Parenting and Motherhood in Academic and Clinical Medicine
摘要
Demographic change and skilled worker shortage have brought attention to the challenges of balancing motherhood and professional advancement in academic and clinical medicine. Despite the growing number of female physicians, structural and institutional barriers persist, disproportionately affecting mother physicians. The COVID-19 pandemic further exposed gender disparities, with increased caregiving responsibilities leading to reduced research output and career progression. Discriminatory workplace policies, lack of mentorship, and limited parental leave and childcare options exacerbate these challenges, leading to career dissatisfaction and high rates of burnout. Addressing these issues requires systemic changes, including a cultural shift toward a supportive work environment with family-friendly policies, mentorship programs, flexible scheduling, improved parental leave and reentry structures, flexible specialty training opportunities, and high-quality childcare. This chapter presents strategies allowing for a better compatibility of paid employment and family life for parent physicians, particularly mothers, emphasizing the need for institutional and policy reforms. Strengthening parent physicians in medicine with a focus on the special needs of mother physicians is essential for their professional and personal well-being, workforce retention, and with it conducing to a successful healthcare system. Radiology, with its potential for remote work and flexible scheduling, exemplifies a specialty that could lead to promoting work–life integration.