primary care

See more synonyms for primary care on Thesaurus.com

noun

medical care by a physician, or other health-care professional, who is the patient's first contact with the health-care system and who may recommend a specialist if necessary.

Origin of primary care

First recorded in 1970–75

Related formspri·mary-care, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for primary care

Contemporary Examples of primary care

He says the psychiatric resident did ask her to see her primary-care physician.
Why House Stenographer Dianne Reidy Snapped
Michael Daly
October 17, 2013
With Obamacare on the horizon and a growing shortage of primary-care physicians rising fast, nurses could fill the void.
Nurse Practitioners Playing Doctor More Often
Daniela Drake
May 27, 2013
The work is ceaseless and routine to the point of tedium—and almost half of primary-care physicians are burnt out.
Nurse Practitioners Playing Doctor More Often
Daniela Drake
May 27, 2013
Incredibly, there is much more money flagged for that goal than for easing the critical shortage of primary-care physicians.
Health Care's Next Crisis
Dr. Abraham Verghese
March 24, 2009

primary care in Medicine

primary care

n.

The initial medical care given by a health care provider to a patient, especially as part of regular, ambulatory care, and sometimes followed by referral to other medical providers.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.