Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To describe the experiences of female family physicians who practise obstetrics in balancing professional obligations with personal and family needs, given the unique challenges that such practice poses for these physicians. DESIGN: Qualitative study. SETTING: Ontario. PARTICIPANTS: A purposefully selected sample of nine female family physicians who met the criteria of being married, having children and currently practising obstetrics. OUTCOME MEASURES: Experiences of female family physicians and their strategies in their personal, family and professional lives that enable them to continue practising obstetrics. RESULTS: All participants continued to practise obstetrics because of the pleasure they derived from it, despite the challenges of balancing the unpredictable demands of obstetrics with their personal and family needs. To continue in obstetrics, they needed to make changes in their lives, either through a gradual, evolutionary process or in response to a critical event. Alterations to work and family arrangements permitted them to meet the challenges and led to increased satisfaction. Changes included making supportive call-group arrangements, limiting work hours and the number of births attended and securing help with household duties. CONCLUSIONS: An in-depth examination, through the use of qualitative methods, showed the reasons why some female family physicians continue to practise obstetrics despite the stressful aspects of doing so. This knowledge may be useful for women who are residents or experienced clinicians and who are considering including obstetrics in their practice.
Full text
PDF
Selected References
These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.
- Brown J. B. Female family doctors: their work and well-being. Fam Med. 1992 Nov-Dec;24(8):591–595. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Johnson F. A. Role strain in high-commitment career women. J Am Acad Psychoanal. 1976 Jan;4(1):13–36. doi: 10.1521/jaap.1.1976.4.1.13. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Petry L. J., Bobula J. A. Longitudinal teaching of obstetrics in family practice residency programs. Fam Med. 1987 May-Jun;19(3):195–199. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Smith M. A., Howard K. P. Choosing to do obstetrics in practice: factors affecting the decisions of third-year family practice residents. Fam Med. 1987 May-Jun;19(3):191–194. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Woodward C., Adams O. Physician resource databank: numbers, distribution and activities of Canada's physicians. Can Med Assoc J. 1985 May 15;132(10):1175-9, 1182-8. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]