Health information management director vs medical records technician

The differences between health information management directors 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 health information management director and a medical records technician. Additionally, a health information management director has an average salary of $132,896, which is higher than the $37,087 average annual salary of a medical records technician.

The top three skills for a health information management director include patients, oversight and medical terminology. The most important skills for a medical records technician are patients, medical terminology, and HIPAA.

Health information management director vs medical records technician overview

	Health Information Management Director	Medical Records Technician
Yearly salary	$132,896	$37,087
Hourly rate	$63.89	$17.83
Growth rate	11%	11%
Number of jobs	174,388	67,660
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 38%	Associate 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 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.

Health information management director vs medical records technician salary

Health information management directors and medical records technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Health Information Management Director	Medical Records Technician
Average salary	$132,896	$37,087
Salary range	Between $95,000 And $185,000	Between $28,000 And $48,000
Highest paying City	Baltimore, MD	Long Branch, NJ
Highest paying state	Massachusetts	New Jersey
Best paying company	University of Maryland Medical System	Guidehouse
Best paying industry	Health Care	Government

Differences between health information management director and medical records technician education

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

	Health Information Management Director	Medical Records Technician
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 38%	Associate Degree, 34%
Most common major	Health Care Administration	Health Care Administration
Most common college	University of Southern California	University of Pennsylvania

Health information management director vs medical records technician demographics

Here are the differences between health information management directors' and medical records technicians' demographics:

	Health Information Management Director	Medical Records Technician
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 16.5% Female, 83.5%	Male, 18.8% Female, 81.2%
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, 9.3% 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 health information management director and medical records technician 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 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.

Health information management director vs medical records technician skills

Common health information management director skills

Patients, 21%
Oversight, 8%
Medical Terminology, 7%
ICD-10, 6%
Transcription, 6%
Revenue Cycle, 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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Health Information Management Director
Health Information Management Director vs Medical Records Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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