Clinical documentation improvement specialist vs health information technician

The differences between clinical documentation improvement specialists and health information technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a clinical documentation improvement specialist and a health information technician. Additionally, a clinical documentation improvement specialist has an average salary of $64,797, which is higher than the $34,604 average annual salary of a health information technician.

The top three skills for a clinical documentation improvement specialist include patients, patient care and clinical documentation improvement. The most important skills for a health information technician are patients, medical terminology, and customer service.

Clinical documentation improvement specialist vs health information technician overview

	Clinical Documentation Improvement Specialist	Health Information Technician
Yearly salary	$64,797	$34,604
Hourly rate	$31.15	$16.64
Growth rate	11%	11%
Number of jobs	66,130	120,786
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 44%	Associate Degree, 41%
Average age	45	45
Years of experience	12	12

What does a clinical documentation improvement specialist do?

Clinical documentation improvement specialists are professionals who are involved in the clinical documentation improvement (CDI) program that incorporates the terminology needed to translate a patient's condition into precise codes. These specialists must investigate complex healthcare reimbursement information to ensure that appropriate documentation is provided for proper patient care. They must collaborate with physicians and medical record coding staff so that they facilitate the clinical documentation improvement process. Clinical documentation improvement specialists must also train members of the patient care team about the documentation guidelines for medical records.

What does a health information technician do?

A health information technician is primarily responsible for managing and handling patient information, ensuring accuracy and confidentiality. They coordinate with various health care workers to gather patient data, laboratory results, test findings, and medical histories, encoding them in clinical databases in a timely and efficient manner. They must analyze every information to detect any inconsistencies, performing corrective measures right away. Furthermore, as a health information technician, it is essential to utilize particular software and systems when processing information, all while adhering to the hospital's policies and regulations.

Clinical documentation improvement specialist vs health information technician salary

Clinical documentation improvement specialists and health information technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Clinical Documentation Improvement Specialist	Health Information Technician
Average salary	$64,797	$34,604
Salary range	Between $47,000 And $87,000	Between $26,000 And $45,000
Highest paying City	Madera, CA	Fairbanks, AK
Highest paying state	California	Alaska
Best paying company	Nuance Communications	Stifel Financial
Best paying industry	Health Care	Government

Differences between clinical documentation improvement specialist and health information technician education

There are a few differences between a clinical documentation improvement specialist and a health information technician in terms of educational background:

	Clinical Documentation Improvement Specialist	Health Information Technician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 44%	Associate Degree, 41%
Most common major	Nursing	Health Care Administration
Most common college	Duke University	University of Southern California

Clinical documentation improvement specialist vs health information technician demographics

Here are the differences between clinical documentation improvement specialists' and health information technicians' demographics:

	Clinical Documentation Improvement Specialist	Health Information Technician
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 15.2% Female, 84.8%	Male, 16.5% Female, 83.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 15.7% Asian, 8.9% White, 60.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%	Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 17.2% Asian, 8.6% White, 59.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between clinical documentation improvement specialist and health information technician duties and responsibilities

Clinical documentation improvement specialist example responsibilities.

Create documentation education classes to general surgery residents, increasing the leveling of reporting which lead to increase revenues.
Interact directly with physicians to query for more specific documentation and to provide documentation guidelines from ICD-9 and ICD-10 standards.
Prepare, maintain and update clinical documentation ensuring completeness and accuracy of services provide to the patients.
Assign the correct POA status.
Participate in the initiation of the CDIS program.
Train new employees on how to utilize radiology information systems.

Health information technician example responsibilities.

Maximize ROI by effectively managing the microfiche process.
Assist patients and staff on filling out ROI's, and explain what exactly are being release or obtain.
Perform analysis and assembly of emergency room and surgery records and release records according to HIPAA regulations and confidentially.
Input data into a windows base in-house system.
Scan medical records in the EHR using the NEXTGEN software.
Attend advanced SQL coding workshops to optimize and refine database infrastructure.

Clinical documentation improvement specialist vs health information technician skills

Common clinical documentation improvement specialist skills

Patients, 18%
Patient Care, 13%
Clinical Documentation Improvement, 12%
CCDS, 8%
ICD-10, 7%
CCS, 6%

Common health information technician skills

Patients, 20%
Medical Terminology, 13%
Customer Service, 9%
HIPAA, 9%
Patient Care, 7%
Data Entry, 5%

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Clinical Documentation Improvement Specialist
Clinical Documentation Improvement Specialist vs Health Information Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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