Healthcare Workers' Perceptions of On-Site Childcare

Abstract

Goal: Measures taken by healthcare organizations to address COVID-19 highlighted the long-standing lack of childcare infrastructure required to support healthcare workers. This study, designed to provide evidence to support operations at an academic medical center, looked at the influence that in-house and emergency childcare could have on the retention, recruitment, and productivity of healthcare workers. This study also outlined the implications that childcare, or its lack, has for healthcare organizations during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: We conducted a 35-question electronic employee survey (under institutional review board approval) during pandemic-induced public school closures, which included both quantitative and qualitative (write-in) questions. Principal Findings: The survey results showed that weekday on-site childcare was very or extremely important to more than half of survey respondents, the majority of whom were staff members (28%) or physicians (25%), followed by administrators (15%), researchers (12%), others (10%), nurses (5%), educators (2%), and residents (1%). Sixty percent of respondents reported that emergency on-site childcare was extremely important (34%) or very important (26%). Almost half (49%) reported that emergency childcare needs have disrupted their work in the past year, including canceling of clinics or surgical cases. Analysis of qualitative comments via a strategy based on coding and categorization showed that, when asked how childcare influences their work choices, employees responded that childcare availability has limited the hours or times they could work, that lack of childcare has prevented career growth, that they left a previous job or will leave their current job because of childcare needs, or that they stayed at a previous job or have remained in their current job longer because of the availability of childcare. Practical Applications: Although data from this mixed-methods study support findings in the literature that there is a need for in-house and emergency childcare, the data suggest that current employees at this academic medical center do not currently expect it, likely because such childcare is not generally available at most academic institutions. With increased rates of burnout and healthcare workers leaving the field since COVID-19, offering in-house and emergency childcare provides hospital systems with new opportunities to retain and recruit physicians, nurses, and staff, as well as to improve their well-being and productivity.

Still Exhausted: The Role of Residual Caregiving Fatigue on Women in Medicine and Science Across the Pipeline

“…Given the association of perceived organizational support with exhaustion and the well-demonstrated negative emotional, financial, and patient care–associated impacts of a burned-out workforce, health care organizations must carefully evaluate their current state and consider mechanisms for improvement. One approach to decreasing caregiving stressors is to ensure the availability of on-site childcare, which is very important to health care workers, particularly for emergency caregiving needs [ 7 ]. Other options include home-based childcare and eldercare services, concierge services and school break camps, and paid parental and sick leave, which can also be used for eldercare responsibilities.…”

“…With increases in patient volume and the closing of child and adult care facilities, women in the health care field experienced a disproportionate increase in their professional and personal caregiving and reported feeling that there was not enough support for them to care for their families from their organizations [ 2 ]. In a recent study, 49% of health care workers reported that emergency childcare needs disrupted their work, including canceled clinics and surgeries [ 7 ].…”

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“…It has been supported in American Medical Association policy, and there is great interest in this concept 4,5 . However, still a very small number of hospitals o er these kinds of programs currently in Canada 6 . ere is a lack of supportive studies on the topic of childcare for healthcare providers which would serve to motivate development of initiatives that could impart bene t. Investigations may additionally highlight the impact of the stress that is associated with insucient childcare support, particularly so in Canada.…”