primary care

noun

: health care provided by a medical professional (such as a general practitioner, pediatrician, or nurse) with whom a patient has initial contact and by whom the patient may be referred to a specialist

—often used before another noun

a primary care physician

called also primary health care

compare secondary care, tertiary care

Examples of primary care in a Sentence

He provides primary care to inner-city patients.

Recent Examples on the Web

Imagine a dentist flagging genetic markers during a routine visit or a primary care physician conducting a real-time cancer screen. —Mariya Filipova, Forbes, 3 Mar. 2025

She was given a neurology referral, but in the meantime her primary care physician gave her magnesium supplements. —Dan Perry, Newsweek, 1 Mar. 2025

Either an oncologist or a primary care physician may be the one to bring up genetic testing options. —The Washington Post, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 Feb. 2025

The proposal would also set a minimum payment level for primary care and behavioral health services — to better shore up providers working in those fields — while directing savings from the reimbursement caps to beleaguered frontline clinics. —Seth Klamann, The Denver Post, 5 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1967, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for primary care

• concessionaire
• abwehr
• affair
• affaire
• airfare
• altair
• armchair
• aware
• beware
• bugbear
• carfare
• childcare

Medical Definition

primary care

noun

: health care provided by a medical professional (as a general practitioner or a pediatrician) with whom a patient has initial contact and by whom the patient may be referred to a specialist for further treatment

—often used attributively

primary care physicians

primary care practice

primary care medicine

called also primary health care

compare secondary care, tertiary care