[The patient throughout history since Hippokrates].

Throughout history, the patient's dependency on the social group in which he or she happens to be born, has remained unchanged. The period in the 19th to the 20th century, during which the authority of physicians over patients grew markedly, seems to have passed. As in the classical period, a wealthy western patient is again able to choose the most suitable one from the healthcare service providers. Since the 18th century medicine and religion have diverged from each other in the life of a western patient. The decisive position of the medical industry towards the end of the 20th century is a new phenomenon in the history of patient.