Doctors at Work

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Medicine is an incredibly rewarding profession, yet we also work at a time of constant change and uncertainty. We are all likely to face adversity at least sometimes. In this episode, Will Mangar tells me about the idea of the psychological survival kit. When faced with difficulties, we first need to have self awareness to recognise that something is amis, and then put in some circuit breakers that would take us towards wellbeing rather than away. This means proactively building the sorts of behaviours that are nourishing and sustaining for the long term, such as relationships, exercise and creativity. You can also watch us talk on youtube.
Spanning three decades, Will Mangar has worked as a family physician in general practice within the UK National Health Service. He has spent many of these years leading organisations within primary care. He has a special interest in men’s psychological health and wellbeing, and specifically with principles of meaningful purpose and its relationship with personal fulfilment and happiness in life. He devotes his professional time to his practice and raising awareness of men's mental health with the perspective of meaningful purpose through speaking, writing and broadcasting. You can find him on LinkedIn.

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Helen has had a range of senior leadership roles, and in this episode she tells me how to get into leadership, how to progress, and the skills needed to succeed. Many people will have great skills, but they don't put themselves forward, they wait to be asked, or they wait for the perfect opportunity. However, this means that they may struggle to have the impact that they want, and Helen's tip is to go for it, learn and develop, and don't be afraid to fail. She tells me that it's important to keep eyes open for exciting opportunities, and this also means having to create space by letting go of other things. Our careers are not linear, they evolve all the time, and every step opens up a myriad of new doors and opportunities. Getting to know yourself is key to good leadership, as is knowing the people around you, and picking the battles that you choose to fight. I love her mantra "don't just moan, do something".
Helen Stokes-Lampard, Professor of GP Education, is back at UoB following a three-year secondment (2020-23) as Chair of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges (AoMRC) through the Covid19 pandemic. The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges is the national body that represents and coordinates the UKs 24 Royal Colleges, Colleges and Medical Faculties that in turn represent all the main medical specialities that award higher professional medical qualifications. AoMRC ensures that patients are safely and properly cared for by setting standards for the ways doctors are educated, trained and monitored throughout their careers. She sits on the Expert Panel which advises the national AI Frontier Taskforce and Chairs the Independent clinical oversight group for the GRAIL/Galleri study. Additionally Helen is a GP Principal in Lichfield, the founding Chair of the National Academy for Social Prescribing (NASP), the founding Chair of the Dames Commander Society (DCS) and a Trustee of Macmillan Cancer. She was Chair of the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) 2016-2019 and has held many other national medical leadership positions. Helen was awarded a DBE for services to General Practice in the New Years Honours list January 2022. You can find out more at https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/profiles/clinical-sciences/stokeslampard-helen and on her LinkedIn page.
Listen at https://matdaniel.net/podcast/; https://open.spotify.com/show/1j8uLaUU1g5bYTRVuwUX7j?si=672ec26a73164d7f; https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/doctors-at-work/id1701284564; or watch on www.youtube.com/@dr-coach/videos.
Production: Shot by Polachek
You can find out more about Mat's coaching to help doctors create successful and meaningful careers at www.MatDaniel.net.

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As doctors our training focuses on clinical skills, yet sooner or later we all find ourselves in a position of being a team leader. In this episode, Declan tells me that leadership is a different set of skills, and one that can be learnt and developed. A mindset of listening, asking questions, and being open to try things is important, and modelling psychological safety through acknowledging uncertainties is key to creating an environment where others feel safe to belong and speak up. I love his idea that leadership is something that can move around the team depending on what is needed and what expertise team members have. Perhaps a key insight is noticing what's going on in the team, what it is that the team needs, and asking how things could be better.
If you enjoyed this episode, you might also like 87 how to become a senior medical leader, 86 how to become head of school of General Practice, and 59 how to create great teams.
Dr. Declan Woods is a ‘top team’ Psychologist and Professor of Leadership Practice at King's College London (KCL) who specialises in working with boards and leadership teams in international blue-chip corporations and public sector bodies. He has significant experience in the healthcare and pharmaceutical sectors and with the NHS. He is the founding CEO of teamGenie, an international venture specialising in designing, coaching, and developing teams with the mission of transforming organisations through teams (see teamgenie.com). Declan used his expertise and research on teams to create the award-winning diagnostic tool, teamSalient, to help teams radically improve their impact (see teamsalient.com). Declan is the world’s first team Master Coach accredited with the Association for Coaching (AC), and a Chartered and HCPC-registered Psychologist. Declan created the global industry standard for team coaching (see associationforcoaching.com/page/TCADetails) and previously co-authored and launched coaching’s global code of ethics (globalcodeofethics.org) signed by the world's leading coaching and mentoring bodies and companies. He was made a lifetime Fellow of the Association for Coaching (AC) for this work raising standards of coaching in organisations globally.

