A recent survey of 1,044 U.S. doctors found that 76 percent believe in God, 59 percent believe in some sort of afterlife, and 55 percent said their religious beliefs influence how they practice medicine. The study, which is based on answers to questionnaires mailed in 2003, will appear in the July 2005 issue of the Journal of General Internal Medicine. A previous survey showed that 83 percent of the general population believes in God.

The research also revealed that 90 percent of doctors attend religious services at least once a month compared with 81 percent of their patients. In addition, the study showed that the religious beliefs of doctors are more diverse than the general population. For example, 14 percent are Jewish vs. two percent of nondoctors; five percent are Hindu vs. one percent of nondoctors, and three percent are Muslim vs. less than one percent of nondoctors. Only 60 percent of the physicians who responded to the survey described themselves as Protestant or Catholic, compared to 80 percent of patients who describe themselves that way.

Source: The Pastor’s Weekly Briefing, July 8, 2005