Medical office administrator vs patient care specialist

The differences between medical office administrators and patient care 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 office administrator, becoming a patient care specialist takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a medical office administrator has an average salary of $34,252, which is higher than the $34,157 average annual salary of a patient care specialist.

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

Medical office administrator vs patient care specialist overview

	Medical Office Administrator	Patient Care Specialist
Yearly salary	$34,252	$34,157
Hourly rate	$16.47	$16.42
Growth rate	-8%	-4%
Number of jobs	179,503	146,861
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 31%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Average age	49	40
Years of experience	2	4

What does a medical office administrator do?

A medical office administrator is responsible for performing administrative and clerical duties within a health care institution, supplying physicians and medical professionals with patients' information, and coordinating with insurance companies. Medical office administrators handle the information and data management system to ensure the accuracy of patients' details, medical history, and treatment plans. They also schedule doctor appointments and cancellations, as well as monitoring the inventory of medical supplies. A medical office administrator submits payment reports, respond to patients' inquiries and concerns, and process billing disputes.

What does a patient care specialist do?

A patient service or care specialist works at different medical facilities. Primary responsibilities include checking patients in and out, scheduling follow-up appointments as well as checking patient eligibility for services or programs. Patient service specialists should maintain a systematic referral log to correlate patient referrals to other specialists. Applicants for the job should have the basic computer knowledge to effectively manage data of patient's files, knowledge of medical terminologies, and possess good interpersonal and customer service skills.

Medical office administrator vs patient care specialist salary

Medical office administrators and patient care specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Medical Office Administrator	Patient Care Specialist
Average salary	$34,252	$34,157
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $41,000	Between $20,000 And $55,000
Highest paying City	Anchorage, AK	Boston, MA
Highest paying state	Alaska	Massachusetts
Best paying company	University of California, Berkeley	KPG
Best paying industry	Health Care	Health Care

Differences between medical office administrator and patient care specialist education

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

	Medical Office Administrator	Patient Care Specialist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 31%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Most common major	Health Care Administration	Business
Most common college	-	University of Pennsylvania

Medical office administrator vs patient care specialist demographics

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

	Medical Office Administrator	Patient Care Specialist
Average age	49	40
Gender ratio	Male, 9.4% Female, 90.6%	Male, 20.3% Female, 79.7%
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, 11.7% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 21.1% Asian, 6.3% White, 55.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	9%	7%

Differences between medical office administrator and patient care specialist duties and responsibilities

Medical office administrator example responsibilities.

Re-Evaluat & improve policy manual, develop standards for HIPPA, OSHA, manage care, billing and medical compliance.
Facilitate client relationships and manage surgery schedules, financial consultations, follow up care and ongoing maintenance.
Used knowledge of medical procedures and customer service, record medical histories and schedule patients for hospitalization and other procedures.
Scan new information such as daily progress notes, physical exams, labs and diagnostic testing into EMR.
Advise and counsel patient regarding food, fluid, medicine intake and restrictions prior to surgery including drop regime.
Organize patient charts and loose reports, as well as paper work from daily operations for scanning into EMR system.

Patient care specialist example responsibilities.

Use EMR software to manage patient records and files; reinforce and uphold patient confidentiality as required by HIPAA and clinic.
Utilize software applications to document call interactions using medical terminology and responsible for initially engaging patients by explaining the services.
Verify CPT codes along with diagnosis code for guarantee payment for surgeries.
Process daily fee tickets and correctly enter office visit ICD 9 and CPT codes into the system for billing.
Adhere to HIPPA confidentiality guidelines.
Track Medicaid eligibility of clients.

Medical office administrator vs patient care specialist skills

Common medical office administrator skills

Patients, 21%
Patient Care, 10%
Customer Service, 8%
Insurance Verification, 5%
Phone Calls, 5%
Appointment Scheduling, 4%

Common patient care specialist skills

Patients, 33%
Patient Care, 17%
Data Entry, 5%
Medical Terminology, 4%
CPT, 2%
CPR, 2%

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Medical Office Administrator
Medical Office Administrator vs Patient Care Specialist

Updated January 8, 2025

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