Commentary: Parental Leave Policies: Have We Come a Long Way, Baby?
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EDITORIAL PERSPECTIVE
Commentary: Parental Leave Policies: Have We Come a Long Way, Baby? Kendra N. Iskander1 • Virginia R. Litle2
Ó Socie´te´ Internationale de Chirurgie 2020
Even in 2020 B.C. (Before COVID), stress reduction and burnout in the workplace were becoming increasingly common content of medical publications and e-mails from professional organizations and our institutional leaders. The concept of stress but not stress reduction has been in our literature for decades as exemplified in one psychiatry survey published * 40 years ago in which having pregnant colleagues was considered a stressful factor for their co-workers [1]. As summarized in a more recent survey of almost 500 healthcare providers, lack of support, lack of respect, and problems with the proverbial work life balance are proven risk factors for burnout [2]. Acknowledging the risks to employee health and patient safety, some institutions are taking novel and aggressive stances to address this problem with a formal wellness program for individuals [2]. With a corporate focus on well-being, the time is ripe to aggressively address the issue of parental health as well. Several groups have shown previously that paid maternity leave improves infant and maternal health with a reduction in postpartum depression and familial re-hospitalizations and with improved child development [3, 4]. In their recently published survey of women surgeons, Bingmer and colleagues hypothesized that academic and private surgeons would experience differential parental leave based on practice settings [5]. Indeed, their study findings reflect the literature that money significantly drives the decision making. Understanding the issues that women encounter surrounding pregnancy and parental & Virginia R. Litle [email protected] 1
North Coast Surgical Specialists, Eureka, CA, USA
2
Division of Thoracic Surgery, Department of Surgery, Boston University School of Medicine, 88 East Newton Street, Collamore 7380, Boston, MA 02118, USA
leave is increasingly important as more women join the surgical workforce, so this recent report from the Association of Women Surgeons leaders is timely. According to the study, private practitioners were less likely to have paid leave and were more likely to continue to pay benefits while on leave. Also, private practice surgeons were more likely to leave a job or face pressures making them more likely to return to work earlier than desired. Often, the financial buffer to absorb leave in private practice or diminished productivity is narrow. Private practice surgeons were also more likely to create their own family leave policy. Highlighting potential differences that working surgeons may face is a useful consideration for surgical trainees as they plan their career. The importance of clearly defining the leave policy ahead of time and negotiating for appropriate paid leave and benefits is vital for surgeons joining private practice, especially in their childbearing years. For women surgeons in the academic settings, pregnancy and p
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