JAMA
Practical supports cut postpartum burnout in physician trainees
Clinical Takeaway: Targeted parental support during pregnancy and postpartum can protect childbearing trainees from the worst of burnout, with a particular effect on staying connected to colleagues and patients. The package is scalable and inexpensive enough for most training programs to consider.
Childbearing physicians in training carry risks that more senior physicians do not: stigma around taking parental leave, limited workplace support, the physical demands of pregnancy and breastfeeding, and a sudden shift in home responsibilities, all on top of clinical training. This trial tested whether a pragmatic, multi-component support package could blunt the burnout that often follows.
The study enrolled 143 pregnant residents and fellows across seven northeastern U.S. training institutions and followed them from early pregnancy through 24 weeks postpartum. Participants were randomized to receive either the support package or usual support. The package included a smart bassinet, a wearable breast pump, virtual perinatal support, and formal faculty mentorship.
From early pregnancy to 24 weeks postpartum, trainees who received the support package showed almost no change in their burnout scores, while those getting usual support saw a steep rise. By the end of the study, the gap between the two groups was clinically meaningful.
The effect was driven by interpersonal disengagement, not emotional exhaustion. Trainees who got the package stayed more connected to colleagues and patients, but their fatigue levels were not significantly different from those of the usual-care group. The intervention worked by protecting relationships, not by reducing tiredness, an unusual signature for a burnout intervention and a clinically interesting one.
The intervention cost roughly $2,300 per participant, compared to an estimated $7,600 in lost productivity and turnover costs per burned-out physician. That math is part of what makes the finding actionable. Most burnout interventions target individual coping strategies, but this one targets concrete logistical and structural barriers (overnight infant care, pumping while on shift, navigating perinatal care, finding senior mentors who have done this), and the cost is low enough that institutions can plausibly adopt it.
"This is the first evidence that pragmatic support for physician trainees after the birth of a child can help reduce burnout and have a strong return on investment," said lead author Erika Rangel, MD, an acute care surgeon and medical director for Well-Being, Surgical and Perioperative Services at Mass General Brigham.
Source: Rubio-Chavez A. JAMA. 2026 May 13. Pragmatic Parental Support to Mitigate Burnout Among Pregnant and Postpartum Trainees: A Randomized Clinical Trial