Medical Careers and Motherhood: A Cross-Sectional Study of Hispanic Female Physicians

Abstract

Background One factor many women consider when choosing a medical specialty is the plan to have children and the compatibility of their chosen specialty with motherhood. Objective We surveyed Hispanic female physicians who are mothers to collect demographic information, specialty choice, childbearing, and professional and personal life characteristics, along with respondents' suggestions for female physicians who want to start a family, and how hospitals and medical institutions could enhance their support of female medical staff members with children. Methods The questionnaire was fielded on an online forum for Hispanic female physicians who are mothers. We summarized data by frequency and percentages, and means and standard deviations. Results Common medical specialties of respondents included pediatrics, family medicine, and obstetrics and gynecology, and 19% did not report a medical specialty. Most respondents were married (72%), had 1 or 2 children (89%), and worked at a public hospital 5 days a week (51%). Forty-four percent reported they slept 6 or more hours a night. Differences among specialties included dermatologists, radiologists, and gynecologists reporting working more than other specialties (6 to 7 days a week), psychiatrists reporting greater use of psychiatric medications, and anesthesiologists reporting lower rates of marriage. Female surgeons and emergency medicine physicians reported the highest consumption of alcohol. Conclusions The results offer initial insights into how medical specialty choice may affect female physicians' work-life balance and can be used to provide guidance to female learners who plan to have a family.

Motherhood and medicine: systematic review of the experiences of mothers who are doctors

“…The first was the effect of the responsibilities and preferences associated with pregnancy and parenthood on career motivation. Four studies found that motherhood did not reduce the motivation and ability of female doctors to return to work . A Dutch study found that female doctors who wanted or already had children remained motivated to work; a Swiss study found that 78 of 109 female doctors (72%) continued working more than half‐time after having children .…”

“…The second theme, derived from 17 quantitative studies (32 to 10 866 participants) 8,13,[19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][32][33][34] and one qualitative study (eight participants), 31 was the impact of being a mother on working as a doctor (Supporting Information, table 3).…”

“…Four studies found that motherhood did not reduce the motivation and ability of female doctors to return to work. 13,20,32,33 A Dutch study found that female doctors who wanted or already had children remained motivated to work; 33 a Swiss study found that 78 of 109 female doctors (72%) continued working more than half-time after having children. 32 Similar findings were reported by British 13 and Latin American studies 20 in which respectively 47% and 54% of female doctors sought work in family-friendly environments (generalist or primary care settings).…”

Recommendations for working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic (and beyond)

“…As some people might need help with tracking time, setting an alarm or using apps might be helpful. The combination of working from home and parenting has its own challenges, depending on the age of the child and the gender of the working parent [8][9][10]. Keep in mind that there are other activities in which you will have to invest your time, such as preparing food, taking care of children or cleaning.…”

Twelve Tips for Working from Home

“…As some people might need help with tracking time, setting an alarm or using apps might be helpful. The combination of working from home and parenting has their own challenges, depending on the stage of the child and the gender of the working parent (Lin & Burgard, 2018;Lopez-Leon, Del Valle, Salceda, Villegas-Pichardo, & Scosyrev, 2019;Ohu et al, 2019). Keep in mind that there are other activities in which you will have to invest your time, such as preparing food, taking care of children or cleaning.…”