As one who has practiced medicine for almost 35 years and who has had a long interest in meteorology, I have come to recognize a number of similarities between the two professions. Members of both disciplines tend to have a high level of enthusiasm for their careers, are devoted to protecting the public from natural forces and accept the fact that 24/7 service comes with the territory.
Yet, both physicians and meteorologists practice inexact sciences, forcing them to make educated guesses on a regular basis. This fact does not escape the scrutiny of the general public and, as a consequence, some individuals are loathe to accept their recommendations. For example, efforts by physicians to eliminate tobacco use, excessive alcohol consumption and obesity are often impaired by a patient's awareness of friends or relatives who lived long lives despite these habits. In like manner, the warnings of meteorologists regarding hurricanes, tornadoes, floods and blizzards often go unheeded, especially by individuals who have successfully dodged such events in the past.
In the end, the power of persuasion comes down to trust and, despite technological advancements, it is essential that both professions admit to the limited accuracy of their current knowledge and projections. In this respect, physicians, perhaps for legal reasons, seem to have become more resistant to make definite predictions of future outcomes while meteorologists, tied closely to the media, continue to entertain (and sometimes deceive) the public with long range forecasts.
