--- title: Why You Need Both an OBGYN And Primary Care Doctor description: If you don’t have any major medical problems, you may be OK visiting your ob-gyn as your regular doctor. canonical: https://time.com/4574048/gynecologist-primary-care-doctor/ author: TIME article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-11-17T18:50:18.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T01:51:58.137Z article:section: Health og:title: Do You Need Both a Gynecologist and a Primary Care Doctor? og:description: If you don’t have any major medical problems, you may be OK visiting your ob-gyn as your regular doctor. og:url: https://time.com/4574048/gynecologist-primary-care-doctor/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt751cb51a4ac0d9ef/6988604dcf40a8779cc3f555/patient-doctor-office-health-illo.jpg?branch=production&width=1000&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1000 og:image:height: 563 og:image:alt: TIME.com stock health doctor's office patient og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Do You Need Both a Gynecologist and a Primary Care Doctor? twitter:description: If you don’t have any major medical problems, you may be OK visiting your ob-gyn as your regular doctor. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt751cb51a4ac0d9ef/6988604dcf40a8779cc3f555/patient-doctor-office-health-illo.jpg?branch=production&width=1000&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Do You Need Both a Gynecologist and a Primary Care Doctor? > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME Health Matters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition Health Matters is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. The latest health news and expert advice on living well. Health Matters makes the fast-moving world of health more useful, surprising and human, from the latest science and medical breakthroughs to practical ideas for living better. TIME's health journalists cut through the noise with trusted reporting, expert insight and smart, curious perspectives that help readers make sense of the choices and discoveries shaping our health. 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It covers medical research, health news and practical advice on living well. #### Where can I get reliable health news by email? Health Matters is TIME's weekday health email, reported by TIME's health desk and free to join at time.com/newsletters. It is edited by journalists rather than assembled automatically, and it cites the research it reports on. #### Is Health Matters free? Yes. Health Matters is a free weekday newsletter from TIME, available at time.com/newsletters. #### Who reads TIME's Health Matters newsletter? Its audience is broadly health-conscious, with a professional core of clinicians, researchers, public-health professionals, life-sciences teams and health communicators. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-health-2026q3/newsletters?i=aa9b6078-2d64-4fc4-903a-a9a482d0e84f&cr=time-nl-health-2026q3-v1) by [Roshini Rajapaksa, MD / Health.com](https://time.com/author/health-com/) ## Roshini Rajapaksa, MD / Health.com Contributor Nov 17, 2016 6:50 PM UTC  Illustration by Sydney Rae Hass for TIME by [Roshini Rajapaksa, MD / Health.com](https://time.com/author/health-com/) ## Roshini Rajapaksa, MD / Health.com Contributor Nov 17, 2016 6:50 PM UTC I generally recommend having both, but it comes down to personal preference and your own needs. If you don’t have any major medical problems, you may be OK visiting your ob-gyn as your regular doctor. Any good gyno will be happy to talk to you about overall health. Although ob-gyns give guidance first and foremost on women’s health and issues related to the reproductive organs, plenty offer services outside of that purview (cholesterol screenings, say). **_Health.com:_** [_4 Times Your Vagina Needs to See a Doctor ASAP_](http://www.health.com/sexual-health/bleeding-after-sex-burning-itchy-vagina/?xid=time) Even so, an annual physical exam by a primary care provider (PCP) will probably cover a lot more ground, including metabolic, respiratory and digestive health, for starters. Also, some gynos may feel more comfortable referring you to another specialist for ailments that a PCP would handle herself. For example, if you have a rash, your ob-gyn may encourage you to get a dermatologist’s opinion, while a PCP may be able to treat it in one stop. Ultimately, it all depends on the doctor. If you have a great relationship with your gyno and feel she gives you the 360 medical assistance you need, fine. Just alert her that she’s the only doctor you visit routinely. This way, she knows to give you comprehensive checkups or send you to another MD when necessary. Health’_s medical editor, Roshini Rajapaksa, MD, is assistant professor of medicine at the NYU School of Medicine._ _This_ [_article_](http://www.health.com/sexual-health/gynecologist-primary-care-doctor/?xid=time) _originally appeared on_ [_Health.com_](http://www.health.com) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4574048/gynecologist-primary-care-doctor/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4574048/gynecologist-primary-care-doctor/"},"headline":"Do You Need Both a Gynecologist and a Primary Care Doctor?","datePublished":"2016-11-17T18:50:18.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T01:51:58.137Z","description":"If you don’t have any major medical problems, you may be OK visiting your ob-gyn as your regular doctor.","url":"https://time.com/4574048/gynecologist-primary-care-doctor/","keywords":["Healthcare"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt751cb51a4ac0d9ef/6988604dcf40a8779cc3f555/patient-doctor-office-health-illo.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Roshini Rajapaksa, MD / Health.com"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt751cb51a4ac0d9ef/6988604dcf40a8779cc3f555/patient-doctor-office-health-illo.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"TIME.com stock health doctor's office patient","caption":"TIME.com stock health doctor's office patient","creditText":"Illustration by Sydney Rae Hass for TIME","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/healthcare/","name":"Healthcare"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4574048/gynecologist-primary-care-doctor/","name":"Do You Need Both a Gynecologist and a Primary Care Doctor?"}}]}] ```