Docs who wed docs work less, make more, are happier

PHILADELPHIA -- After 32 years of marriage and three children, Drs. Garry and Virginia Fuller don't talk much about medicine at home.

They met before medical school and say their anesthesiology specialty is only one of their common interests. Still, Garry Fuller said their marriage has endured because they have a greater understanding of each other's careers.

"You can say, `I saved this person's life last night.' And you're not bragging, but in a way you get some gratification because the person understands how hard it is to do," said Fuller, who lives near Pittsburgh. The medical profession can be fatal to marriages because of its long hours and high pressure. But a new study found it can be a boon in dual-doctor relationships because both physicians tend to work fewer hours, have a greater role in child-rearing and be happier about their shared professional experiences. "There are certainly benefits to being a physician married to another physician," said lead author Dr. Nancy Sobecks, who is married to a hematologist in Riverside, Ill. "Within my own family, we both feel like trying to balance career and family life is a much more difficult thing to do because of our profession. I probably work less hours... because we can financially." Which is what the study published Feb. 16 in the Annals of Internal Medicine found: Women in dual-doctor families are more likely than female doctors married to non-physicians to make professional sacrifices for their spouse, earn less money and arrange their work schedules to care for children. "I was most surprised that gender roles are still extremely strong descriptors of people's behavior. Men and women in medicine really are equal, but when they are married (to other doctors), women fall back on the same traditional roles," said study co-author C. Seth Landefeld, who is married to another physician, co-author Mary- Margaret Chren. They both work in San Francisco. The study originated as anecdotal talk between the authors -- all but one of whom are married to other doctors. "It seems as more and more women have entered the field of medicine, this is going on more and more," said Sobecks, who also co- wrote the report. She predicted that nearly half of all doctors will be married to other doctors in the near future. The study surveyed 1,208 physicians who graduated from medical school between 1980 and 1990. Of those, 22 percent of male physicians and 44 percent of female physicians were married to other physicians. The study found that both men and women in dual-doctor families had lower personal incomes than other doctors, suggesting that the dual-doctor families have greater leeway due to their greater combined income, Sobecks said. In addition, both male and female doctors in dual-doctor families had a greater share of child-rearing, although women still bore the brunt of those responsibilities. Dr. Maryellen Kyle said she has about 90 percent of the responsibility for raising her family's three daughters in Philadelphia. She said she chose to work in private practice to have a more flexible work schedule and, if anything, wishes she could work fewer hours. "This falls in the realm of common sense. It's the complicated choices working women make," said Kyle's husband, Dr. Rogers Kyle. "I would hope that my being in the same profession would make me more empathetic. ... But any career choices she made, I don't think I could have made a difference with. " Still, most dual-doctor couples agree their shared careers offer them support in a sometimes trying profession. "You can't take bad days out on the patient so you tend to bring them home with you," Garry Fuller said. "If you bring them home to someone who doesn't understand them, well, people can only take that for so long. But for us, she has a bad day, you have a bad day, and you understand."

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