Attending physician vs specialist

The differences between attending physicians and specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become an attending physician, becoming a specialist takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, an attending physician has an average salary of $200,702, which is higher than the $58,013 average annual salary of a specialist.

The top three skills for an attending physician include patients, primary care and surgery. The most important skills for a specialist are patients, customer service, and work ethic.

Attending physician vs specialist overview

	Attending Physician	Specialist
Yearly salary	$200,702	$58,013
Hourly rate	$96.49	$27.89
Growth rate	7%	10%
Number of jobs	53,195	358,433
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 33%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Average age	48	42
Years of experience	4	2

What does an attending physician do?

An Attending Physician typically supervises fellows, residents, medical students, and other practitioners. They are responsible for supervising each patient every day, reviewing treatment plans with residents, and supervising patient management documents.

What does a specialist do?

Specialists are employees who are responsible for specific tasks or activities in the department they are assigned to. The actions or tasks they work on are related to their educational background or work experiences. They are usually highly skilled in specializations related to the work they are assigned to. Specialists are also highly trained on the competencies that are required of their specialty. As such, they are focused on the skills and competencies that are needed to enhance their experience in their specific field further.

Attending physician vs specialist salary

Attending physicians and specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Attending Physician	Specialist
Average salary	$200,702	$58,013
Salary range	Between $125,000 And $321,000	Between $32,000 And $104,000
Highest paying City	Miami, FL	Jersey City, NJ
Highest paying state	New Jersey	New Jersey
Best paying company	Community Health Systems	The Citadel
Best paying industry	Health Care	-

Differences between attending physician and specialist education

There are a few differences between an attending physician and a specialist in terms of educational background:

	Attending Physician	Specialist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 33%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Most common major	Medicine	Business
Most common college	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor	Stanford University

Attending physician vs specialist demographics

Here are the differences between attending physicians' and specialists' demographics:

	Attending Physician	Specialist
Average age	48	42
Gender ratio	Male, 36.5% Female, 63.5%	Male, 47.5% Female, 52.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.2% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 9.6% Asian, 19.1% White, 61.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 11.4% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 10.5% White, 55.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	13%	11%

Differences between attending physician and specialist duties and responsibilities

Attending physician example responsibilities.

Manage neurological cancer research protocols: collected/organize data, assure compliance with protocol guidelines, manage study database and enroll patients.
Prepare patients for ultrasound guide injections and aspirations which includes draping patients, prepping medications and preparing sterile instruments.
Manage neurological cancer research protocols: collected/organize data, assure compliance with protocol guidelines, manage study database and enroll patients.
Monitor and manage patient medical records in compliance with HIPPA.

Specialist example responsibilities.

Create, manage, and assist users with SharePoint sites.
Manage an on-site IRB and company good clinical practice (GCP) inspection.
Manage SharePoint sites by creating, editing, and customizing company sites, libraries and security.
Manage the building of accounts, assigning of static IP's, and scheduling of business class installations.
Convert servers from UNIX to Linux, all hardware diagnostics and repair including printers/plotters/desktops etc.
Follow safety procedures such as maintenance of all equipment (Telxon scanners, terminals and ladders).

Attending physician vs specialist skills

Common attending physician skills

Patients, 35%
Primary Care, 8%
Surgery, 5%
Internal Medicine, 5%
BLS, 4%
Rehabilitation, 3%

Common specialist skills

Patients, 15%
Customer Service, 11%
Work Ethic, 5%
Patient Care, 4%
Exceptional Client, 4%
Troubleshoot, 4%

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Healthcare Practitioner and Technical Industry
Attending Physician
Attending Physician vs Specialist

Updated January 8, 2025

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