Supporting Physician Pregnancy: What Is Taking So Long?

Challenges persist for female physicians and physicians in training who desire to have children. A scoping review in this issue of Academic Medicine identifies 4 major themes that have evolved over time and have surged in numbers as more women have entered the medical profession and as the sociopolitical environment has progressed: the impact of pregnancy on the physician and her colleagues, pregnant physician work productivity, physician maternity leave policies, and physician maternal-fetal health outcomes. The persistence of themes over time should compel the medical profession and society to address the challenges that face female physicians and physicians in training who desire to have children and to find solutions for them. Women should be able to be physicians, have children if they wish, and have the same health care considerations as nonphysician women. Institutional, departmental, and personal support structures must become a priority.