ABSTRACT
Autonomy appears to be the basis for the demand for informed consent, Patients' autonomy is also, the basis of the move to demystify medicine and make the patient a partner in his or her care. The author believes that the function of medicine is to preserve autonomy and that preservation of life is neither primary nor secondary but rather subservient to the primary goal. This issue is further confused because in the last few centuries of the history of medicine, the underlying focus of medicine has been the preservation of the body and biological life. If biological life is medicine's goal then the patient should be kept alive as long as possible. If the preservation of autonomy is the goal of medicine then one must do everything possible to maintain the integrity of the person in the face of death. Autonomy is exercised in relation to others.
