Medical administrator vs medical specialist

The differences between medical administrators and medical specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a medical administrator, becoming a medical specialist takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a medical specialist has an average salary of $40,277, which is higher than the $35,713 average annual salary of a medical administrator.

The top three skills for a medical administrator include patients, patient care and medical terminology. The most important skills for a medical specialist are patients, customer service, and patient care.

Medical administrator vs medical specialist overview

	Medical Administrator	Medical Specialist
Yearly salary	$35,713	$40,277
Hourly rate	$17.17	$19.36
Growth rate	-8%	16%
Number of jobs	104,510	68,607
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 33%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Average age	49	37
Years of experience	2	12

What does a medical administrator do?

A medical administrator is in charge of overseeing a medical facility's daily operations, ensuring the efficiency of all services and processes. Among their responsibilities include setting goals and guidelines, studying the feedback of different parties, gathering and analyzing data to identify areas needing improvement, planning and organizing new services and projects, managing the medical staff, and developing strategies to optimize operations. They may also develop training programs for new and current employees, coordinating with experts in the medical field. Furthermore, as a medical administrator, it is essential to lead the workforce while implementing the hospital's policies and regulations.

What does a medical specialist do?

Medical specialists are responsible for diagnosing patients and performing medical procedures according to their areas of expertise. They coordinate with the clinical team on administering medications, conducting laboratory examinations, and monitoring admitted patients, ensuring that they receive high-quality care services from the medical staff. A medical specialist also communicates with the patients' families to respond to their medical inquiries and concerns, as well as providing them with updates on the patients' progress. A medical specialist observes the cleanliness and orderliness of the facilities at all times, including the inspection of medical tools and equipment for operations.

Medical administrator vs medical specialist salary

Medical administrators and medical specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Medical Administrator	Medical Specialist
Average salary	$35,713	$40,277
Salary range	Between $28,000 And $45,000	Between $21,000 And $75,000
Highest paying City	Hillsborough, NJ	Boston, MA
Highest paying state	Connecticut	Massachusetts
Best paying company	W. R. Berkley	Adobe
Best paying industry	Finance	-

Differences between medical administrator and medical specialist education

There are a few differences between a medical administrator and a medical specialist in terms of educational background:

	Medical Administrator	Medical Specialist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 33%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Most common major	Business	Nursing
Most common college	-	-

Medical administrator vs medical specialist demographics

Here are the differences between medical administrators' and medical specialists' demographics:

	Medical Administrator	Medical Specialist
Average age	49	37
Gender ratio	Male, 23.0% Female, 77.0%	Male, 42.6% Female, 57.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 12.0% Asian, 3.8% White, 70.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 11.6% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 18.6% Asian, 9.0% White, 55.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	9%	6%

Differences between medical administrator and medical specialist duties and responsibilities

Medical administrator example responsibilities.

Facilitate client relationships and manage surgery schedules, financial consultations, follow up care and ongoing maintenance.
Maintain a working knowledge and understanding of CPT and ICD-10 codes.
Provide patients with information explaining hospital admission policies, time of admission, and HIPPA privacy guidelines.
Receive and fulfill requests for release of information to patients and external providers following HIPPA guidelines
Attend classes to improve proficiency in billing using CPT and ICD9 codes with special modifiers.
Verify coverage for third-party insurance, Medicaid, Medicare, and out of network benefits.

Medical specialist example responsibilities.

Administer first aid, medication, emergency medical treatment, CPR, triage, and evacuation procedures.
Provide tactical medical instruction and services in emergency medical care of patients in austere and complex, out-of-hospital environments.
Provide mass casualty triage support, including administering emergency treatment, stabilizing patients, and routing them to appropriate medical facilities.
Provide wound care, sutures, injections, and CPR as needed.
Take vitals, = collecting co-pays, appt scheduling, radiology scheduling, triage, etc.
Operate equipment such as: electrocardiograms (EKGs), external defibrillators, and bag-valve mask resuscitators in advance life-support environments.

Medical administrator vs medical specialist skills

Common medical administrator skills

Patients, 29%
Patient Care, 10%
Medical Terminology, 7%
HIPAA, 6%
CPT, 5%
Medicaid, 5%

Common medical specialist skills

Patients, 21%
Customer Service, 8%
Patient Care, 7%
Utilization Management, 5%
Medical Management, 4%
Patient Education, 4%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Medical Administrator
Medical Administrator vs Medical Specialist

Updated January 8, 2025

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