The PREGNANT (Pregnant Resident Empowerment, GuidaNce, and Advocacy iN Training) Coaching Project

NCT ID: NCT07221422

Last Updated: 2025-10-31

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

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Recruitment Status

NOT_YET_RECRUITING

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

48 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2025-11-01

Study Completion Date

2026-12-01

Brief Summary

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This is a mixed-methods study designed to develop and evaluate an innovative coaching program for physician trainee mothers. Approximately 48 participants will be recruited from informational flyers posted in resident work areas and distributed by program directors and GME. Interested participants will email study staff. Participants will be randomized to the control or intervention arm. Intervention participants will meet monthly with a novice physician coach of their choice (one-on-one) and a certified physician coach (with an assigned group of 6 peers through video-conferencing).

Participants in both arms of the study will respond to surveys at three points: enrollment (baseline), 4 months, and 7 months. At each point, they will spend approximately 10 minutes filling the survey. The survey will query demographics, burnout, professional fulfillment, imposter phenomenon, self-valuation, self-efficacy, resilience, quality of life, and impact of work on professional relationships. The coaching intervention will last 4 months, and the 7 month survey will be used only to assess long-term effects of the intervention. At the conclusion of the study (7 months after enrollment), participants will be interviewed over video communication (secure Partners or Harvard Zoom) for approximately 30 minutes.

Detailed Description

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To bridge the gaps identified in traditional mentorship programs, the PREGNANT study aims to develop and evaluate a novel, 4-month coaching program tailored to the childbearing trainees. Professional coaching is one of the few interventions shown to be effective in reducing burnout by providing structured and unstructured discussions through active listening and goal setting. It is uniquely positioned to address gaps identified in the previous mentorship program, as it does not rely on shared experiences, offers a focused solution with clear objectives, and provides trainees the tools to sustainably reduce burnout by fostering resilience, self-efficacy, and self-compassion. Despite its efficacy, many coaching programs rely on resource-intensive, in-person interventions, which reduce accessibility for trainees and pose scalability challenges.To overcome these barriers, our pilot study draws on the success of two types of innovative programs: 1) those that increase number of available one-on-one coaches by training practicing physicians in coaching techniques so they can function as "novice coaches" and 2) web-based group coaching programs with asynchronous learning opportunities, led by certified physician coaches, ensuring accessibility for trainees regardless of geographical or scheduling constraints. Unlike traditional life-coaching interventions that use external non-physician consultants, this program will be delivered by physician coaches who understand the challenges, social hierarchy, and culture of medical training. This distinction ensures that coaching is relevant and contextualized to the realities faced by childbearing trainees, thereby enhancing its effectiveness and impact.

This initiative will purposively include lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and other sexual identities (LGBTQ+) and underrepresented in medicine (URiM) trainee parents, who have been underrepresented in previous research on trainee parents and face barriers that make it harder to balance family life and training. LGBTQ+ parents often have fewer benefits and unique challenges, such as limited access to parental leave and more frequent use of assisted reproductive technology, while URiM parents face compounded challenges from the intersectionality of their identities.

The expected outcome of this project is the development of a structured, scalable coaching program that reduces burnout in childbearing trainees by integrating one-on-one coaching with community-building and group support. This program will have a significant positive impact on the clinical learning environment by enhancing its diversity, equity, and belonging while improving the well-being of a vulnerable population.

Conditions

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Burnout, Professional Well-Being, Psychological Imposter Phenomenon Self Efficacy Quality of Life

Study Design

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Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Primary Study Purpose

SUPPORTIVE_CARE

Blinding Strategy

NONE

Study Groups

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Intervention

Intervention participants will not be given protected time to participate and will have the same clinical workload as controls. They will meet monthly with a novice physician coach of their choice (one-on-one) and a certified physician coach (with an assigned group of 6 peers). To build community, participants are encouraged to attend sessions with their coaching group, but we will accommodate full schedules by allowing (1) participation in sessions with other coaching groups, (2) asynchronous video learning including self-guided exercises. Video conferencing will be used to facilitate attendance and scalability.

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Coaching Program

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Novel, 4-month coaching program tailored to the childbearing trainees. This consists of 4 1:1 coaching sessions with a novice faculty coach and 4 group sessions with a certified coach.

Control

Delayed intervention. At the conclusion of the study, control participants will be offered a 2-hour workshop (led by a certified coach) covering group session topics, provided access to the videos, and given self-guided exercises used for asynchronous learning.

Group Type OTHER

Coaching Program

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Novel, 4-month coaching program tailored to the childbearing trainees. This consists of 4 1:1 coaching sessions with a novice faculty coach and 4 group sessions with a certified coach.

