group of coaches could have a major impact on the ability of a large number of people with diabetes in Bolton to apply the knowledge they have gained, and to manage their lives more easily and effectively than they currently do.’
Why the coaching approach works
People engage in a dialogue that is not advice-based, which helps them find their own answers
- It helps to reveal a new perspective on personal goals
- It encourages patients to draw up a ‘small steps’ action plan, underpinned by a mutual commitment, and work through it together by a given deadline
- It provides one-on-one input to support people in following through on their commitment
- It uses a wide variety of informal tools, many of them visual or metaphorical
- Coaches use listening skills to support people making difficult or long-term changes
