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Certified surgical assistant vs surgical coordinator

The differences between certified surgical assistants and surgical coordinators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a certified surgical assistant has an average salary of $60,436, which is higher than the $36,765 average annual salary of a surgical coordinator.

The top three skills for a certified surgical assistant include patients, CPR and surgical procedures. The most important skills for a surgical coordinator are patients, surgical procedures, and patient care.

Certified surgical assistant vs surgical coordinator overview

Certified Surgical AssistantSurgical Coordinator
Yearly salary$60,436$36,765
Hourly rate$29.06$17.68
Growth rate6%6%
Number of jobs118,30873,088
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 33%Bachelor's Degree, 37%
Average age4344
Years of experience-2

Certified surgical assistant vs surgical coordinator salary

Certified surgical assistants and surgical coordinators have different pay scales, as shown below.

Certified Surgical AssistantSurgical Coordinator
Average salary$60,436$36,765
Salary rangeBetween $40,000 And $90,000Between $27,000 And $49,000
Highest paying City--
Highest paying state--
Best paying company--
Best paying industry--

Differences between certified surgical assistant and surgical coordinator education

There are a few differences between a certified surgical assistant and a surgical coordinator in terms of educational background:

Certified Surgical AssistantSurgical Coordinator
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 33%Bachelor's Degree, 37%
Most common majorMedical TechnicianBusiness
Most common collegeNew York UniversityUniversity of Pennsylvania

Certified surgical assistant vs surgical coordinator demographics

Here are the differences between certified surgical assistants' and surgical coordinators' demographics:

Certified Surgical AssistantSurgical Coordinator
Average age4344
Gender ratioMale, 26.1% Female, 73.9%Male, 9.2% Female, 90.8%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 8.9% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 17.9% Asian, 9.0% White, 58.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%Black or African American, 10.7% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 9.4% Asian, 9.0% White, 66.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage10%9%

Differences between certified surgical assistant and surgical coordinator duties and responsibilities

Certified surgical assistant example responsibilities.

  • Administer nursing care under direct supervision to assign residents and patients in order to achieve maximum level of independence.
  • Utilize suturing techniques to assist with closure of body planes.
  • Maintain correct operative counts of sponges, instruments and sharps.
  • Specialize in patient interaction to inform patients of their diagnosis, conditions and procedures and/or surgical intervention need.
  • Provide patient with positive/negative pathology results, pre-op, assist, post-op and provide patient education regarding their procedures.
  • Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of importance of registering patients while maintaining complete confidentiality according to the HIPPA laws.

Surgical coordinator example responsibilities.

  • Manage patient pre-op responsibilities, and generate all necessary paperwork.
  • Input medical procedures and diagnosis using ICD-9 and CPT medical codes to generate claims for insurance and patient billing.
  • Recommend optimization of patient flow for office visits and HIPAA policy enhancements.
  • Coordinate meetings, schedule surgeries/procedures, verify insurance coverage, ensure HIPAA compliance.
  • Provide patients and parents information; explanations of treatment plans, post-operative instructions and oral hygiene instructions.
  • Promote to back office and surgical coordinator position which duties include scheduling patients with hospital for inpatient procedures.
  • Show more

Certified surgical assistant vs surgical coordinator skills

Common certified surgical assistant skills
  • Patients, 33%
  • CPR, 7%
  • Surgical Procedures, 6%
  • Vital Signs, 4%
  • General Surgery, 4%
  • Visualization, 4%
Common surgical coordinator skills
  • Patients, 35%
  • Surgical Procedures, 12%
  • Patient Care, 6%
  • Medical Terminology, 5%
  • Patient Demographics, 3%
  • Insurance Verification, 3%

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