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The differences between lead medical assistants and medical assisting externs can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a lead medical assistant and a medical assisting extern. Additionally, a lead medical assistant has an average salary of $38,303, which is higher than the $35,737 average annual salary of a medical assisting extern.
The top three skills for a lead medical assistant include patients, vital signs and patient care. The most important skills for a medical assisting extern are patients, vital signs, and EKG.
| Lead Medical Assistant | Medical Assisting Extern | |
| Yearly salary | $38,303 | $35,737 |
| Hourly rate | $18.41 | $17.18 |
| Growth rate | 16% | 16% |
| Number of jobs | 163,228 | 81,077 |
| Job satisfaction | 4 | - |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 27% | Bachelor's Degree, 34% |
| Average age | 37 | 37 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
A lead medical assistant performs administrative support tasks for clinical teams to provide optimal care and services to patients. They work under the supervision of a clinical manager whom they report to regularly. Among their responsibilities include establishing staff schedules and guidelines, conducting research and analysis, coordinating staff, reviewing medical charts and reports, organizing documents, and training new members of the workforce. Moreover, they may also assist patients by answering inquiries, performing follow-up calls to confirm appointment schedules, and preparing patients by giving them the information they need.
A medical assisting extern is responsible for supporting the medical team in ensuring that the patients are offered the best care services by providing treatments and medications. Medical assisting externs' duties include practicing their medical skills by shadowing on medical professionals' activities, assisting patients with their inquiries and concerns, facilitating medical procedures with the doctor's supervision, and learning to operate medical tools and equipment as needed. A medical assisting extern must have excellent knowledge in the health industry, as well as a fast-learner to be familiarized with the complexities of medical processes and procedures.
Lead medical assistants and medical assisting externs have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Lead Medical Assistant | Medical Assisting Extern | |
| Average salary | $38,303 | $35,737 |
| Salary range | Between $23,000 And $63,000 | Between $26,000 And $48,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | - |
| Highest paying state | - | - |
| Best paying company | - | - |
| Best paying industry | - | - |
There are a few differences between a lead medical assistant and a medical assisting extern in terms of educational background:
| Lead Medical Assistant | Medical Assisting Extern | |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 27% | Bachelor's Degree, 34% |
| Most common major | Medical Assisting Services | Medical Assisting Services |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between lead medical assistants' and medical assisting externs' demographics:
| Lead Medical Assistant | Medical Assisting Extern | |
| Average age | 37 | 37 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 11.9% Female, 88.1% | Male, 24.3% Female, 75.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 26.6% Asian, 8.7% White, 49.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0% | Black or African American, 10.8% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 24.1% Asian, 9.6% White, 50.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |