Scope of Practice

A Health Coaches Academy certified Health and Wellness Coach is a professional who works with clients to help them achieve their health goals, improve their overall wellbeing, and make sustainable lifestyle changes. Health coaches focus on empowering clients to take charge of their health by providing guidance, support and accountability.

A Health and Wellness Coach understands and respects that each client is an expert on their own life and is a non-judgemental ally, supporting, educating and motivating them to find sustainable ways to break through resistance in their journey to whole health.

Samantha works with clients so they can become the healthiest and happiest versions of themselves. She does this by working with individuals and groups in a client-centred process to facilitate and empower the client to develop and achieve self-determined goals related to health and wellness. She supports clients in mobilising internal strengths and external resources, and in developing self-management strategies for making sustainable, healthy lifestyle, behaviour changes.

Samantha will work across all areas of Health and Wellness including:

• Nutrition – real, unprocessed food and optimal hydration

• Exercise and movement

• Stress management

• Sleep

• Self-care

• Social Support and connection

• Meaning and purpose

What Health and Wellness Coaches Do

The specific responsibilities of a Health and Wellness Coach can vary, but some common tasks include:

Understanding a client’s health and lifestyle: Samantha typically begins by conducting an initial review of a client's current health status, lifestyle, and health goals. This helps her to tailor their coaching to the specific needs of each client.
Based on the review, Samantha works with clients to develop personalised health plans that include specific goals and action steps to achieve those goals.
Providing education and resources: Samantha helps clients learn about healthy eating, exercise, stress management, and other areas related to health and wellbeing. She may also provide resources such as recipes, plans, and educational materials.
Offering support and accountability: Samantha can provide ongoing support and accountability to help clients stay motivated and on track with their health goals. This may include regular check-ins, encouragement and problem-solving.
Where appropriate and with permission, Samantha will liaise with other health professionals to ensure the appropriate support is provided. This may also extend to referrals to trained health professionals for specific advice or consultation and, if requested, to facilitate the introduction.

Overall, the goal of a Health and Wellness Coach is to help clients make sustainable lifestyle changes that improve their overall health and wellbeing. Health Coaches do not diagnose conditions, prescribe treatments, or provide psychological therapeutic interventions.

Additionally, as a Registered Health Coach with the UK and International Health Coaches Association (UKIHCA) here is their expectation of the scope of practice for a Health and Wellness coach:

Health coaches work with individuals and groups in a client-centred process to facilitate and empower the client to develop and achieve self-determined goals related to health and wellness
Coaches support clients in mobilising internal strengths and external resources, and in developing self-management strategies for making sustainable, healthy lifestyle, behaviour changes.
As partners and facilitators, health coaches support their clients in achieving health goals and behavioural change based on their clients’ own goals and consistent with treatment plans as prescribed by individual clients’ professional health care providers
Coaches assist clients to use their insight, personal strengths and resources, goal setting, action steps and accountability toward healthy lifestyle change and may offer supporting resources from nationally and internationally recognised authorities, such as current government and public health guidelines and peer-reviewed sources.
Coaches must unless otherwise credentialed and able to do so legitimately, avoid giving specific personal health advice, but may offer a client direction to health and wellness information and resources from nationally/internationally recognized, robust evidence-based and peer-reviewed authorities, so that clients can draw their own conclusions, gain confidence and a sense of empowerment.