Call taker vs certified medical technician

The differences between call takers and certified medical technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a certified medical technician has an average salary of $38,859, which is higher than the $38,776 average annual salary of a call taker.

The top three skills for a call taker include computer aided dispatch, taker and CAD. The most important skills for a certified medical technician are patients, vital signs, and CPR.

Call taker vs certified medical technician overview

	Call Taker	Certified Medical Technician
Yearly salary	$38,776	$38,859
Hourly rate	$18.64	$18.68
Growth rate	4%	5%
Number of jobs	11,539	164,424
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 30%	Bachelor's Degree, 28%
Average age	39	44
Years of experience	-	12

What does a call taker do?

A call taker works at a call or dispatch center, where they are primarily in charge of answering calls, identifying the callers' needs, and coordinating services to assist them right away. Although their responsibilities depend on their company or industry of employment, it usually involves answering inquiries, processing requests, arranging appointments or reservations, and handling issues and concerns, resolving them promptly and efficiently. When it comes to employment, a call taker may work for 911 dispatch centers, taxi companies, towing services, and private hotlines.

What does a certified medical technician do?

Certified Medical Technicians are specialists in medical diagnoses by performing laboratory testing and analysis for hospitals and physicians. Their duties include lab sanitization to prepare for testing and collection, recording medical samples for testing, specimen preparation, blood drawing for donation and testing, and assisting physicians with sample collection as well as equipment handling in surgical rooms. They must also understand how to use complex and sensitive testing equipment such as cell counters, analyzers, microscopes, and centrifuges.

Call taker vs certified medical technician salary

Call takers and certified medical technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Call Taker	Certified Medical Technician
Average salary	$38,776	$38,859
Salary range	Between $29,000 And $51,000	Between $28,000 And $53,000
Highest paying City	San Mateo, CA	Denton, TX
Highest paying state	California	Alaska
Best paying company	City of San Antonio	Favorite Healthcare Staffing
Best paying industry	Government	Health Care

Differences between call taker and certified medical technician education

There are a few differences between a call taker and a certified medical technician in terms of educational background:

	Call Taker	Certified Medical Technician
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 30%	Bachelor's Degree, 28%
Most common major	Criminal Justice	Nursing
Most common college	-	University of Connecticut

Call taker vs certified medical technician demographics

Here are the differences between call takers' and certified medical technicians' demographics:

	Call Taker	Certified Medical Technician
Average age	39	44
Gender ratio	Male, 26.0% Female, 74.0%	Male, 20.4% Female, 79.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 6.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 0.9% White, 72.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 15.9% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 10.0% White, 53.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	17%	8%

Differences between call taker and certified medical technician duties and responsibilities

Call taker example responsibilities.

Manage truck and equipment inventory, rental tracking and GPS monitoring.
Dispatch all patrol officers and fire departments.
Enter confidential info through NCIC directly under SLED/FBI.
Place outbound calls to advise members of eta.
Dispatch need help such as fire ems and law.
Receive emergency calls and route calls to patrol units.

Certified medical technician example responsibilities.

Maintain the cleanliness of storage areas, trays, centrifuges, refrigerators, freezers and work area.
Administer medications to patients according to their medication record as scheduled, as needed according to physician orders.
Perform laboratory test and procedures in areas including chemistry, hematology, urinalysis, coagulation, serology, and bacteriology.
Perform first aid and apply CPR when necessary.
Perform first aid or CPR during medical emergencies until paramedics arrive.
Assist the residents in their ADL needs and prepare their meals.

Call taker vs certified medical technician skills

Common call taker skills

Computer Aided Dispatch, 15%
Taker, 13%
CAD, 8%
Data Entry, 5%
Customer Service, 5%
EMS, 4%

Common certified medical technician skills

Patients, 17%
Vital Signs, 12%
CPR, 8%
Administer Medications, 7%
Resident Care, 6%
HIPAA, 6%

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Call Taker vs Certified Medical Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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