Doctor parents and childcare: the untold toll revealed

Securing childcare to cover the erratic and long working hours of medicine is a financial burden and a draining source of stress for doctor parents, an exclusive BMJ survey has found.

More than nine out of 10 (93%) of the 596 respondents have struggled to find suitable childcare for their work schedule. Many doctors describe trying to arrange childcare as one of the most stressful aspects of their lives. “The whole thing is a total nightmare,” one trainee doctor says. “I am seriously considering resigning based on the stress and cost of this alone.” Respondents describe struggles with on-call and overnight childcare, leaving work on time to reach nurseries or after-school clubs before they close, and the difficulties of managing school holidays and when their children are off sick.

For trainees, rotations add in an extra layer of pressure as moving hospitals can leave parents struggling to organise new care arrangements with little notice. Some respondents raise the specific problems for those in two doctor couples or those who are single parents. Three quarters (171, 74%) of the 231 junior doctors who responded to The BMJ’s snapshot survey say that childcare difficulties influence when they have children and how many children they might have.

Latifa Patel, BMA workforce lead, says that the overstretched NHS needs doctors who are parents more than ever, but balancing childcare and work is having a huge effect on medical staff. “These figures are disheartening and reflect the profound impact that inadequate childcare options, and eye wateringly high costs, are having on doctors and our families,” she says. “Juggling work responsibilities with the challenge of …