Surgery · 2 h ago
Study Identifies Support Barriers After Pregnancy Loss in Surgical Training
A qualitative study used interviews and focus groups to examine pregnancy loss among female general surgery trainees and recent graduates. Participants described mental, physical and professional effects, as well as barriers to seeking support within training programs.
- Participants reported mental, physical and professional impacts.
- Five barriers to seeking support were identified.
- Findings inform proposed pregnancy-loss policies for training programs.
Researchers conducted semistructured focus groups and individual interviews between June and August 2025 with female general surgery trainees, surgical fellows and surgeons within five years of residency graduation who had experienced pregnancy loss during training. Recruitment was through targeted social media platforms; the source does not report the number of participants.
Participants described mental health, physical and professional impacts. Five barriers to seeking support emerged: concern about burdening colleagues, privacy and reputation concerns, guilt and isolation, and rigid training structures. Although fewer in number, facilitators to seeking support were described as beneficial. The researchers used these themes to identify gaps in program support and outline elements for a pregnancy-loss policy intended to reduce stigma, support trainee well-being and mitigate attrition. The qualitative findings reflect the experiences of the recruited participants and do not establish how common these barriers are across surgical training programs.
Is this summary clinically accurate?
Help fellow clinicians: your rating sends inaccurate summaries straight to our editors.
Sign in to rate this summary →Source
Annals of Surgery: Surgeon Perspectives on Pregnancy Loss ↗This is an automated AI-condensed summary that has not yet been reviewed by an editor. Always consult the full item at the original source.