What does a medical investigator do?
Medical investigator responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real medical investigator resumes:
- Manage and facilitate manuscript preparation of oncology clinical trials results arising from currently market and pipeline drugs.
- Identify trends and establish corrective procedures to maintain FDA compliance and customer satisfaction.
- Supervise activities of analytical cellular and molecular immunology laboratories.
- Perform QC of various documents to include PSURs, PADERs, CSRs, CTDs, and other regulatory aggregate reports.
- Supervise activities of analytical cellular and molecular immunology laboratories.
Medical investigator skills and personality traits
We calculated that 11% of Medical Investigators are proficient in Law Enforcement Agencies, Subpoenas, and Medical History. They’re also known for soft skills such as Observation skills, Communication skills, and Analytical skills.
We break down the percentage of Medical Investigators that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Law Enforcement Agencies, 11%
Liaised with local, state and federal law enforcement agencies on the role of medical investigators.
- Subpoenas, 11%
Prepare subpoenas to obtain medical records/other pertinent documents.
- Medical History, 9%
Review medical history of decedent with family/witnesses.
- Body Fluids, 8%
Harvested various tissues and body fluids for chemical and cytopathology analyses.
- Physician Assistants, 7%
Used negotiation skills to assist with agreement between complainants and respondents (physicians, physician assistants and their attorneys).
- Medicaid, 5%
Conducted extensive investigations of complaints against Physicians including Medicare and Medicaid fraud.
Common skills that a medical investigator uses to do their job include "law enforcement agencies," "subpoenas," and "medical history." You can find details on the most important medical investigator responsibilities below.
Observation skills. One of the key soft skills for a medical investigator to have is observation skills. You can see how this relates to what medical investigators do because "medical scientists conduct experiments that require monitoring samples and other health-related data." Additionally, a medical investigator resume shows how medical investigators use observation skills: "observe patients, listen to their concerns, record observations and report to mental health professionals about any unusual behavior. "
Communication skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling medical investigator duties is communication skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "medical scientists must be able to explain their research in nontechnical ways." According to a medical investigator resume, here's how medical investigators can utilize communication skills in their job responsibilities: "understand patients' needs and concerns through effective communication and presentation of procedural benefits. "
The three companies that hire the most medical investigators are:
- Presbyterian2 medical investigators jobs
- State of Arizona1 medical investigators jobs
- Univera
1 medical investigators jobs
Compare different medical investigators
Medical investigator vs. Research fellow
A research fellow is an academic researcher who conducts research and analysis of comprehensive literature, data, and results and provides literature reviews. He/She supervises research assistants and recruits study participants to interview them for a particular study. To become a research fellow, a candidate should have a doctorate in a relevant discipline and publish peer-reviewed papers. Also, a research fellow can be an independent investigator or be supervised by a principal investigator.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, medical investigator responsibilities require skills like "law enforcement agencies," "omi," "subpoenas," and "medical history." Meanwhile a typical research fellow has skills in areas such as "patients," "research projects," "data analysis," and "cell culture." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
On average, research fellows reach higher levels of education than medical investigators. Research fellows are 7.5% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 29.0% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Medical investigator vs. Staff scientist
The primary role of a Staff Scientist is to develop and manage scientific research projects with minimal supervision. They are also responsible for the technical and budgetary aspects of scientific research projects.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, medical investigator responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "law enforcement agencies," "omi," "subpoenas," and "medical history." Meanwhile, a staff scientist has duties that require skills in areas such as "data analysis," "research projects," "molecular biology," and "next-generation sequencing." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
Average education levels between the two professions vary. Staff scientists tend to reach similar levels of education than medical investigators. In fact, they're 1.9% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 29.0% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Medical investigator vs. Fellow
A fellow's responsibility will depend on the organization or industry where one belongs. However, most of the time, a fellow's duty will revolve around conducting research and analysis, presiding discussions and attending dialogues, handle lectures while complying with the guidelines or tasks set by supervisors, and assist in various projects and activities. Furthermore, a fellow must adhere to the institution or organization's policies and regulations at all times, meet all the requirements and outputs involved, and coordinate with every person in the workforce.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, medical investigators are more likely to have skills like "law enforcement agencies," "omi," "subpoenas," and "medical history." But a fellow is more likely to have skills like "patients," "professional development," "veterans," and "mathematics."
Fellows typically earn higher educational levels compared to medical investigators. Specifically, they're 5.3% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 10.9% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Medical investigator vs. Laboratory researcher
Laboratory researchers are professionals who manage a research laboratory while performing cellular and biochemical experiments with the primary researcher. These researchers must work with hazardous chemicals and should show expertise in handling lab equipment such as glassware and field equipment. They are required to assist with research projects and interpret the test data of an experiment. They must manage the order of all lab equipment by filling up the purchase requisition forms. Laboratory researchers are required to work with students in all aspects of laboratory research.
Types of medical investigator
Updated January 8, 2025
