Exploring the dual-physician marriage

A substantial number of female physicians marry fellow doctors, yet little is known about these dual-physician couples. In an effort to identify these couples, surveys were sent to 1,695 female physician members of the Minnesota Medical Association. Women who were or had been married to a physician were asked to complete the survey. The majority of women responding (n = 203) were between the ages of 36 and 45 and had married during medical school. Only a small percentage (11.3%) were divorced, and medicine was reported to play a role in 69.6% of those separations. Questions were asked regarding work and family life, and job satisfaction levels. Despite many positive responses to the questionnaire, some problems existed in these marriages. Overall, however, responses indicated that the advantages of being married to another physician for outweigh the disadvantages.