Tammie Chang, MD
Tammie Chang, M.D., is a board-certified physician in pediatric hematology/oncology and co-founder of Pink Coat MD, an uplifting community to empower women physicians. Using her expertise in coaching, leadership and consulting work, background in wellness and work as a physician, Chang guides women physicians to become the best version of themselves and protect their well-being by helping them achieve greater balance, prevent burnout and live healthier lives.
Her upcoming book, Boundaries as a Woman Physician: The Key to Loving Your Life and Career in Medicine, focuses on the understanding that to heal and serve others, one must first focus on having a healthy body, spirit and mind. Tammie highlights the importance of good self-care habits and boundaries in a physician’s life to avoid burnout, stress and exhaustion. She shares her story and that of three other physicians, acknowledging her struggles and the ways she broke the barrier of shame many physicians have when it comes to mental health and self-care. The goal of Boundaries as a Woman Physician is to equip women physicians with tools and advice to create healthy boundaries so they can thrive and love their practice. Tammie also published a companion workbook to help women physicians with time management and setting boundaries.
Tammie leads personal coaching sessions, group programs and career consultations with the goal of empowering others to create the lives they want and become better leaders. She supports women physicians early in their careers by holding group consultations where they can share their experiences and vulnerabilities, as well as career sessions to tackle specific areas such as setting boundaries and time management.
She is the co-founder and co-CEO of Pink Coat, MD, a safe community and digital platform that provides support and resources for women physicians to help reduce burnout and improve personal well-being so they can achieve professional success. Partnering with leading experts across a variety of fields, the goal is to build a platform of supportive, self-compassionate female leaders to revolutionize medical culture. Tammie serves as the medical director of Provider Wellness for MultiCare Health System and the director of Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital’s Pediatric Cancer Survivorship Program. She also co-founded the Cool Chicks in Medicine community and the Women of Influence Network (WIN) @ MultiCare. Tammie serves as the program director of the American Medical Women’s Association (AMWA) ELEVATE Leadership Development Program for Women Physician Attendings, and as the President of the AMWA Washington State Physician Branch.
Tammie earned her bachelor’s and medical degree from Brown University in Providence, R.I. She completed her residency training in internal medicine and pediatrics at the University of Massachusetts and completed her fellowship in pediatric hematology/oncology at the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis.
Tammie lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and their two golden retrievers, and she spends her free time playing piano and being active in the beautiful outdoors with her family. She practices pediatric hematology/oncology, at Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital in Tacoma, Wash. For more information, please visit: www.tammiechangmd.com
In today’s episode Tammie shares her journey with severe burnout, the importance of good self-care habits and boundaries in a physician’s life to avoid burnout, stress and exhaustion, and her dedication to changing the culture of medicine. Through her journey and diving into the magic of coaching, Tammie discovered that joy is her top core value, followed by love, freedom, courageous integrity, empowerment, and growth. Through following these guiding principles she discovered what it means to truly be alive and live a life full of joy. Tammie shares the hard earned lessons she’s learned, why we need to be clear on our why, and her biggest dream.
“There is incredible power in sharing our stories because when we can show up and be vulnerable, honest, humble, and really share our struggles, that is what connects us as human beings and it also helps others to recognize and know that we are not alone. None of us are alone. In fact, we’re all struggling in our own ways whether we verbalize it and share it openly or not. That’s a big part of why I share my story so openly.”
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7bZHrtjAzbksbLWNaak1NM
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/stories-of-inspiring-joy/id1510488632
To connect with Tammie and learn more check out her website www.tammiechangmd.com and www.pinkcoatmd.com and on Instagram @tammiechangmd and @pinkcoat_md Twitter @tammiechangmd and @pinkcoat_md Facebook @tammiechangmd and @PinkCoatMD and on LinkedIn here
Stories of Inspiring Joy is a production of Seek The Joy Media and created by Sydney Weiss. To learn more and submit your story, click here.
*Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this episode are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of Stories of Inspiring Joy.