Parenting, pregnancy and work–family balance in intensive care medicine: an ESICM survey and a call for action
Year: 2026
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Dear EditorThe Intensive Care Unit (ICU) is a demanding environment, characterized by unpredictable shifts and heavy cognitive and emotional loads.Burnout [1] and moral distress [2] are well described in ICU, yet their interaction with family life has been less frequently explored.Previous studies demonstrate a significant contribution of work-family conflicts to burnout among other medical specialties [3], but limited information is available among ICU workers.To fill this gap, the ESICM NEXT Committee, the N&AHP Committee and Diversity & Inclusion Group launched a survey to explore and describe workfamily balance and support to parenthood and pregnancy among ICU professionals. Support during pregnancy while working in the ICUAmong 192 respondents completing the pregnancy section, 61% continued working in the ICU during
Source: Intensive Care Medicine
Authors: Gaetano Scaramuzzo, Jekaterina Jagodzinska-Peškova, Giacomo Grasselli, the ESICM Work-Family Balance, Parenting and Pregnancy group, Khalid Abidi, Emilio Rodriguez-Ruiz, Kathryn Puxty, Charlotte Soulsby, Alessandro Galazzi, Margaret Herridge, Margo van Mol, Katerina Iliopoulou, Suzana Lobo, Pam Ramsay, Joel Alexandre, Inès Lakbar, Meryem Essafti, Elena Conoscenti, Guy Francois, Carole Boulanger, Marlies Ostermann, Jan De Waele
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $5,190
OpenAlex ID: W7136197896