When doctors marry doctors: A survey exploring the professional and familylives of young physicians

Background: Soon, half of all physicians may be married to other physicians (that is, in dual-doctor families). Little is known about how marriage to another physician affects physicians themselves. Objective: To learn how physicians in dual-doctor families differ from othe r physicians in their professional and family lives and in their perception s of career and family. Design: Cross-sectional survey. Setting: Two medical schools in Ohio. Participants: A random sample of physicians from the classes of 1980 to 199 0. Measurements: Responses to a questionnaire on hours worked, income, number of children, child-rearing arrangements, and perceptions about work and fam ily. Results: Of 2000 eligible physicians, 1208 responded (752 men and 456 women ). Twenty-two percent of male physicians and 44% of female physicians were married to physicians (P < 0.002). Men and women in dual-doctor families di ffered (P < 0.001) from other married physicians in key aspects of their pr ofessional and family lives: They earned less money, less often felt that t heir career took precedence over their spouse's career, and more often play ed a major role in child-rearing. These differences were greater for female physicians than for male physicians. Men and women in dual-doctor families were similar to other physicians in the frequency with which they achieved career goa Is and goats for their children and with which they felt confli ct between professional and family roles. Marriage to another physician had distinct benefits (P < 0.001) for both men and women, including more frequ ent enjoyment from shared work interests and higher family incomes. Conclusions: Men and women in dual-doctor families differed from other phys icians in many aspects of their professional and family lives, but they ach ieved their career and family goals as frequently. These differences reflec t personal choices that will increasingly affect the profession as more phy sicians marry physicians.