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Surgical trainees' experience of pregnancy, maternity and paternity leave: a cross-sectional study
- Source :
- Postgraduate medical journal. 95(1128)
- Publication Year :
- 2018
-
Abstract
- Background Internationally, supporting surgical trainees during pregnancy, maternity and paternity leave is essential for trainee well-being and for retention of high-calibre surgeons, regardless of their parental status. This study sought to determine the current experience of surgical trainees regarding pregnancy, maternity and paternity leave. Methods A cross-sectional anonymised electronic voluntary survey of all surgical trainees working in the UK and Ireland was distributed via the Association of Surgeons in Training and the British Orthopaedic Trainees’ Association. Results There were 876 complete responses, of whom 61.4% (n=555) were female. 46.5% (258/555) had been pregnant during surgical training. The majority (51.9%, n=134/258) stopped night on-call shifts by 30 weeks’ gestation. The most common reason for this was concerns related to tiredness and maternal health. 41% did not have rest facilities available on night shifts. 27.1% (n=70/258) of trainees did not feel supported by their department during pregnancy, and 17.1% (n=50/258) found the process of arranging maternity leave difficult or very difficult. 61% (n=118/193) of trainees felt they had returned to their normal level of working within 6 months of returning to work after maternity leave, while a significant minority took longer. 25% (n=33/135) of trainees found arranging paternity leave difficult or very difficult, and the most common source of information regarding paternity leave was other trainees. Conclusion Over a quarter of surgical trainees felt unsupported by their department during pregnancy, while a quarter of male trainees experience difficulty in arranging paternity leave. Efforts must be made to ensure support is available in pregnancy and maternity/paternity leave.
- Subjects :
- Adult
Male
medicine.medical_specialty
Cross-sectional study
Attitude of Health Personnel
Personnel Staffing and Scheduling
030230 surgery
03 medical and health sciences
0302 clinical medicine
Pregnancy
Surveys and Questionnaires
medicine
Humans
Maternal health
030212 general & internal medicine
Parental status
business.industry
Internship and Residency
Normal level
General Medicine
medicine.disease
Surgical training
Organizational Policy
United Kingdom
Parental Leave
Cross-Sectional Studies
Maternity leave
Family medicine
Female
Surgical education
business
Ireland
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 14690756
- Volume :
- 95
- Issue :
- 1128
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Postgraduate medical journal
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....f8716fbaaa506b81e1127310b5aea876