Nearly three-fourths of female physicians with children said they did not receive an adequate amount of maternity leave, according to research published in JAMA Network Open.
Researchers surveyed 844 physician mothers in 18 different specialties via an online poll between Sept. 2 and Dec. 20, 2018.
Four survey findings:
1. Seventy-three percent of physician mothers said they felt like they did not receive enough maternity leave.
2. The majority (89 percent) said they would have preferred 11 to 24 weeks of maternity leave, compared to the five to 12 weeks commonly offered.
3. Once physician mothers returned to work after having their first child, the most common complaints were:
- Lack of facilities for breast pumping — 32.2 percent
- Limited time for breast pumping — 48.2 percent
- Difficulty obtaining childcare — 35.3 percent
- Discrimination — 18 percent
4. The most common positive experience physician mothers reported was emotional support from colleagues (59.7 percent).
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