Fellow wellness is a top priority within our fellowship training program.
Overview
In recent years we have implemented several interventions designed specifically to promote wellness within our fellowship community. Highlights include:
- Addition of a cardiac sonographer on-call every night, on weekends, and and holidays
- At the discretion of the on-call fellow, a sonographer is available to perform to perform echocardiograms both at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and Penn Presbyterian Medical Center
- On-call ride sharing provided through Uber
- All fellows have access to fellowship Uber account through which rides can be charged when on-call
- Regularly scheduled (pre-COVID 19 pandemic) fellowship class dinners and happy hours throughout the city of Philadelphia
- Access to the PennMedicineTogether wellness community and resources
Parenting and Fellowship Training
Fellowship is a busy time for growth of not only fellows' professional careers but can also be for fellows' families. Below are resources for information on parental leave as well as lactation.
Parental Leave
Female and male fellows may use up to 12 weeks of FMLA leave in any rolling 12-month period for the birth, placement for adoption, placement for foster care of a child, or for the house officer’s own serious health concern or the serious health concern of a family member. Of the available 12 weeks, 4 weeks are typically paid vacation, another 6 weeks are paid without moonlighting, and 2 weeks are unpaid FMLA (with benefits). Doing this means that graduation from the general CVD program would be based on ABIM approval of Deficits in Required Training Time policy (please refer to the ABIM Policies and Procedures on Canvas) and demonstration of competency as judged by the fellowship clinical competency committee. Only program directors may request that the ABIM apply the Deficits in Required Training Time policy on a trainee’s behalf. This request can only be made during the trainee’s final year of training. In general fellows do NOT need to extend training if they take 12 weeks for FMLA once during their fellowship.
Lactation
Our fellowship program and the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine are committed to supporting physician-mothers who continue to breastfeed after returning from maternity leave. Typically, a nursing mother needs 25-40-minute break every three to four hours, including time to get to and from lactation areas. In order to uphold patient care and clinical continuity, fellows will provide advance notice to their Program Director and attendings on appropriate services if they require time to pump. Fellows will be allowed to step away from clinical duties at reasonable intervals and before and after cases whenever possible during procedural rotations (cath, ECHO, EP). Fellows will be allowed to leave mandatory conferences for pumping if necessary. Fellows will not be discriminated against for taking time during the day to pump. Recognizing the challenges of pumping as a physician-mother, the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine continually seeks to promote a supportive environment and culture of breastfeeding for our physician mothers and their well-being.