Listen at https://matdaniel.net/podcast/; https://open.spotify.com/show/1j8uLaUU1g5bYTRVuwUX7j?si=672ec26a73164d7f; https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/doctors-at-work/id1701284564; or watch on www.youtube.com/@dr-coach/videos.
Production: Shot by Polachek
You can find out more about Mat's coaching to help doctors create successful and meaningful careers at www.MatDaniel.net.

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Ranj tells me that General Practice in an exciting specialty with wide variety of conditions and interactions. Good communication skills and teamwork are important, as is an ability to manage uncertainty. We discuss the many different ways that GPs can work, including portfolio careers. I love the way his Practice has created structures that enable staff to connect and get support from each other.
Dr Ranj Sagoo is a UK trained and GMC licenced doctor of over 15 years’ experience. He gained his medical degree (MBCHB) at Leicester University in 2006 after which he trained in Orthopaedics and Surgery before becoming a GP in 2013 obtaining Membership of the Royal College of General Practitioners (MRCGP).

Early in his GP career he developed an interest in Dermatology and completed the Cardiff Diploma of Practical Dermatology, followed by the Cardiff Certificate in Dermoscopy. Combining this with his surgical skills Dr Ranj developed an expertise in diagnosing and managing chronic skin conditions, diagnosing skin lesions and performing skin surgery.

As he progressed in his career Dr Ranj felt that there was so much more that we can do to help people not only manage their health problems but prevent them from occurring. Dr Ranj has a firm belief that we are in control of our health and those people that struggle with their health have the power within them to regain that control. We are not destined to develop certain conditions because they are in the family, nor should people feel restricted by their health problems as they are very reversible.

Dr Ranj began to look at health as a complex interaction of multiple contexts of life. Core to his belief is seeing the person as a whole and not the illness that they present with. Developing a deeper understanding of the person, their values, purpose and their circumstances, holds the key to helping them with their health problems.

He began to explore the psychology of health behaviour and the drivers of motivation to change. Dr Ranj developed an awareness of the need for a more holistic approach to health and wellbeing. He developed a fascination with lifestyle and nutritional approaches to health and wellbeing. He has since become certified in counselling, a Professional Coach and NLP Practitioner accredited by the Association of Professional Coaches (APC) and European Association of Neurolinguistic Programming (EANLP). Dr Ranj has also achieved the Level 3 Award for Nutritional Intervention in Exercise, Wellbeing and Weight Management with the Association for Nutrition (AfN) and completed the Diploma of Lifestyle Medicine with the British Society of Lifestyle Medicine (BSLM) and is a Certified Lifestyle Medicine Physician.

With his Health & Wellbeing programs, Dr Ranj helps clients achieve their health goals by bringing together his wealth of knowledge in conventional, nutritional and lifestyle medicine. Using his skills in counselling, coaching and NLP he helps clients make deep discovery, find alignment with their values and make sustainable life-long change. A true journey to creating a healthier and happier life, not only for the client but their family and loved ones through transferable learning.

Outside of medicine, Dr Ranj is an Award-winning Fine Art wildlife artist, having won the 2022 BritishContemporary.Art ‘Artist of the Year’ award. He is also keen on sports and fitness and enjoys playing football, tennis, and kickboxing. As well as this Dr Ranj enjoys travelling and exploring different cultures and cuisines with his family.

You can find him at www.drranjsagoo.com, Instagram @drranj_healthcoach; Youtube @drranj_healthcoach; www.linkedin.com/in/dr-ranjit-sagoo; and https://www.facebook

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Most of us will remember role models (good and bad) that have heavily influenced who we are today. Sue Carr tells me that actually everyone of us is a role model to someone, we need to remember that and be aware of the shadow that we cast. Her top tips are to know yourself, and to show up day after and display consistently good values and behaviours such as compassion, listening and generosity.
Professor Sue Carr is the Deputy Medical Director of the General Medical Council. She continues to practice as a Consultant Nephrologist in Leicester where she is also an Honorary Professor of Medical Education at University of Leicester. She was previously, Director of Clinical Education and an Associate Medical Director at the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust for 9 years and prior to that Associate Postgraduate Dean & Foundation School Director in the East Midlands Deanery. She is a Senior Fellow of the Faculty of Medical Leadership and Management and a Fellow of the UK Academy of Medical Educators. She has previously held several national roles in medical education including as Chair of the UK Renal Association Education and Training committee, member of National Association of Clinical Tutors Council, and she was an elected Councillor of the Royal College of Physicians.
Role modelling is important for us all, and GMC's Good Medical Practice document makes specific reference to it. You may also be interested in reading the Caring for Doctors - Caring for Patients report, or look at the King's Fund and Health Foundation's work on compassionate leadership. The Stoneygate Empathy Centre also has a number of publications / courses.