Clinical documentation improvement specialist vs medical records technician

The differences between clinical documentation improvement specialists and medical records 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 medical records technician. Additionally, a clinical documentation improvement specialist has an average salary of $64,797, which is higher than the $37,087 average annual salary of a medical records 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 medical records technician are patients, medical terminology, and HIPAA.

Clinical documentation improvement specialist vs medical records technician overview

	Clinical Documentation Improvement Specialist	Medical Records Technician
Yearly salary	$64,797	$37,087
Hourly rate	$31.15	$17.83
Growth rate	11%	11%
Number of jobs	66,130	67,660
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 44%	Associate Degree, 34%
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 medical records technician do?

A medical records technician is responsible for performing administrative duties, handling patients' medical records for medical purposes. Medical records technicians keep an organized database of patients' information, including medical history, diagnosis, healthcare treatments, laboratory schedules, and insurance details using specific healthcare coding procedures. Medical records technicians must be detail-oriented and highly organizational, especially on maintaining the accuracy and confidentiality of patients' information. This job is critical in the healthcare industry for the doctors' reference and determining treatment costs.

Clinical documentation improvement specialist vs medical records technician salary

Clinical documentation improvement specialists and medical records technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Clinical Documentation Improvement Specialist	Medical Records Technician
Average salary	$64,797	$37,087
Salary range	Between $47,000 And $87,000	Between $28,000 And $48,000
Highest paying City	Madera, CA	Long Branch, NJ
Highest paying state	California	New Jersey
Best paying company	Nuance Communications	Guidehouse
Best paying industry	Health Care	Government

Differences between clinical documentation improvement specialist and medical records technician education

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

	Clinical Documentation Improvement Specialist	Medical Records Technician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 44%	Associate Degree, 34%
Most common major	Nursing	Health Care Administration
Most common college	Duke University	University of Pennsylvania

Clinical documentation improvement specialist vs medical records technician demographics

Here are the differences between clinical documentation improvement specialists' and medical records technicians' demographics:

	Clinical Documentation Improvement Specialist	Medical Records Technician
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 15.2% Female, 84.8%	Male, 18.8% Female, 81.2%
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, 9.3% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 17.3% Asian, 8.7% White, 59.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between clinical documentation improvement specialist and medical records 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.

Medical records technician example responsibilities.

Enter all patient in-take into EMR, manage triage, scheduling, and maintain a sterile clinic setting.
Manage medical treatment authorizations and durable medical equipment (DME) requests and verify medical eligibility for all patients requesting treatment.
Perform examinations in the ER, main radiology area and surgery.
Order medical records for patients, medical staff, outside entities, and court subpoenas for certain dates of services.
Audited/Validate daily outpatient medical coding accounts involving emergency rooms, surgery, interventional radiology, radiology, and ancillary services.
Staff education on EMR and industry regulations.

Clinical documentation improvement specialist vs medical records 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 medical records technician skills

Patients, 20%
Medical Terminology, 11%
HIPAA, 6%
Patient Care, 5%
Customer Service, 5%
Medical Facilities, 4%

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Clinical Documentation Improvement Specialist
Clinical Documentation Improvement Specialist vs Medical Records Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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