The Interplay of Parental Leave, Career Achievement, and Burnout in Academic Neurologists: A Multicenter Study
Sima Patel1, Parneet Grewal2, Annie He3
1Department of Neurology, University of Minnesota, St. Louis Park, Minnesota, USA.
Background:
Despite the health benefits of parental leave (PL), many physicians in the United States take little to no PL. This issue is particularly pressing in academic neurology, which faces high burnout rates and a projected shortage. This study evaluated the impact of PL on career achievements and burnout in academic neurology.
Methods:
A cross-sectional survey of neurologists in 19 U.S. institutions measured PL experience, academic achievements, and burnout. Chi-squared test was used to assess for group differences in the two groups: PL/NoPL and in subgroups: men/women. General linear regression models were used to examine the association between PL, gender, achievements, and burnout.
Results:
Among 239 respondents with children, 74.8% of women and 28.6% of men took PL (87.9% of women and 97.3% of men took less than 6 weeks). Academic achievement measures were similar for those who took PL and those who did not (NoPL) with the exception of fewer awards in the PL group (mean 2.25 for PL and 6.21 for NoPL, p = 0.018). The PL group showed higher family-work conflict score (PL-score = 22.64, NoPL-score = 18.27, p < 0.001) and higher emotional exhaustion (PL 43.2%, NoPL 34.6%, p = 0.017) than the NoPL group. Emotional exhaustion was higher in women compared with men, despite higher weekly work hours in the PL group men (p = 0.021).
Conclusion:
Faculty who took PL did not have worse academic productivity compared with NoPL. But the PL group had higher levels of burnout and emotional exhaustion, especially in women, highlighting the need for support during and when returning from PL.
