Common wisdom may lead to the assumption that doctors are ripe for divorce. After all, they tend to work long hours and experience a high level of stress on the job. Certain doctors, like ER physicians and gynecologists, may need to rush off to work in the middle of the night to save a life or bring a new one into the world. It makes sense that the doctor divorce rate would be high.
That’s why it’s surprising that a study published in the BMJ found that doctor divorce rates are lower than almost all other medical care workers and significantly lower than the general public. The authors of the report conducted surveys of 200,000 healthcare practitioners, including over 40,000 physicians between 2008 and 2013. They found that physicians experienced a divorce rate of 24 percent, whereas 31 percent of healthcare executives and 33 percent of nurses experienced divorce. This compares to a general 35 percent divorce rate among the general public.