Abstract

At the beginning of the 21st Century, the achievements of medicine as well as the accomplishments of scientific and technological civilization are obvious to everyone. Today, many illnesses can be treated far more precisely than in the past. Therapies allow patients to lead a self-determined and fulfilled life again. Nevertheless there remains an uneasiness that something is being short-changed, that we are lacking something. Since the middle of the 19th century, the scientific character of medicine has been emphasized in a special way. Medicine wants to be regarded especially as one of the emerging natural sciences. Its emphasis on experimentation is becoming more important. The paper discusses the question of what is the essence of medicine actually, or what it should be, and what follows from this for how physicians should act. We are not concerned about alternatives to the scientific and technical side of medicine, but about a larger field of view. We are discussing this here in seven steps that involve systematic and historical perspectives from the history of philosophy and medicine. The patient is not just "a case" or "a number" in the hospital ward or an entry on an index card in a medical practice, not just an object. The concrete patient must be at the centre. The patient's concerns must be heard. The guideline for medicine that is understood as medical art cannot be just a look at efficiency and feasibility. Medical art is an educational process: a spiritual forming of individuals that requires time and cannot be switched on by the touch of a button. It does not simply mean the memorization of medical study materials, but the process of human maturation to become a true companion to the patient in an existentially challenging situation.