L. Gaghan is a medical student, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2412-9290 .
B.-T. Parker is a medical student, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9430-1765 .
Acad Med. 2022 Jul 1;97(7):994-998. doi: 10.1097/ACM.0000000000004577. Epub 2022 Jun 23.
Most medical schools lack parental leave policies, leaving medical students vulnerable to discrimination, diminished educational opportunities, delays in graduation or matching, and breaches of privacy. This report outlines the steps taken by student-leaders to advocate for such a policy and the lessons learned along the way.
In September 2018, leaders of the Family Support Initiative, a medical student interest group at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine, initiated the process of advocating for a clear, official parental leave policy. Certain elements proved essential in bringing about institutional change, including active involvement of a faculty advocate; well-documented student testimonials; commitment from top administrative leaders; involvement of the Title IX office and legal counsel; creating space for authentic collaboration; building clear, flexible mechanisms for making up missed time; and consideration of preclinical training and regional campuses.
The Education Committee unanimously approved the New Child Adjustment Policy in June 2019. The policy was published online; shared broadly in various formats with students, faculty, and members of the university health system; and announced at class meetings and new student orientations. Faculty advisors were trained on its content and procedures. Administrators and students report that the policy has informed their discussions around family planning and made these conversations easier to navigate.
The process model outlined here is intended to serve as a roadmap for other institutions. While student input should inform the development of parental leave policies, institutions are morally and ethically responsible for providing parental leave policies that address the key components outlined here. The authors will further study the impact of this policy on student satisfaction and academic performance. The authors urge the Liaison Committee on Medical Education and Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation to make clear, inclusive, student-centered parental leave policies a requirement for accreditation.
大多数医学院校缺乏育儿假政策，这使得医学生容易受到歧视、教育机会减少、毕业或匹配延迟以及侵犯隐私等问题的影响。本报告概述了学生领袖为倡导此类政策而采取的步骤以及在此过程中吸取的教训。
2018 年 9 月，北卡罗来纳大学医学院学生兴趣小组“家庭支持倡议”的领导人启动了倡导明确、正式育儿假政策的进程。某些要素对于实现机构变革至关重要，包括：一位教师倡导者的积极参与；详细记录的学生证词；高层行政领导的承诺；涉及 TitleIX 办公室和法律顾问；为真实协作创造空间；建立明确、灵活的机制来弥补错过的时间；以及考虑临床前培训和地区校区。
2019 年 6 月，教育委员会一致批准了新的儿童调整政策。该政策在网上公布；以各种格式广泛分享给学生、教师和大学卫生系统的成员；并在班会和新生迎新会上宣布。为教师顾问提供了有关其内容和程序的培训。行政人员和学生报告称，该政策为他们的家庭计划讨论提供了信息，并使这些讨论更容易进行。
这里概述的流程模型旨在为其他机构提供指导。虽然学生的意见应该为育儿假政策的制定提供信息，但机构在提供解决这里概述的关键要素的育儿假政策方面负有道德和伦理责任。作者将进一步研究该政策对学生满意度和学业成绩的影响。作者敦促医学教育联络委员会和骨科学院认证委员会明确、包容、以学生为中心的育儿假政策作为认证的要求。
