A patient is admitted into the E.R with 3rd degree burns through out their body. The physician on staff sends them to a burn center. What type of care are they in?

Primary care is routine, preventive, or first-contact care provided by a general practitioner, not emergency or specialized treatment.

Tertiary care represents a high level of specialized medical care, typically provided in referral centers or specialized facilities such as burn centers, for complex conditions requiring advanced expertise. Third-degree burns covering the body require this level of intervention because they exceed the capability of general emergency or secondary care settings. Referral from an ER physician to a specialized center is the defining characteristic of tertiary care.

Secondary care involves a specialist referral for a condition that is more complex than primary care but does not require the highly specialized facilities of a burn center.