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Medical investigator skills for your resume and career

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted experts

Erin Grinshteyn Ph.D.,

Erin Yelland Ph.D.

Below we've compiled a list of the most critical medical investigator skills. We ranked the top skills for medical investigators based on the percentage of resumes they appeared on. For example, 11.2% of medical investigator resumes contained law enforcement agencies as a skill. Continue reading to find out what skills a medical investigator needs to be successful in the workplace.

15 medical investigator skills for your resume and career

1. Law Enforcement Agencies

Here's how medical investigators use law enforcement agencies:

Liaised with local, state and federal law enforcement agencies on the role of medical investigators.
Provided training to investigators, hospitals along with local, state and federal law enforcement agencies.

2. Subpoenas

Subpoenas are formal and legal documents issued mostly by a court or some other government agency that demands the presence of the person the document is addressed to, to show up at court. Subpoenas are issued to individuals whom the court wants to appear either as a witness in a particular case in order to testify or to provide any evidence such as an object or a document.

Here's how medical investigators use subpoenas:

Prepare subpoenas to obtain medical records/other pertinent documents.

3. Medical History

Here's how medical investigators use medical history:

Review medical history of decedent with family/witnesses.
Performed medical history, physical examinations, and administered immunizations.

4. Body Fluids

Body fluid can be described as any fluid produced by a living organism e.g. human body. In the human body, the fluid can be classified into two major types according to their location: the intracellular fluid and the extracellular fluid. The extracellular fluid is located outside the cell(s) while the intracellular fluid is located within the cell(s).

Here's how medical investigators use body fluids:

Harvested various tissues and body fluids for chemical and cytopathology analyses.

5. Physician Assistants

A physician assistant has the prerequisite medical degree in the patient care field and is licensed to provide direct patient care. The role involves diagnosing and treating minor illnesses, providing medical counsel to patients, management of treatment plans, prescribing drugs, and general health care services to people of all ages.

Here's how medical investigators use physician assistants:

Used negotiation skills to assist with agreement between complainants and respondents (physicians, physician assistants and their attorneys).

6. Medicaid

Here's how medical investigators use medicaid:

Conducted extensive investigations of complaints against Physicians including Medicare and Medicaid fraud.
Participated in a leadership role in medical management representing the Medicaid department externally to owner hospitals and ancillary providers.

7. CPT

CPT is a medical term that stands for Current Procedural Terminology. Whenever a procedure like surgery or diagnosis occurs or some other medical service is rendered to a patient, it is reported to the concerned physician, insurance company, or organization. The aforementioned practice is widely referred to as CPT.

Here's how medical investigators use cpt:

Review existing CPT, DRG, ICD-9 diagnosis, and ICD-9 procedural codes to see if appropriate for new technology billing.
Review patient medical records and assigns appropriate codes using ICD-9 and CPT coding to format all encounters.

8. Death Investigations

Here's how medical investigators use death investigations:

Performed death investigations and autopsies to determine cause and manner of death.
Performed job duties with attention to the medicolegal aspects of death investigation and collected forensic evidence applicable to felony cases.

9. Lab Reports

Here's how medical investigators use lab reports:

Utilize DOH/MQA databases.Reviews/analyze medical hospital records, court records, lab reports, peer review records/other pertinent records.

10. Administrative Hearings

Administrative hearings are like trial proceedings done before an administrative agency or court judge. They are however shorter than regular trials but the evidence is provided and testimonies entertained just like fair hearings. However, administrative hearings are hearings that involve disputes under government agencies and are more informal in nature. The hearings are characterized by facts obtained and leads to the resolution of cases under the authority of government agencies.

Here's how medical investigators use administrative hearings:

Testify and/or present evidence at administrative hearings, depositions or trials.

11. Medical Investigations

Here's how medical investigators use medical investigations:

Managed medical investigations for 7 states and national investigations involving pharmacy trends.

12. FDA

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is a division of the US Department of Health and Human Services that regulates the production and sale of food, pharmaceutical products, medical equipment, and other consumer goods, as well as veterinary medicine. The FDA is now in charge of overseeing the manufacture of products like vaccines, allergy treatments, and beauty products.

Here's how medical investigators use fda:

Worked with marketing department on developing collateral materials and packaging for future FDA approval.
Assure compliance with FDA requirements as it affects Professional Medical Communications.

13. Medical Terminology

Here's how medical investigators use medical terminology:

Applied knowledge of medical terminology and adept at identifying and investigating coverage and fraud issues.
Performed secretarial duties, utilizing knowledge of medical terminology and hospital, clinic and laboratory procedures.

