Online Presence of OHNS Residency Parental Leave Policies in AAO-HNS Region 3
Graduate Level
Doctoral
Graduate Program/Concentration
Eastern Virginia Medical School - Medicine (MD)
Presentation Type
No Preference
Abstract
Introduction and Objective:
While the American Academy of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery (AAO-HNS) does not provide a standardized parental leave policy, otolaryngology head and neck surgery (OHNS) residents must adhere to the American Board for Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery (ABO-HNS) leave policy to maintain board eligibility. This ABO-HNS policy states: leave may not exceed six weeks in any one year except for one year during residency training, during which a resident can take parental, caregiver, or medical leave for up to six weeks with two additional vacation weeks for a total of eight weeks off. Even with this guideline, institutional policies play a critical role in supporting OHNS residents who are considering parenthood. Previous evaluations of parental leave policies often rely on program director surveys, which may introduce response bias and underreport policy accessibility. The objective of this study is to assess the availability and accessibility of OHNS residency parental leave policies via program websites in AAO-HNS Region 3, covering Virginia, West Virginia, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and the District of Columbia.
Methods:
A list of non-military OHNS residency programs within AAO-HNS Region 3 was compiled, totaling 18 programs. Each program's website was manually reviewed to determine the presence of a residency-specific parental leave policy or a link to a broader Graduate Medical Education (GME) parental leave policy. Data regarding the number of paid parental leave weeks and whether leave impacted sick or vacation days were recorded.
Results:
Among the 18 OHNS residency programs analyzed, 5 had program-specific parental leave policies available on their website, while 15 provided a link to their institution’s GME parental leave policy. The number of paid parental leave weeks ranged from 4 to 12, with a median of 6 weeks and an average of 7.2 weeks. Only 5 programs explicitly stated that parental leave was granted without requiring residents to use sick or vacation days.
Conclusions:
The majority of OHNS residency programs in AAO-HNS Region 3 do not make a program-specific parental leave policy publicly accessible on their website, though most reference their institutional GME policy. While this review may not capture internal policies that are robust but not available via public internet, making residency-specific parental leave policies easily accessible signals institutional commitment to supporting trainees and allows ENT residency applicants to obtain information discreetly.
Keywords
Paternity leave, Maternity leave, Formal paternity leave policy, Online, Otolaryngology training, Residency
Online Presence of OHNS Residency Parental Leave Policies in AAO-HNS Region 3
Introduction and Objective:
While the American Academy of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery (AAO-HNS) does not provide a standardized parental leave policy, otolaryngology head and neck surgery (OHNS) residents must adhere to the American Board for Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery (ABO-HNS) leave policy to maintain board eligibility. This ABO-HNS policy states: leave may not exceed six weeks in any one year except for one year during residency training, during which a resident can take parental, caregiver, or medical leave for up to six weeks with two additional vacation weeks for a total of eight weeks off. Even with this guideline, institutional policies play a critical role in supporting OHNS residents who are considering parenthood. Previous evaluations of parental leave policies often rely on program director surveys, which may introduce response bias and underreport policy accessibility. The objective of this study is to assess the availability and accessibility of OHNS residency parental leave policies via program websites in AAO-HNS Region 3, covering Virginia, West Virginia, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and the District of Columbia.
Methods:
A list of non-military OHNS residency programs within AAO-HNS Region 3 was compiled, totaling 18 programs. Each program's website was manually reviewed to determine the presence of a residency-specific parental leave policy or a link to a broader Graduate Medical Education (GME) parental leave policy. Data regarding the number of paid parental leave weeks and whether leave impacted sick or vacation days were recorded.
Results:
Among the 18 OHNS residency programs analyzed, 5 had program-specific parental leave policies available on their website, while 15 provided a link to their institution’s GME parental leave policy. The number of paid parental leave weeks ranged from 4 to 12, with a median of 6 weeks and an average of 7.2 weeks. Only 5 programs explicitly stated that parental leave was granted without requiring residents to use sick or vacation days.
Conclusions:
The majority of OHNS residency programs in AAO-HNS Region 3 do not make a program-specific parental leave policy publicly accessible on their website, though most reference their institutional GME policy. While this review may not capture internal policies that are robust but not available via public internet, making residency-specific parental leave policies easily accessible signals institutional commitment to supporting trainees and allows ENT residency applicants to obtain information discreetly.