Survey: Orthopedists say new parents need longer parental leave
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Key takeaways:
- Women took 9.6 weeks of leave, with attending physicians taking 9.9 weeks vs. 6 weeks for residents.
- Men took 1.5 weeks of leave, with attending physicians taking 1.7 weeks vs. 1.3 weeks for residents.
SAN FRANCISCO — Orthopedic surgeons are aware of recent parental leave policy changes; however, most reported that at least the parent who gave birth needs more than 6 weeks of leave, according to recently presented data.
Results of the survey on opinions and factors that influence the length of parental leave were presented at the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons Annual Meeting.
“Adequate parental leave is not just an issue for women. I think [that is] how it’s often been portrayed ... But what we found in our study is that men do care about it. Men want to take more parental leave,” Carol A. Lin, MD, MA, FAAOS, FACS, assistant professor and director of the geriatric fracture program in the department of orthopaedic surgery at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, told Healio.
In 2021, the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) released a policy that provided a minimum of 6 weeks of parental, caregiver and medical leave to trainees, which was followed in 2022 with the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) policy stating that the leave should be paid.
Lin and colleagues distributed surveys to interested orthopedic surgery trainees and practicing orthopedic surgeons who participated in the Collaborative Orthopaedic Educational Research Group. Overall, five ACGME-accredited programs participated. Of the 115 responses (42.8% response rate) received, 26% were from women and 74% were from men, with 56% trainees and 43% attending orthopedic surgeons represented in the respondents.
Lin and colleagues found 79% of respondents correctly answered a question about the specifics of the current ABMS leave policy, indicating familiarity with recent policy changes.
Women reported the ideal parental leave length was 10.7 weeks for the birthing parent, 6.2 weeks for the non-birthing parent and 8.2 weeks for the adoptive parent. Men responded the ideal parental leave should be 8 weeks for the birthing parent, 4.2 weeks for the non-birthing parent and 5 weeks for the adoptive parent.
Compared with the residents, attending physicians reported that the ideal parental leave length should be longer at 9.2 weeks for the birthing parent, 4.4 weeks for the non-birthing parent and 6.5 weeks for the adoptive parent, although the difference was not statistically significant.
Women took 9.6 weeks of parental leave, with attending physicians taking 9.9 weeks compared with 6 weeks for residents. Men overall took 1.5 weeks of leave, with attending physicians taking 1.7 weeks compared with 1.3 weeks for residents. Lin said 80% of respondents said they would have liked more time off for parental leave.
Lin and colleagues found 70.8% of men in practice responded that their workload increased in response to a colleague taking parental leave compared with 40% of women, although the difference was not statistically significant. Overall, 62.9% of men and 60% of women in training responded that their workload increased.
More than 80% of residents said there were supportive attitudes when a colleague took parental leave, which was also reported by the male attending physicians. Female attending physicians reported there was less support for colleagues who took parental leave.
Researchers found 53.5% of male trainees vs. 33.3% of female trainees reported they will not take full leave due to lack of precedence. The lack of precedence was slightly amplified among female attending physicians. Male attending physicians reported feeling that they were more able to take full parental leave.
“I think the stronger you can make these policies and the more supportive [they are], the better it will be for our trainees and the better it will be for long-term physician retention, and physician satisfaction and wellness,” Lin said.
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Lee CM, et al. Paper 398. Presented at: American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons Annual Meeting; Feb. 12-16, 2024; San Francisco.
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