Dental receptionist vs patient coordinator

The differences between dental receptionists and patient coordinators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a dental receptionist, becoming a patient coordinator takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a dental receptionist has an average salary of $34,359, which is higher than the $32,954 average annual salary of a patient coordinator.

The top three skills for a dental receptionist include patients, customer service and phone calls. The most important skills for a patient coordinator are patients, customer service, and patient care.

Dental receptionist vs patient coordinator overview

	Dental Receptionist	Patient Coordinator
Yearly salary	$34,359	$32,954
Hourly rate	$16.52	$15.84
Growth rate	-	-4%
Number of jobs	66,076	97,878
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 32%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Average age	42	40
Years of experience	2	4

What does a dental receptionist do?

A dental receptionist is responsible for performing administrative and clerical duties to support dental office operations and ensure that the patients receive the highest quality care services. Dental receptionists manage and schedule the patients' appointments, determine the availability of the dentist, process dental reports and service payments, and ensure the adequacy of dental inventories. They also organize the database system by updating patients' information, sending referrals to medical specialists, pulling-up patient charts, and responding to the patients' dental inquiries and concerns.

What does a patient coordinator do?

A patient coordinator functions as the primary point of contact between health care professionals and patients in a medical facility. They mostly perform administrative tasks such as greeting visitors, answering calls, responding to inquiries, managing schedules, arranging appointments, processing payments, gathering information, and keeping records. Moreover, they assist in filling out forms, escorting patients to different rooms or offices, and setting treatment plans. Most importantly, they discuss and share necessary information with patients and families regarding medications, procedures, and proceeding care according to a physician's assessment.

Dental receptionist vs patient coordinator salary

Dental receptionists and patient coordinators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Dental Receptionist	Patient Coordinator
Average salary	$34,359	$32,954
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $42,000	Between $25,000 And $41,000
Highest paying City	Bellingham, WA	Brockton, MA
Highest paying state	Alaska	Massachusetts
Best paying company	University of Southern California	University of California, Berkeley
Best paying industry	Health Care	Health Care

Differences between dental receptionist and patient coordinator education

There are a few differences between a dental receptionist and a patient coordinator in terms of educational background:

	Dental Receptionist	Patient Coordinator
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 32%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	University of Pennsylvania

Dental receptionist vs patient coordinator demographics

Here are the differences between dental receptionists' and patient coordinators' demographics:

	Dental Receptionist	Patient Coordinator
Average age	42	40
Gender ratio	Male, 4.9% Female, 95.1%	Male, 11.2% Female, 88.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 27.0% Asian, 5.5% White, 52.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%	Black or African American, 11.1% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 25.4% Asian, 6.2% White, 51.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	6%	7%

Differences between dental receptionist and patient coordinator duties and responsibilities

Dental receptionist example responsibilities.

Manage an adjoining veterinary supply shop that sell medications, animal food and pet equipment.
Perform administrative and receptionist duties by managing patient records while staying in compliance with HIPAA and JCAHO.
Manage Eaglesoft system thereby maximizing and balancing the calendar of appointments to drive practice revenue while maintaining optimal practice productivity.
Assist office management and staff with administrative projects/responsibilities such as managing time-sensitive projects, filing, copying, and collating materials.
Register new patients according to office protocol using EagleSoft.
Experience in PPO and some HMO insurances.

Patient coordinator example responsibilities.

Comply with HIPAA regulations by discreetly and professionally handling all patients private medical information.
Gather personal plus insurance information and perform thorough insurance breakdowns for patients.
Communicate directly with patients to obtain initial patient information and respond to inquiries.
Process and update HIPAA relate paperwork and other require institutional forms as necessary.
Obtain all necessary documentation prior to surgery such as proof of identification, copy of insurance and require insurance referrals.
Respond in writing to all grievances in accordance with CMS and DNV guidelines.

Dental receptionist vs patient coordinator skills

Common dental receptionist skills

Patients, 35%
Customer Service, 17%
Phone Calls, 10%
Patient Accounts, 8%
Front Desk, 3%
HMO, 3%

Common patient coordinator skills

Patients, 30%
Customer Service, 11%
Patient Care, 6%
Patient Flow, 5%
Excellent Organizational, 4%
Check-In, 3%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Dental Receptionist
Dental Receptionist vs Patient Coordinator

Updated January 8, 2025

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