Health information management director vs medical record assistant

The differences between health information management directors and medical record assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a health information management director and a medical record assistant. Additionally, a health information management director has an average salary of $132,896, which is higher than the $34,870 average annual salary of a medical record assistant.

The top three skills for a health information management director include patients, oversight and medical terminology. The most important skills for a medical record assistant are patients, data entry, and HIPAA.

Health information management director vs medical record assistant overview

	Health Information Management Director	Medical Record Assistant
Yearly salary	$132,896	$34,870
Hourly rate	$63.89	$16.76
Growth rate	11%	11%
Number of jobs	174,388	91,238
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 38%	Bachelor's Degree, 34%
Average age	45	45
Years of experience	12	12

What does a health information management director do?

A Health Information Management Director develops and supervises health information systems. They also ensure that health information systems meet medical, legal, and ethical standards.

What does a medical record assistant do?

A medical record assistant is responsible for the proper documentation of the patients' information and medical records for reference to the attending physician or other medical professionals. Medical record assistants also track the patient's medical treatments and progress, as well as their health insurance details and coverage. They also respond to the patient's inquiries and concerns, including scheduling physician's appointments and updating the patients for any released medical results. A medical record assistant must have excellent communication and organizational skills, categorizing documents, and retrieving files for medical needs.

Health information management director vs medical record assistant salary

Health information management directors and medical record assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Health Information Management Director	Medical Record Assistant
Average salary	$132,896	$34,870
Salary range	Between $95,000 And $185,000	Between $28,000 And $43,000
Highest paying City	Baltimore, MD	Napa, CA
Highest paying state	Massachusetts	Alaska
Best paying company	University of Maryland Medical System	Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough
Best paying industry	Health Care	Government

Differences between health information management director and medical record assistant education

There are a few differences between a health information management director and a medical record assistant in terms of educational background:

	Health Information Management Director	Medical Record Assistant
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 38%	Bachelor's Degree, 34%
Most common major	Health Care Administration	Business
Most common college	University of Southern California	University of Pennsylvania

Health information management director vs medical record assistant demographics

Here are the differences between health information management directors' and medical record assistants' demographics:

	Health Information Management Director	Medical Record Assistant
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 16.5% Female, 83.5%	Male, 17.3% Female, 82.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.9% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 16.9% Asian, 8.6% White, 60.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%	Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 16.9% Asian, 8.5% White, 60.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between health information management director and medical record assistant duties and responsibilities

Health information management director example responsibilities.

Manage EMR image title, deficiency table, physician table, ROI table.
Implement and manage projects with complex HL7 interfaces between multiple clinical systems including writing project plans.
Achieve this goal by providing clear policies/justification for initiatives which impact designated FTE's.
Provide physician education on documentation improvement initiatives for ICD-9 and ICD-10.
Code patient charts for inpatient stays and outpatient services receive for mental and chemical dependence rehabilitation.
Train and provide support for Eclinicalworks software.

Medical record assistant example responsibilities.

Lead special department-wide task force initiative to minimize abuse of Oxycontin prescriptions bill to Medicaid.
Manage and organize all paperwork concerning caregivers and patients; organize filing system; ensure operation of electronic filing systems.
Work with EHR, provide medical records to patients and specialty centers.
Guide department through transition from paper charts to EHR system scan all patient records into database.
Scan documents into electronic medical records system and certify HIPAA compliance
Implement HIPAA guidelines in keeping patient information secure and confidential.

Health information management director vs medical record assistant skills

Common health information management director skills

Patients, 21%
Oversight, 8%
Medical Terminology, 7%
ICD-10, 6%
Transcription, 6%
Revenue Cycle, 6%

Common medical record assistant skills

Patients, 37%
Data Entry, 8%
HIPAA, 6%
Patient Care, 4%
Vital Signs, 4%
Medical Terminology, 3%

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Health Information Management Director
Health Information Management Director vs Medical Record Assistant

Updated January 8, 2025

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