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Hospital medical assistant vs clinical medical assistant

The differences between hospital medical assistants and clinical medical 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 hospital medical assistant and a clinical medical assistant. Additionally, a clinical medical assistant has an average salary of $37,052, which is higher than the $35,545 average annual salary of a hospital medical assistant.

The top three skills for a hospital medical assistant include patients, vital signs and customer service. The most important skills for a clinical medical assistant are patients, patient care, and vital signs.

Hospital medical assistant vs clinical medical assistant overview

Hospital Medical AssistantClinical Medical Assistant
Yearly salary$35,545$37,052
Hourly rate$17.09$17.81
Growth rate16%16%
Number of jobs164,640233,464
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 45%Associate Degree, 27%
Average age3737
Years of experience1212

What does a hospital medical assistant do?

Hospital Medical Assistants offer a variety of services like clerical, technical, and patient care as long as they work under nurses or medical practitioners' supervision. While their specific tasks vary depending on the hospital, practice, or medical facility, they generally support medical practitioners and members of the health care team by recording vital patient information and occasionally assisting with minor, office-based procedures. Working as a hospital medical assistant requires skills like organizational skills, professionalism, confidentiality, and people skills to reach top performance levels for the role.

What does a clinical medical assistant do?

A clinical medical assistant specializes in performing administrative and clinical tasks in a hospital or similar setting. Their responsibilities revolve around gathering a patient's information, medical history, test results, and other essential documentation, and updating patient medical records. Other tasks include reaching out to patients' families and guardians, assisting health workers with room preparation and patient care, and preparing medications and other treatments, all in adherence to a physician's directives. Furthermore, a clinical medical assistant may conduct inspections to ensure that the hospital complies with government regulations.

Hospital medical assistant vs clinical medical assistant salary

Hospital medical assistants and clinical medical assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.

Hospital Medical AssistantClinical Medical Assistant
Average salary$35,545$37,052
Salary rangeBetween $27,000 And $45,000Between $29,000 And $46,000
Highest paying CityWoburn, MAVancouver, WA
Highest paying stateMassachusettsCalifornia
Best paying companyStudent Conservation AssociationBrigham and Women's Hospital
Best paying industryEducationHealth Care

Differences between hospital medical assistant and clinical medical assistant education

There are a few differences between a hospital medical assistant and a clinical medical assistant in terms of educational background:

Hospital Medical AssistantClinical Medical Assistant
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 45%Associate Degree, 27%
Most common majorNursingMedical Assisting Services
Most common college--

Hospital medical assistant vs clinical medical assistant demographics

Here are the differences between hospital medical assistants' and clinical medical assistants' demographics:

Hospital Medical AssistantClinical Medical Assistant
Average age3737
Gender ratioMale, 31.9% Female, 68.1%Male, 10.8% Female, 89.2%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 11.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 22.7% Asian, 9.5% White, 51.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%Black or African American, 11.1% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 23.3% Asian, 9.1% White, 51.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage6%6%

Differences between hospital medical assistant and clinical medical assistant duties and responsibilities

Hospital medical assistant example responsibilities.

  • Manage medical/isolation stalls and surgery treatment facility and assist in post surgery care.
  • Promote patient wellness and conduct patient education and ensure adherence to all OSHA and HIPAA regulations.
  • Accredit training for OSHA, JACHO for safety practices and procedures.
  • Administer EKG, range of motion, treatments, and physical assessment tests.
  • Write incoming, outgoing calls from patient, family member or PCP in their charts (EMR).
  • Maintain CPR certification and continuing education for position.
  • Show more

Clinical medical assistant example responsibilities.

  • Obtain vital signs, calculate body mass indexes, administer intramuscular injections, administer venipuncture on patients using aseptic technique.
  • Treat patients and coworkers with dignity, respect and compassion.
  • Obtain EKG's and vitals along with medical history, family history, current medications and chief complaints.
  • Present data in a Powerpoint presentation in mentoring professor's classes.
  • Process super-bills for submission to CPR billing, and daily bank deposits.
  • Order new equipment and work with word, excel, and PowerPoint.
  • Show more

Hospital medical assistant vs clinical medical assistant skills

Common hospital medical assistant skills
  • Patients, 23%
  • Vital Signs, 9%
  • Customer Service, 8%
  • CPR, 8%
  • Medical Terminology, 5%
  • Phlebotomy, 5%
Common clinical medical assistant skills
  • Patients, 19%
  • Patient Care, 12%
  • Vital Signs, 10%
  • CPR, 4%
  • Customer Service, 4%
  • Medical Assistants, 4%

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