Women will continue to drop out of academic medical careers unless medical schools and teaching hospitals create more part-time and family-friendly work schedules, according to a series of articles in the January issue of Academic Medicine, the journal of the Association of American Medical Colleges.

At a time when women make up nearly half of new physicians, concern is mounting over what some refer to as a leaking pipeline. Many women are either shying away from academic medicine or dropping out when the demands of juggling families and full-time careers are too great.

But female physicians aren’t the only ones who are opting for jobs today that allow them more time for families and personal interests. Work-life balance has become a primary consideration for a growing number of younger physicians in recent years, and a reason many have been shunning time-intensive careers in primary medicine.

The articles examine how female, part-time doctors and their male, full-time division chiefs view part-time work in academic medicine. They also look at obstacles women face in academic medicine, particularly when working part time. Some women report that they are taken less seriously and are less likely to be promoted or granted tenure if they work part time.

The authors conclude that part-time physicians often like their jobs more, are more productive, and get marks for performance and patient satisfaction that are similar to their full-time peers’ marks. Still, academic physicians are less likely to work part time than are physicians in community medicine, they report.

And that’s where they may defect unless new policies are developed, according to an article whose primary author is Rebecca A. Harrison, an associate professor of medicine at Oregon Health & Science University. “Academic medicine is at a crossroads,” she wrote. “Increasing numbers of clinicians desire part-time work and will opt out of academics if that option is not available, or if the barriers to part-time are too high.” —Katherine Mangan