Novel parenting elective allows pediatric residents to spend more time with their babies

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A novel, four-week parenting rotation designed for pediatric residents has dramatically increased the amount of time resident parents can spend at home with their babies, according to a study by researchers at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. The elective, created in 2010 by physicians at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, was set up to address the lack of maternity leave for doctors in residency programs, a time when many get pregnant. The new study, published this week in the journal Academic Pediatrics , is the first to examine the results of the program. When we first created this elective, our residents had to take vacation days, about four weeks, if they wanted time off with their newborns. Some took unpaid Family and Medical Leave combined with vacation time. For some, this meant not being able to pay back student loans. Others faced career setbacks." Dr. Melanie Cree-Green, MD, Ph.D., study's first author, pediatric endocrinologist and assistant professor at the CU School of Medicine Working with her father, Jonathan Cree, MD, MA, a family medicine residency program director, and fellow physicians at CU Anschutz, including Adam Rosenberg, MD, CU pediatric residency program director, Cree-Green created an at-home, non-core elective that turned the experience of parenting into a structured training experience for residents. "When Melanie approached me about this, it seemed the right thing to do," said Rosenberg. "It was a win-win situation. Now our goal is to expand our efforts to insure all of our trainees 12 weeks of paid leave." Cree-Green, who also works at the Center for Women's Health Research at CU Anschutz, said her aim was to increase paid time at home for new parents, "while capitalizing on the experience of parenting as a unique educational opportunity for residents." The elective, approved by the pediatric residency curriculum committee, included the following: 1) reading five articles on neonatal subjects including rashes, circumcision, maternal depression and lactation. 2) Preparing a presentation for other pediatric residents on some aspect of pediatrics they learned as a parent. 3) Reviewing a popular parenting book. 4) Attending a well-child check, a breastfeeding consultation visit. 5) Writing an essay from the perspective of a parent on how such visits might change their approach as a physician. Related Stories