Created Jan, 2013
Sarah Murphy
Setting up residency experience for time with a new baby:
This is written to apply mostly to female residents having a baby. However, there
are also options for taking time off as a partner of someone having a baby (See Baby
Bonding section below).
Ask yourself the question: Do I want to graduate right on time with my class?
Things to consider:
Your plans after residency
Life happens, your baby is only a newborn once
The impact on your schedule and that of your class (though the show will go
on without you for a few weeks to a few months)
Who will take care of baby when you go back to work, when are they
available?
If you want to graduate on time you can take 8 weeks off total:
You can stack your 4 weeks of vacation and 4 weeks of elective away either during
2nd or 3rd year to have 8 weeks off in a row with the baby. There is a requirement by
the Fam Med Board that you can’t miss more than 6 weeks of continuity clinic in a
row, but you can likely come back for one clinic in a week to count, then take the
rest of that week and 1 more off. It helps to buffer elective selective time around the
due date and after your 8 weeks is up to help ease the transition back, and provide
some flexibility as babies don’t often come right on time!
There is a way to get paid from the state of CA through the EDD program for
part of your time off during your vacation 4 weeks. See the below asterisk*
The 4-week elective away is a Maternity Elective, outlined by Tara Scott, with
readings on things pertaining to newborn care, breastfeeding, sleep, etc.
If you want more than 8 weeks off, you will need to extend residency by an amount
of time equal to that taken off; e.g.: if you want to be off for 12 weeks, you will need
to extend by 4 weeks. Implications include:
- The residency has to declare to the ACGME any time a resident extends for
any reason
- You have options on how you want to take this time (see below)
- You will likely still be able two walk with your class at graduation
- My experience is with extending for only a few weeks. If you desire to extend
by several months, you’ll need to speak with Jeff for specifics on how to do
this. Barbara Sinclair is a good resource for what a year like this might look
like, as she extended by 6 months when she had her baby in residency.
The different ways to take leave via benefits through the state of CA and Sutter:
If you take >8 weeks off, you can go on official “pregnancy disability” leave.
Created Jan, 2013
Sarah Murphy
Official Pregnancy Disability leave can be as long as 10-12 weeks at full pay. Then
there is an additional 6-12 weeks through Baby Bonding with your job and benefits
held (per the state of CA). See below:
A) Pregnancy Disability:
10-12 weeks:
- 4 weeks prior to due date
- 6 weeks after (vaginal delivery); 8 weeks after (c-section)
How you are paid:
~65% paid through the state EDD (Employment Development Department)
~35% through Sutter’s Extended Sick Leave (ESL) or your PTO (We pay into
ESL as employees of Sutter, but you have to accrue it, so whether or not you can take
this depends on how much you have). The first week of Preg Disability leave is a
waiting period from the state (so you don’t get paid for it via the state), but you can
use PTO to make up the 65% salary that first week and get paid your full salary. OR
you can opt to just use ESL and get paid only 35% of your salary that first week.
Week #2 EDD kicks in full.
* You can take the EDD pay without using ESL (either because you don’t have
enough ESL, or if you don’t want to take official leave that the residency has to
report). In that case the State through EDD pays ~65% of your salary, and your PTO
would make up the additional ~35%. The benefit to this is that you may not have to
extend residency, and you could collect EDD for the first 4 weeks of “vacation” time,
and only have to use 35% of your PTO. That way you could have more PTO to take
later in the year, or at graduation, get paid out for what you didn’t use. (Our PTO is
all from the same pot for vacation, sick leave, float days, etc.)
B) Baby bonding: 2-12 weeks long, you have to take in 2 week chunks, up to the 1st
year of the baby’s life. You can take a total of 12weeks. This is through CFRA (CA
Family Rights Act).
- First 6 weeks: partial pay baby bonding (~60% of your salary, paid by the state of
CA)
- Second 6 week: no pay baby bonding, but your job (and benefits, I think) are held.
Abbreviation Key:
EDD: Employment Development Department
ESL: Extended Sick Leave
PTO: Paid time off (the time we have for vacation, sick days and float days)
CFRA: CA Family Rights Act – allowing for 12 weeks of baby bonding, the first 6 paid
~60% salary, the 2nd 6 not paid but job protection
Contact through Sutter for disability related questions: (as of Jan, 2013)
Holly M. Hulsey
Disability Management Coordinator
North Div of the West Bay Region
ph (707) 576-4339
Created Jan, 2013
Sarah Murphy
fax (415) 369-1214
hulseyh@sutterhealth.org