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The differences between licensed nursing assistants and certified medical assistants/certified nurse assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-3 months to become both a licensed nursing assistant and a certified medical assistant/certified nurse assistant. Additionally, a licensed nursing assistant has an average salary of $41,395, which is higher than the $36,382 average annual salary of a certified medical assistant/certified nurse assistant.
The top three skills for a licensed nursing assistant include patients, vital signs and LNA. The most important skills for a certified medical assistant/certified nurse assistant are patients, vital signs, and CPR.
| Licensed Nursing Assistant | Certified Medical Assistant/Certified Nurse Assistant | |
| Yearly salary | $41,395 | $36,382 |
| Hourly rate | $19.90 | $17.49 |
| Growth rate | 9% | 9% |
| Number of jobs | 258,713 | 350,499 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 3.5 |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 25% | Associate Degree, 26% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 3 | 3 |
A licensed or certified nursing assistant (CNA) is a healthcare professional who is responsible for providing basic health care to patients in medical settings. Under the supervision of a registered nurse, licensed nursing assistants help in repositioning bedridden patients as well as take vital signs of patients such as temperature and blood pressure. They can work with medical technology such as billing, health information, and medical recording charting software. Depending on their level of training and state regulations, licensed nursing staff can also administer medication to patients.
A certified medical assistant (CMA) or certified nurse assistant (CNA) is a healthcare professional who performs clinical and administrative duties in clinics or medical facilities. Certified medical assistants provide excellent customer service to patients arriving and departing from the medical facility and administer injections or medications to their patients. In administrative duties, certified medical assistants are tasked to help clients submit insurance claims and encode medical records to the computer system. They also can work with specialized physicians such as ophthalmologists and podiatrists.
Licensed nursing assistants and certified medical assistants/certified nurse assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Licensed Nursing Assistant | Certified Medical Assistant/Certified Nurse Assistant | |
| Average salary | $41,395 | $36,382 |
| Salary range | Between $30,000 And $56,000 | Between $27,000 And $47,000 |
| Highest paying City | Union City, CA | Los Angeles, CA |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | Hawaii |
| Best paying company | Cornerstone VNA | Aya Healthcare |
| Best paying industry | Education | Health Care |
There are a few differences between a licensed nursing assistant and a certified medical assistant/certified nurse assistant in terms of educational background:
| Licensed Nursing Assistant | Certified Medical Assistant/Certified Nurse Assistant | |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 25% | Associate Degree, 26% |
| Most common major | Nursing | Nursing |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between licensed nursing assistants' and certified medical assistants/certified nurse assistants' demographics:
| Licensed Nursing Assistant | Certified Medical Assistant/Certified Nurse Assistant | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 10.0% Female, 90.0% | Male, 10.5% Female, 89.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 7.3% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 12.0% Asian, 6.3% White, 68.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% | Black or African American, 8.6% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 6.8% White, 64.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |