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

Parents with children flock to this clinic for primary care — and increasingly for food. —Bruce Finley, Denver Post, 23 Nov. 2025

One of the key messages from the JAMA article is that primary care clinicians caring for people with metabolic risk factors should be thinking about liver health and consider screening with noninvasive tools, rather than waiting until symptoms develop. —Katia Hetter, CNN Money, 21 Nov. 2025

Getting vaccinated in a pharmacy is especially helpful for people without primary care doctors or the time or money for a clinic visit. —Elizabeth Lanphier, The Conversation, 21 Nov. 2025

Koffman said people who carry risk factors for cognitive decline or who are particularly concerned about their brain health should speak with their primary care doctors, who can refer them to brain health specialists, like a neurologist. —Sandra Rose Salathe, Flow Space, 21 Nov. 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