Study: Few surgical programs share parental leave policies online

In this interview, Avani Desai, an MD candidate at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, discusses findings from a study examining the public availability of parental leave policies across surgical residency programs in the United States.¹ The research focused on both institutional policies and program-specific parental leave guidelines across various surgical specialties. The study revealed that although 50% to 80% of programs had institutional policies publicly available, only 0% to 11% had program-specific policies accessible online. Alarmingly, 14% to 38% of programs had no identifiable parental leave policy at all.

Notably, policy availability varied by specialty, with urology leading in program-specific policies—yet still only at 11%. The study also identified factors positively associated with policy availability: Programs with a higher proportion of female faculty, larger program sizes, and unionization were significantly more likely to have any form of parental leave policy publicly accessible.

Desai emphasizes the real-world implications of this lack of transparency, particularly for prospective residents making critical application and ranking decisions. Prior research shows that over 60% of medical students consider parental leave policies as important when ranking programs, seeing them as indicators of institutional values and culture. The absence of clear, publicly available information leaves applicants unable to assess how parental leave might affect essential aspects of training, such as operative experience or board eligibility.

For current residents, although policies are often available internally, the lack of public documentation makes advance family planning difficult. Studies show that clearly written policies correlate with lower anxiety and increased feelings of institutional support. Desai underscores that enhancing transparency goes beyond regulatory compliance—it’s a matter of supporting residents’ well-being and allowing informed, confident decision-making for those considering or preparing for parenthood during residency.

REFERENCE

1. Desai A, Stivali T, Muir, C, Bethel E, Michel K, Smith, A. Variability in accessibility of residency parental leave policies across surgical specialties. Urology. 2025 Jul 15:S0090-4295(25)00695-8. doi:10.1016/j.urology.2025.07.015