primary care

American  

noun

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

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Other Word Forms

• primary-care
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of primary care

First recorded in 1970–75

Example Sentences

For the most part, the system already had the endocrinologists, nephrologists and primary care physicians it needed.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 14, 2026

The work was carried out in more than 100 primary care centers within Spain's National Health System.

From Science Daily • May 19, 2026

The number of doctors the U.S. can add a year is limited by available residency slots, and many newly minted MDs often bypass primary care in favor of higher-paying specialties.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 16, 2026

The changes are even more pronounced in primary care: Nearly half of doctors’ offices are now private, and tech upstarts are disrupting the sector.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 12, 2026

We’ve had people come in saying they want to sue some specialist, and we’ll say, ‘We don’t think that doctor was negligent. We think it’s your primary care doctor who was at fault.’

From "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell