What Are Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Levels of Care?

Updated March 10, 2023

In the medical industry, there are three levels of care called primary, secondary and tertiary care and the terms help patients and healthcare professionals navigate the medical system more easily. Each categorizes the seriousness or complexity of the illness or condition and the type of treatment or medical professional involved. Knowing more about the three levels of care can help you develop skilled capabilities for a role in healthcare. In this article, we explore what the different levels of care are, including primary, secondary and tertiary, to help you better understand if a medical career is right for you.Related: Why Work in Health Care? 8 Reasons To Consider a Career in Health Care

What are the different levels of patient care?

There are three different levels of patient care referred to in the medical industry, categorized as:

Primary care: The primary care level often includes everyday healthcare, given by general doctors and nurses at a physician's office who act as the first contact with a patient for non-emergency situations.
Secondary care: The secondary care level refers to health services given by specialized medical professionals who are typically the second contact with a patient, often referred from the primary care provider.
Tertiary care: The tertiary care level is for extremely specialized care over a short or extended period involving complex and advanced equipment, treatment or procedures, often for severe or life-threatening conditions.

The primary, secondary and tertiary levels of care categorize most medical needs within the healthcare system, though within those categorizations are other common elements of care, like:

Emergency care: Treats injuries and illnesses that need immediate and acute attention, frequently in a hospital's emergency room.
Urgent care: Focuses on ambulatory care in a walk-in clinic setting for non-life-threatening emergencies.
Long-term care: Handles the care for those with disabilities or chronic conditions who cannot take care of themselves effectively or for long periods.
Mental health care: Concentrates on the mental well-being of patients with mental disorders in an ambulatory setting.
Hospice care: Centers on keeping terminally ill patients comfortable during the end of life.

What is primary care?

Primary care is the first and most frequent level of care for medical concerns, illnesses, conditions, symptoms or non-life-threatening emergencies. Many people recognize and understand primary care, often as a family doctor or general practitioner, and you go to them when you're sick or are experiencing healthcare issues. Primary care providers (PCP) assess your general health during annual physicals or scheduled visits to diagnose common conditions and illnesses and handle other personal healthcare concerns like:

Skin rashes
Broken bones
Colds
Flu
Allergies
Weight control issues
Virus or bacteria illnesses
Reproductive health
Wellness screenings
Immunizations
Preventative care
Stress management
Sleep and exercise concerns
Disease prevention and maintenance

Primary health care providers are important because they often offer improved access to healthcare services, increased education about well-being and often decrease the number of emergency room visits or hospitalizations in a community. They also help coordinate your care with specialists or higher levels of care when needed, typically through referrals. Primary care physicians treat minor illnesses, perform health checkups and routine tests, answer your medical questions and keep records related to your overall health and wellness. PCPs are general healthcare professionals or those who specifically care for a certain group of people and can include:

Doctors
Pediatricians
Geriatricians
Obstetrician
Gynecologist
Internal medicine physicians
Nurses
Nurse practitioners
Physician assistants

Many health insurance companies require you to have a primary health provider for basic healthcare needs. Because there are so many types of doctors who offer different types and levels of care, you most often see a primary care provider first to assess and review a medical concern before being recommended to relevant doctors or specialists.Related: What Is a Physician? Your Guide to Physician Careers

What is secondary care?

Secondary care is a more specialized level of care, often by doctors who have certain expertise. This can be for a specific part or system of the body or a specific disease, illness or condition. For example, oncologists are doctors with a trained specialty in treating cancers, and many have further specialties in a specific type of cancer, like breast cancer, lung cancer or skin cancer. Cardiologists practice exclusively on heart conditions and abnormalities. And dermatologists work with various skin issues, like acne, psoriasis, eczema and other conditions. Other examples of secondary care doctors include:

Allergists: Allergists treat allergic diseases and conditions, like hives, asthma or medicinal allergies.
Infectious disease doctors: Infectious disease doctors specialize in the treatment of contagious diseases like pneumonia, cellulitis, influenza and post-surgery infections.
Ophthalmologists: Ophthalmologists are doctors who specialize in vision and eye care, including routine eye exams, eye surgeries and eye conditions or diseases.
Endocrinologists: Endocrinologists focus on the endocrine system of hormones and glands to treat things like thyroid conditions, infertility or hormonal imbalances.
Gastroenterologists: Gastroenterologists treat the digestive system, including the esophagus, pancreas, colon, gallbladder, intestine, stomach and liver.
Nephrologists: Nephrologists care for kidneys and kidney conditions like renal failure, lupus, kidney stones, hypertension and more. They also perform dialysis and transplants.
Neurologists: Neurologists are doctors who specialize in conditions of the spine, nerves and brain, often performing surgery and treating conditions like migraines, stroke, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis and Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases.
Urologists: Urologists focus on urinary tract health, including reproductive health and infertility issues.
Pulmonologists: Pulmonologists care for the lungs and heart as they relate to breathing. They handle ventilation procedures and treat lung conditions and breathing disorders.
Otolaryngologists: Otolaryngologists are doctors who treat the ear, nose and throat (ENT), including sinus, tonsils and throat.
Psychiatrists: Psychiatrists are doctors who treat mental health conditions through medication, counseling and hospital treatment. Some focus further on specific areas like substance abuse and addiction medicine or adolescent mental health.
Radiologists: Radiologists diagnose and treat medical conditions through image tests like X-rays, mammograms, ultrasounds, computed tomography (CT) scans and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
Rheumatologists: Rheumatologists diagnose and treat rheumatic diseases and autoimmune conditions of the joints, bones and muscles like gout, psoriatic arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and scleroderma.
General surgeons: General surgeons care for a patient before, during and after general surgery, mostly for organs like the stomach, skin, breast and endocrine or gastrointestinal systems.
Orthopedic surgeons: Orthopedic surgeons specialize in performing surgery for bone tumors, broken bones, sports injuries, carpal tunnel syndrome or osteoporosis.
Cardiac surgeons: Cardiac surgeons perform intricate and specialized heart surgeries, like valve repair or replacement, aortic dissections, bypass and stents.
Anesthesiologists: Anesthesiologists assist before, during and after all surgeries, monitoring a person's vital signs and administering anesthesia to put a person to sleep for procedures and surgeries. They also assist with pain medication following surgery.

Doctors at both primary and secondary levels of care can prescribe medication and suggest treatment plans. People often have a secondary care review when a medical condition requires more attention than a primary care provider can give. To see a specialist, patients often need a recommendation, or referral, from their primary care provider. Patients being treated by a secondary care provider, or by multiple secondary care providers, often keep their primary care provider involved to help coordinate total care and ensure all medical professionals are aware of what the other is treating and recommending.Read more: Types of Doctors: 25 Medical Doctor Specialties in High Demand

See your instant resume report on Indeed

Get recommendations for your resume in minutes

What is tertiary care?

Tertiary care in the medical industry is typically hospitalization, requiring advanced equipment and expertise because of a severe or unusual medical situation. It's the third point of contact for some patients, after first seeing a primary care provider then a secondary care specialist. Sometimes tertiary care requires transferring a patient to larger metropolitan medical centers or those that specialize in emergent or advanced treatment and care. Examples of tertiary care can include:

Aortic dissections
Renal or hemodialysis
Coronary artery bypass
Neurosurgery
Severe burn treatments
Some plastic surgeries
Dialysis

Most patients can expect to use primary and secondary care within their lifetime, though some may experience tertiary care. Depending on the condition or medical situation, a patient may receive tertiary care more than once, too. Those undergoing tertiary care again often stay connected with their primary care provider throughout the process to ensure best practices and outcomes for long-term and continued care or self-management for chronic conditions and ailments.

What Are Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Levels of Care?

What are the different levels of patient care?

What is primary care?

What is secondary care?

What is tertiary care?

Related Articles

Useful Tips on How To Become a Surgical Tech

8 Advantages to Working in Healthcare

Basic Medical Terminology: 100 Medical Phrases To Know

Explore more articles