General Surgery Faculty Knowledge and Perceptions of Breast Pumping Amongst Postpartum Surgical Residents

Abstract

Background There is a lack of data regarding the knowledge and perceptions teaching faculty possess about breast pumping among general surgery residents despite breast pumping becoming more common during training. This study aimed to examine faculty knowledge and perceptions of breast pumping amongst general surgery residents. Methods A 29-question survey measuring knowledge and perceptions about breast pumping was administered online to United States teaching faculty from March–April 2022. Descriptive statistics were used to characterize responses, Fisher’s exact test was used to report differences in responses by surgeon sex and age, and qualitative analysis identified recurrent themes. Results 156 responses were analyzed; 58.6% were male and 41.4% were female, and the majority (63.5%) were less than 50 years old. Nearly all (97.7%) women with children breast pumped, while 75.3% of men with children had partners who pumped. Men more often than women indicated “I don’t know” when asked about frequency (24.7 vs. 7.9%, p = 0.041) and duration (25.0 vs. 9.5%, p = 0.007) of pumping. Nearly all surgeons are comfortable (97.4%) discussing lactation needs and support (98.1%) breast pumping, yet only two-thirds feel their institutions are supportive. Almost half (41.0%) of surgeons agreed that breast pumping does not impact operating room workflow. Recurring themes included normalizing breast pumping, creating change to better support residents, and communicating needs between all parties. Conclusions Teaching faculty may have supportive perceptions about breast pumping, but knowledge gaps may hinder greater levels of support. Opportunities exist for increased faculty education, communication, and policies to better support breast pumping residents.

Time to Increase Awareness of Breast Milk Pumping Among Postpartum Trainees and In‐Practice Surgeons

“…Another important issue is the duration of breastfeeding. Breastfeeding for more than 8 weeks decreases postpartum depression [3]. In this era of wellness and self-care, the duration of parental leave (highly variable on a global surgical perspective) may limit the trainee's ability to navigate return to work and coordinating breast pumping.…”

“…In this era of wellness and self-care, the duration of parental leave (highly variable on a global surgical perspective) may limit the trainee's ability to navigate return to work and coordinating breast pumping. Increasing the duration of parental leave may further support and encourage breastfeeding among surgical residents, and despite recent changes by the American Board of Surgery, further changes and increased flexibility are needed [3].…”

“…Again, guidelines support breastfeeding exclusively for the first 6 months postpartum and continued feeding for 1-2 years for the benefits to the infant and woman [2]. The current article entitled ''General Surgery Faculty Knowledge and Perceptions of Breast Pumping Amongst Postpartum Surgical Residents'' conducted a 29-question survey to understand the perceptions and knowledge regarding the capability/practicality to breast pump while at work [3]. The respondents, for the most part, either personally breastfed or the trainee's significant other did.…”

“…Surgical trainees may find it difficult to leave the operating suite to pump, especially if the facility is too distant from the operating room and there is inadequate storage availability. This in part may explain why trainees stop breastfeeding earlier than planned [3].…”