General surgeon vs trauma surgeon

The differences between general surgeons and trauma surgeons can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a general surgeon and a trauma surgeon. Additionally, a trauma surgeon has an average salary of $406,184, which is higher than the $223,321 average annual salary of a general surgeon.

The top three skills for a general surgeon include patients, EMR and medical education. The most important skills for a trauma surgeon are critical care, patient care, and trauma surgery.

General surgeon vs trauma surgeon overview

	General Surgeon	Trauma Surgeon
Yearly salary	$223,321	$406,184
Hourly rate	$107.37	$195.28
Growth rate	7%	7%
Number of jobs	45,174	3,750
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 30%	Bachelor's Degree, 25%
Average age	49	49
Years of experience	6	6

What does a general surgeon do?

The General Surgeon's role is to perform operations to treat or prevent diseases, repair damage caused by injuries, and improve the functions of the human body through the use of different surgical instruments. They also assess patients and explain different diagnostic tests that are performed.

What does a trauma surgeon do?

Trauma surgeons attend to ER patients who fall into certain categories of medical conditions such as low blood pressure following a car accident or if emergency surgery is needed to prevent permanent damage or save their lives. They will assume responsibility for the patient's care if hospital admission is needed as well as follow-up care. Other duties of a trauma surgeon include evaluating, diagnosing, and stabilizing a patient with traumatic physical injury, treating patients with cuts, internal injuries, and bone fractures, and evaluating which injuries need medical intervention first.

General surgeon vs trauma surgeon salary

General surgeons and trauma surgeons have different pay scales, as shown below.

	General Surgeon	Trauma Surgeon
Average salary	$223,321	$406,184
Salary range	Between $121,000 And $411,000	Between $204,000 And $806,000
Highest paying City	Watertown, NY	Grand Forks, ND
Highest paying state	Connecticut	Minnesota
Best paying company	Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County	Trinity Health
Best paying industry	Health Care	Professional

Differences between general surgeon and trauma surgeon education

There are a few differences between a general surgeon and a trauma surgeon in terms of educational background:

	General Surgeon	Trauma Surgeon
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 30%	Bachelor's Degree, 25%
Most common major	Medicine	Medicine
Most common college	Duke University	Duke University

General surgeon vs trauma surgeon demographics

Here are the differences between general surgeons' and trauma surgeons' demographics:

	General Surgeon	Trauma Surgeon
Average age	49	49
Gender ratio	Male, 53.9% Female, 46.1%	Male, 55.6% Female, 44.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 1.8% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 5.0% Asian, 12.7% White, 76.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%	Black or African American, 1.8% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 5.0% Asian, 12.7% White, 76.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage	12%	12%

Differences between general surgeon and trauma surgeon duties and responsibilities

General surgeon example responsibilities.

Manage insurance authorization and hospital bookings for surgery.
Provide preoperative diagnosis of patients, perform the necessary emergency or elective surgery, and provide postoperative surgical care and treatment.
Provide patient ancillary testing such as EKG, NDX and NCV.
Wash and sterilize equipment, using germicides and sterilizers.
Assist the physician during angioplasty and endovenous laser ablation procedures.
Clean operating room and wash and sterilize equipment, using germicides and sterilizers.

Trauma surgeon example responsibilities.

Manage all incoming medical records requests (ensuring office is within HIPPA guidelines).
Coordinate with patients and medical staff at civilian and military treatment facilities to schedule medical appointments and retrieve medical documentation.
Observe fracture plating, skin grafting, wind cleaning, amputation, and other Orthopaedic surgeries.

General surgeon vs trauma surgeon skills

Common general surgeon skills

Patients, 34%
EMR, 14%
Medical Education, 9%
Patient Care, 8%
Endoscopy, 6%
Private Practice, 3%

Common trauma surgeon skills

Critical Care, 44%
Patient Care, 29%
Trauma Surgery, 20%
Emergency Medicine, 3%
Private Practice, 2%
IV, 1%

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General Surgeon
General Surgeon vs Trauma Surgeon

Updated January 8, 2025

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