Christie Mulholland is a palliative care physician and certified physician development coach who helps physicians reclaim their sense of purpose and connection in medicine. Through her work at Reclaim Physician Coaching, she guides colleagues in rediscovering fulfillment in their professional lives.
At the Icahn School of Medicine, Dr. Mulholland serves as associate professor of palliative medicine and director of the Faculty Well-being Champions Program. Affiliated with Mount Sinai Hospital, she leads initiatives that advance physician well-being by reducing administrative burden and improving access to mental health resources.
Her recent scholarship includes a chapter in Empowering Wellness: Generalizable Approaches for Designing and Implementing Well-Being Initiatives Within Health Systems and the article, "How to Support Your Organization's Emotional PPE Needs during COVID-19." Her peer-reviewed publications have appeared in Cancers and the Journal of Science and Innovation in Medicine.
She shares reflections on professional growth and physician well-being through Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Dr. Mulholland lives in New York City with her husband, James, and their dog, Brindi.
I was doing the dishes recently when I was hit with a stomach-dropping sensation and an unprompted memory. A negotiation I’d had years ago with my department. I had secured fair compensation for work they needed done, using the leverage I had. I walked away feeling good about it. And yet, standing at the sink with my guard down, years later, I felt a flash of guilt so unexpected it …
Why your physician guilt may not actually be yours
There is a resident doctor on TikTok named Julia who is also a raver. She posts about her training, and her weekends, dancing, festivals, après ski, living a full and visibly joyful life outside the hospital. The comments on her videos are glowing. “I would love to have a doctor like you.” “You seem like a real person.” A lot of patients are not looking for a self-sacrificing doctor who …
Moving beyond the false binary of medicine as a calling
In the first episode of The Pitt season 2, Dr. Robby reveals he’s taking a three-month sabbatical, his last shift before heading to a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Canada. For a primetime medical drama to feature a physician stepping away for three months signals something important: Sabbaticals are entering the cultural conversation about how doctors survive in modern medicine.
But here’s what the show doesn’t tell you: Most physicians can’t …
Why every physician needs a sabbatical (and how to take one)
I direct a Faculty Well-being Champions Program overseeing 47 physician champions across 33 departments. I also practice palliative care part-time and coach physicians navigating burnout. I liaise with well-being leaders nationwide, some at programs just checking a wellness box, others genuinely trying to get it right. This year taught me that well-being work reveals patterns. The same destructive habits show up across institutions, specialties, and conversations.
As 2025 closes, here are …
5 things health care must stop doing to improve physician well-being
“Health-care professionals are increasingly demoralised by pressure to prioritise their employers’ financial goals over patients’ needs and professional norms, as space for good work in a bad system narrows.” This statement from an October 2025 Lancet article spoke directly to my experience.
By all quantifiable metrics, I was successful. I’d just been promoted to associate professor in the number-one-ranked department in the country for my specialty. I had a rewarding leadership …
Reclaiming physician agency in a broken system
AI is rolling out in medicine faster than most of us can process. Ambient scribes documenting visits. Clinical decision support algorithms. Automated prior authorizations. The promises are compelling: reduced clerical burden, more face-time with patients, less burnout.
I wanted this. As a palliative care doctor and director of physician well-being at my institution, I’ve spent years watching colleagues drown in documentation and burn out from relentless task loads. When AI tools …
The human cost of health care automation
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