Parental Leave for Residents and Pediatric Training Programs

Residency and fellowship are unique occupational time periods for many early career physicians, generally consisting of long duty hours. Many early career physicians have or are in the process of building their families during this time period. The literature suggests many medical and psychosocial benefits of protected parental leave for both parents and children, which necessitates parental leaves of absence. The Institutional Requirements of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education require training programs to provide written policies regarding leaves of absence, including parental leave, and these policies must comply with current legislation such as the Family Medical Leave Act. The length of leave has considerable variability among residency programs. This policy statement aims to navigate and outline the challenges of parental leave policies in training programs and to put forth recommendations to protect trainees and their families. The definition of families should also be expanded to include all types of families.