Coaching
for Doctors

When knowing what to do isn’t the hard part

Confidential coaching for senior clinicians navigating people issues, politics and high-stakes decisions in health services.

For situations where the challenge isn’t clinical judgement. It’s working out what is right for you, what to raise and who to involve.

Based in Melbourne, working across Australia and internationally.

Award-winning PhD • 25+ years advising senior leaders • Published author • Conference speaker

Trusted by leaders from:

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RMH logo
The Alfred logo
St Vincent's logo
Monash Health logo
Western Health logo
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Cabrini hospital logo

The world you're working in

In senior clinical roles, decisions are rarely just clinical.

How you respond can affect how the situation develops, the support you receive and what happens next in your role.

You are dealing with strong personalities, professional hierarchies, committees, complaints processes, workforce pressure and constant scrutiny.

The people you work alongside today may be assessing you, appointing you or referring to you tomorrow.

What this work is for

Senior clinicians usually reach out when a situation has continued for a while and they cannot work it through inside the organisation.

They may know what the issue is and see several possible responses. The difficult part is deciding how to respond and what the situation means for them.

That might include:

  • handling a colleague’s problematic behaviour without finding yourself blamed for raising it
  • deciding whether to raise an issue now, escalate it, or let it sit
  • managing competing expectations across public, private, and academic roles
  • navigating leadership responsibilities alongside clinical work
  • making decisions about whether to stay, move, step up or step back

Why doctors work with me

Doctors often reach out at particular moments: when they’re stepping into a more senior role, being asked to act or lead without much preparation, or starting to position themselves for a director or head-of-unit role.

The clinical work is familiar. The leadership exposure, scrutiny and people management may not be.

I work with senior clinicians who want a confidential place to think with someone who understands health services and can see the situation from outside it.

Many have already spent months thinking through a situation alone, trying to read the politics and work out what to do. By the time they reach out, they know they need another perspective.

I’m an organisational psychologist with 25+ years’ experience working with senior professionals in health and other complex environments.

What changes over time

You become more deliberate about how you respond.

You may spend less time second-guessing decisions after the fact. You become clearer about which issues need your attention and which do not. Difficult situations may spill less into your sleep, relationships and professional confidence.

Some doctors come to work through one particular situation. Others continue because new situations arise and it helps to work with someone who already understands the role, the relationships and what has happened so far.

How it works

The work happens through regular, confidential one-to-one conversations focused on live situations that matter to you.

We take the time to understand what is happening: the people involved, the power dynamics, the timing, your own role and what has already been tried.

My role is to test your read of what is happening, notice what may be missing and help you think through the likely implications before you act.

If this is the kind of thinking space you’re looking for, you can schedule a conversation here.

Dr Michelle Pizer, executive coach and organisational psychologist in Melbourne

Experience and credentials

I’ve delivered more than 7,400 one-to-one sessions over 25+ years, working with senior doctors, clinical leaders and executives across public and private medicine. I also provide executive coaching to senior leaders across a range of industries.

I have a PhD in organisational psychology, am a registered psychologist with formal training in business and counselling psychology. I have published research on leadership in Victorian public hospitals.

Next step

The first conversation is about understanding what you’re dealing with and whether it makes sense to work together.

It’s confidential, 45 minutes and there’s no obligation to continue.

Dr Michelle Pizer | Executive Coach and Organisational Psychologist