Interview with Dr. Micaela Godzich, Assistant Clinical Professor in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at UC Davis School of Medicine [Show Summary]

UC Davis has developed its Academic Coaching Program to provide support to medical students so they feel more connected to their medical school faculty and community. Today’s episode features the Program Director and UC Davis School of Medicine faculty member, Dr. Micaela Godzich, who shares the rationale behind the program and how it is being received by students.

Dr. Godzich discusses an exciting new mentoring program for med students [Show Notes]

I’m so pleased to have on the show Dr. Micaela Godzich, Assistant Clinical Professor in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at UC Davis School of Medicine. Dr. Godzich earned her MD at UCSF in 2007 and then did her residency and started her practice in central California. In 2012 she moved to rural Shasta County in Northern California and later rural Washington State and enjoyed a “full-spectrum family medicine practice” in both places. In 2017 she joined UC Davis School of Medicine. Her clinical interests include effective longitudinal relationships with patients in a variety of clinical contexts, and physician well-being and professional fulfillment. No wonder that she is director of UC Davis’ Academic Coaching program, which will be the focus of today’s interview.

What is the Academic Coaching Program at UC Davis School of Medicine? [2:35]

The program has been around for the last two years. It is quite robust now, with 15 coaches who spend individualized time with students during the course of med school. They mentor, provide insight into how students are progressing through med school, and how to achieve goals. There are lots of different ways to interact – there is dedicated course time called “doctoring,” where students learn how to take histories, do physical exams, and shape the practice of doctoring. Coaches also go over evaluations with students so they can understand what attendings are really saying with their feedback and how to make improvements.

What prompted UC Davis to start it and why did it appeal to you? [3:58]

UC Davis is very good about gathering data from students, and at the end of 2017-18 there was a survey of graduates to figure out where there could be improvement. From the survey it was discovered that students felt a bit disconnected from faculty. They didn’t get a sense that there was someone who knew them as an individual and how they could develop as they became doctors. They had solid info on logistics, good feedback on how they were doing in courses, but an absence of an individualized touch. We are often dealing with students who don’t have a lot of acculturation to medicine, and they need someone who can help them navigate the practice of academic medicine. The new assistant dean of students had come from a school with a coaching model, so in 2018-19 we had a pilot with five coaches that was overwhelmingly positive. The school expanded that to a total of 15 coaches this year.

What are the goals of the program? [6:16]

It is about helping students develop a sense of themselves within the practice of medicine, feel they are part of medicine as opposed to feeling like outsiders, and understand areas for growth and how to achieve their goals. It is also about developing lifelong habits of self-selected learning...