Post job

Emergency medical technician vs clinical technician

The differences between emergency medical technicians and clinical technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an emergency medical technician has an average salary of $39,743, which is higher than the $35,760 average annual salary of a clinical technician.

The top three skills for an emergency medical technician include patients, CPR and EMS. The most important skills for a clinical technician are patients, vital signs, and phlebotomy.

Emergency medical technician vs clinical technician overview

Emergency Medical TechnicianClinical Technician
Yearly salary$39,743$35,760
Hourly rate$19.11$17.19
Growth rate7%9%
Number of jobs137,617161,812
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 36%Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Average age3644
Years of experience-12

What does an emergency medical technician do?

Emergency medical technicians or EMTs are skilled medical professionals who act as first responders to injured or sick patients. They apply first aid or do emergency medical procedures upon arriving at the area where the emergency happened. For serious or grave injuries, they do not have complete medical equipment at their disposal, so they have limited capacities on the field. Despite that, EMTs do their best to ensure that patients would reach the hospital for such high-risk cases. EMTs are expected to be calm under pressure and have extensive knowledge of first aid and of basic medical procedures.

What does a clinical technician do?

A clinical technician is responsible for operating and maintaining clinical equipment, ensuring the proper sterilization of all laboratory tools and kits to avoid contamination during medical procedures. Clinical technicians assist the patients with their medical inquiries and needs, collecting samples for laboratory, and helping medical professionals on surgeries and other medical operations. They also maintain medical charts, update patients' information on the database, and administer patients' medication. A clinical technician must have excellent knowledge of the medical industry, as well as strictly following internal guidelines and safety procedures during operations.

Emergency medical technician vs clinical technician salary

Emergency medical technicians and clinical technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

Emergency Medical TechnicianClinical Technician
Average salary$39,743$35,760
Salary rangeBetween $26,000 And $59,000Between $26,000 And $48,000
Highest paying CityNew Brunswick, NJSeattle, WA
Highest paying stateNew JerseyAlaska
Best paying companyLewistown HospitalBrigham and Women's Hospital
Best paying industryGovernmentGovernment

Differences between emergency medical technician and clinical technician education

There are a few differences between an emergency medical technician and a clinical technician in terms of educational background:

Emergency Medical TechnicianClinical Technician
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 36%Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Most common majorMedical TechnicianNursing
Most common college-University of Connecticut

Emergency medical technician vs clinical technician demographics

Here are the differences between emergency medical technicians' and clinical technicians' demographics:

Emergency Medical TechnicianClinical Technician
Average age3644
Gender ratioMale, 60.9% Female, 39.1%Male, 26.6% Female, 73.4%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 6.6% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 15.5% Asian, 4.5% White, 66.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%Black or African American, 12.8% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 16.5% Asian, 11.2% White, 53.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage8%8%

Differences between emergency medical technician and clinical technician duties and responsibilities

Emergency medical technician example responsibilities.

  • Provide medical emergency response, non-emergency transport services, event medical services, manage transportation services and paramedic and EMT training.
  • Demonstrate manual dexterity, with ability to perform all tasks relate to quality patient care.
  • Coordinate emergency transport of patients while providing treatment and triage in a variety of emergency situations.
  • File reports for patients, restock ambulance and supplies at base, have ACLS training, injection.
  • Handled/administered all types of ACLS medications to pediatric, adult and geriatric patients on a daily basis.
  • Assist nurse/physician with procedure such as suturing, lumbar puncture, catherization, casting/reduction, and application of restraints.
  • Show more

Clinical technician example responsibilities.

  • Prepare QC and QA samples for validity testing.
  • Resolve issues from level 1 EMR support as well as EMR issues transfer from other departments.
  • Recognize life threatening situations and activate the emergency response system while assisting with CPR and code cart.
  • Report and document description of patient care information in EMR in accordance with hospital policy and procedure.
  • Participate in reviews and QC of external central laboratory contracts, sample kits and manuals and ensure accuracy.
  • Assist in advance and basic life support techniques, perform EKG's, blood withdrawal, and computer order entry.
  • Show more

Emergency medical technician vs clinical technician skills

Common emergency medical technician skills
  • Patients, 19%
  • CPR, 11%
  • EMS, 7%
  • Customer Service, 6%
  • Life Support, 5%
  • EMT-B, 3%
Common clinical technician skills
  • Patients, 27%
  • Vital Signs, 8%
  • Phlebotomy, 7%
  • Direct Patient Care, 7%
  • Customer Service, 6%
  • EKG, 4%

Browse healthcare practitioner and technical jobs