14. Death Scenes

Here's how medical investigators use death scenes:

Take photograhos of death scenes and prepare death scene diagrams.
Interview persons present at death scenes to obtain information useful in determining the manner of death.

15. External Examinations

Here's how medical investigators use external examinations:

Performed external examination on all bodies and documented findings in reports to pathologists.
Performed external examinations including drawing bodily fluids.

What skills help Medical Investigators find jobs?

Tell us what job you are looking for, we’ll show you what skills employers want.

What skills stand out on medical investigator resumes?

Erin Grinshteyn Ph.D.

Assistant Professor, University of San Francisco

I think this really depends on the field and is too broad for me to be able to comment on.

What soft skills should all medical investigators possess?

Erin Yelland Ph.D.

Associate Professor and Interim Director, Center on Aging, Associate Editor, Journal of Extension, Kansas State University

Demonstrated dedication to students and their academic success is critical. Being a great instructor isn't determined by how well you can stand in front of a classroom and lecture from a PowerPoint. A great instructor is instructional creative, passionate about each of their students, and committed to empowering their students to succeed academically and in their future profession. Listening, clear communication, patience, and supportive social skills all play a role in an instructor's effectiveness.

I dislike categorizing this as a soft skill, but it is often classified as such, so we will roll with it: diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). All instructors, not just good ones, must be committed to the DEI of students, staff, faculty, and the entire campus community. Period. It's a non-negotiable.

What hard/technical skills are most important for medical investigators?

Dr. Luis Fernandez

Professor and Chair, Northern Arizona University

Writing, writing, and wring. I can not emphasize enough how useful it is to be a clear and concise writer, regardless of the area in the criminal justice system you work in. It is a skill that takes some practice to master, but it pays off big in the end.

What medical investigator skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?

Kevin Whiteacre Ph.D.

Professor & Chair, University of Indianapolis

I think the general advice in #3 holds for them especially. It is also important to distinguish not being able to find a job from not being able to find some imaginary perfect job that fits some rigidly held ideal. Flexibility is key. This means openness to opportunities, to moving, to doing things not originally in your plans. Personally, if I got to do it over again, I would go into the Peace Corps after graduating. Grad school should be a distant plan B, unless you feel really, really called to that specific discipline. I used to hang a quote from poet Rodney Jones in the office for graduate student research assistants: "You better love poetry, because it won't love you back." Get experience and have experiences.

What type of skills will young medical investigators need?

Dr. Ashley Jennings

Assistant Professor of Aging Studies, Bethune-Cookman University

Graduates will need to be effective leaders as well as strong collaborators. They should be compassionate, innovative, adaptable, emotionally intelligent, community-centered, and proficient as older adult advocates; also they need to be researchers. There is room for creativity and entrepreneurship in the field of gerontology, to find untapped resources and niches. Young graduates can carve out a unique space in this field or pursue careers in established areas. More so, the opportunities are endless to use their voices to educate others on issues such as health equity, food insecurity, mental health issues, elder abuse, caregiver support, or ageism in the workforce. Lastly, it's important that graduates feel comfortable incorporating their lived experiences, drawing from them to be better critical thinkers and decision makers.

What technical skills for a medical investigator stand out to employers?

Amanda Kennedy

Associate Professor, Curry College

I cannot stress enough how important soft skills are! For college students (and high school students thinking about college), you should be focused on these even more than finding a major that "matches" your career goals. Being able to write succinctly and clearly; being able to communicate effectively and work with others on a team; and being able to critically evaluate information are probably the most important skills to aquire in college. They are valuable in every job setting, and every employer expects you to have them. I may be biased, but this is why I encourage students to major or minor in sociology (humanities are also great for these) above and beyond the pre-professional majors. You will learn industry specifics in your job, but you won't get that job if you can write well, speak clearly, and think critically.

Do you want to know more?

List of medical investigator skills to add to your resume

The most important skills for a medical investigator resume and required skills for a medical investigator to have include:

Law Enforcement Agencies
Subpoenas
Medical History
Body Fluids
Physician Assistants
Medicaid
CPT
Death Investigations

Lab Reports
Administrative Hearings
Medical Investigations
FDA
Medical Terminology
Death Scenes
External Examinations
Data Entry

Funeral Homes
Joint Investigations
Court Orders
Health Care Practitioners
Medical Professionals
Criminal Investigations
Death Certificates

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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Updated January 8, 2025

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