Interventions

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Coaching Program

Novel, 4-month coaching program tailored to the childbearing trainees. This consists of 4 1:1 coaching sessions with a novice faculty coach and 4 group sessions with a certified coach.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

1. Age 18 or older
2. English fluency and literacy
3. Resident or fellow level MD or DO trainee
4. Pregnant or up to 3 months post-partum

Exclusion Criteria

1. Unable to provide consent.
2. Unable to complete electronic surveys and video calls.
Minimum Eligible Age

18 Years

Eligible Sex

FEMALE

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Sponsors

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Massachusetts General Hospital

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Erika Rangel, MD

Associate Professor of Surgery

Responsibility Role PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Locations

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Massachusetts General Hospital

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

Site Status

Brigham Women's Hospital

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

Site Status

Countries

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United States

Central Contacts

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Erika L Rangel, MD, MS

Role: CONTACT

Phone: 6176506952

Email: [email protected]

Emma AR Askew, B.S.

Role: CONTACT

Phone: 6177943770

Email: [email protected]

References

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Schlick CJR, Ellis RJ, Etkin CD, Greenberg CC, Greenberg JA, Turner PL, Buyske J, Hoyt DB, Nasca TJ, Bilimoria KY, Hu YY. Experiences of Gender Discrimination and Sexual Harassment Among Residents in General Surgery Programs Across the US. JAMA Surg. 2021 Oct 1;156(10):942-952. doi: 10.1001/jamasurg.2021.3195.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 34319377 (View on PubMed)

Rangel EL, Smink DS, Castillo-Angeles M, Kwakye G, Changala M, Haider AH, Doherty GM. Pregnancy and Motherhood During Surgical Training. JAMA Surg. 2018 Jul 1;153(7):644-652. doi: 10.1001/jamasurg.2018.0153.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 29562068 (View on PubMed)

Li RD, Janczewski LM, Eng JS, Foote DC, Wu C, Johnson JK, Easter SR, Kim E, Buyske J, Turner PL, Nasca TJ, Bilimoria KY, Hu YY, Rangel EL. Pregnancy and Parenthood Among US Surgical Residents. JAMA Surg. 2024 Oct 1;159(10):1127-1137. doi: 10.1001/jamasurg.2024.2399.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 39018050 (View on PubMed)

Rowe SG, Stewart MT, Van Horne S, Pierre C, Wang H, Manukyan M, Bair-Merritt M, Lee-Parritz A, Rowe MP, Shanafelt T, Trockel M. Mistreatment Experiences, Protective Workplace Systems, and Occupational Distress in Physicians. JAMA Netw Open. 2022 May 2;5(5):e2210768. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.10768.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 35522279 (View on PubMed)

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; National Academy of Medicine; Committee on Systems Approaches to Improve Patient Care by Supporting Clinician Well-Being. Taking Action Against Clinician Burnout: A Systems Approach to Professional Well-Being. Washington (DC): National Academies Press (US); 2019 Oct 23. Available from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK552618/

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 31940160 (View on PubMed)

Sullivan MC, Bucholz EM, Yeo H, Roman SA, Bell RH, Sosa JA. "Join the club": effect of resident and attending social interactions on overall satisfaction among 4390 general surgery residents. Arch Surg. 2012 May;147(5):408-14. doi: 10.1001/archsurg.2012.27.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 22785631 (View on PubMed)

Dyrbye LN, Shanafelt TD, Gill PR, Satele DV, West CP. Effect of a Professional Coaching Intervention on the Well-being and Distress of Physicians: A Pilot Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Intern Med. 2019 Oct 1;179(10):1406-1414. doi: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2019.2425.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 31380892 (View on PubMed)

Palamara K, McKinley SK, Chu JT, Merrill AL, Yu L, Parangi S, Makowski MS, Park YS, Donelan K, Stein SL. Impact of a Virtual Professional Development Coaching Program on the Professional Fulfillment and Well-Being of Women Surgery Residents: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Ann Surg. 2023 Feb 1;277(2):188-195. doi: 10.1097/SLA.0000000000005562. Epub 2022 Jun 29.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 35766397 (View on PubMed)

Fainstad T, Mann A, Suresh K, Shah P, Dieujuste N, Thurmon K, Jones CD. Effect of a Novel Online Group-Coaching Program to Reduce Burnout in Female Resident Physicians: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Netw Open. 2022 May 2;5(5):e2210752. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.10752.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 35522281 (View on PubMed)

Lyu HG, Davids JS, Scully RE, Melnitchouk N. Association of Domestic Responsibilities With Career Satisfaction for Physician Mothers in Procedural vs Nonprocedural Fields. JAMA Surg. 2019 Aug 1;154(8):689-695. doi: 10.1001/jamasurg.2019.0529.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 30969336 (View on PubMed)

Other Identifiers

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2025P000907

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id