A letter published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology examines data from the 2019 Cardiovascular Disease Program Director Survey and addresses parental leave in cardiovascular disease training programs.

The authors highlight the need to clarify parental leave policies, develop shared parental leave models, encourage program support, and emphasize parental wellness in order to improve diversity and wellness within the specialty.

Of note, the survey found a higher percentage of small programs had no fellows take parental leave in the last three years and that in programs where fellows have taken leave, 51% of women took less than two months and 79% of men took one to three weeks.

"Creatively utilizing coverage resources, allowing flexible scheduling, and creating a supportive culture can minimize pressure fellows may feel to take less parental leave than they would otherwise choose," write the authors. Read more.