Reproductive Planning Among Fellowship-Trained Minimally Invasive Gynecologic Surgeons

The objective of this study was to examine the impact of the American Association of Gynecologic Laparoscopists (AAGL) Fellowship in Minimally Invasive Gynecologic Surgery (FMIGS) parental leave policy on past and current fellowship trainees and to characterize factors that influenced family-building decisions.

After receiving human subjects research exemption by the Institutional Review Board, an electronic survey was distributed by FMIGS/AAGL via email to all eligible participants between August 2024 and September 2024.

This study was conducted utilizing a web-based survey platform.

Past and current fellows of FMIGS programs were eligible for participation.

The survey instrument consisted of 4 sections: introduction/consent, demographics, reproductive planning/obstetric history, and reproductive planning considerations.

Approximately 500 individuals received the survey, and 200 respondents (40%) provided complete survey data. The highest percentage of respondents were age 30 to 34 (39.2%), identified their biological sex as female (83.3%), and their gender identify as woman (82.0%). The majority of respondents reported that their family-building plans were impacted by their training/career path (86.1%), with over 80% reporting that they delayed family-building secondary to training. The most important factors influencing family-building during fellowship were a desire to focus on career goals, availability of childcare, and lack of time/schedule flexibility. Most respondents identified 12 weeks as the ideal amount of paid parental leave (44.3%).

Ongoing training remains a significant factor that contributes to delays in family-building among FMIGS trainees and graduates. Perceived barriers include lack of time, schedule flexibility and limited access to childcare.