www.linkedin.com/in/drcathrynedwards

As a coach, I have a particular interest in how we navigate phases of career and personal transitions; in helping to discover blind spots when people are ‘stuck’ in their leadership roles, and in women’s leadership challenges. I bring to coaching my 35 years of experience as a Physician and Gastroenterologist working in the NHS, and over a decade of mentoring health professionals. I combine this with experiential learning from my national medical leadership roles since 2011, recognizing that I have been lucky to be coached by some incredible coaches who have made such a difference to my own leadership development.

I realized early on in my career that much of what we do as clinicians is to enable others to adjust and adapt to new circumstances, and to do that we rely (often unwittingly) on coaching skills. I have witnessed the value of these skills both in supporting patients with long term conditions and in colleagues with personal and career development goals. I have complemented my experience of mentoring peers for over a decade, with a professional qualification as an Integral Coach® through the University of Cape Town Business School- Center for Coaching Switzerland. My style is inquisitive, empathetic, and laced with critical questioning. I recognize how important an ‘external eye’ can be in moving someone to effective action and how to evaluate situations not just intellectually, but with intuition and gut feel. I particularly enjoy working with clients from diverse backgrounds and some of my most memorable coaching experiences were in South Africa where I worked during a career break from the NHS in 2015.

Whatever the challenge – leadership, personal growth, or career paths in difficult working environments – the coaching conversation starts with ourselves.