Many a person has concluded, “There is no good time to have children”. The reasoning is understandable, with myriad explanations: too young, not enough money, too many other things to accomplish (and experience), too busy, or too old.

For doctors, those pressures seem to intensify. Student debt is typically large, so becoming financially secure can take a long time. The additional pressure of vocational training—long days, shift work, postgraduate exams, a requirement to move city (and country) frequently, and the constant need to ‘prove’ yourself worthy of future consultant status, is tough to mix with family life. And on the other side, vocationally registered doctors still have many of those work pressures.

And yet we still have children…some of us must have found a workable solution!

NZMA guide for combining parenting and a medical career provides information, resources and personal experiences to make the process easier for doctors having children. We want to motivate people to make medicine and parenthood compatible, and we show you how others have achieved this.

It won’t be a walk in the park, but the doctors portrayed in this guide go a long way towards showing you that any time is a good time to have children—but you should plan for a busy time.

Dr Maria Poynter
Doctor, and mother to three children

Disclaimer

The NZMA has taken all reasonable care to ensure that the information contained in The NZMA guide for combining parenting and a medical career is accurate. However, no warranty or representation is given that the information and materials contained in it are complete or free from errors or inaccuracies. To the extent permitted by applicable laws, the NZMA accepts no liability for any loss or damages or expenses incurred by the reader or a third party in connection with the reader’s use of this Guide, or the copying or use of any information or material contained in or referred to in this Guide.