Medical officer vs medical assistant

The differences between medical officers and medical assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a medical officer, becoming a medical assistant takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a medical officer has an average salary of $90,615, which is higher than the $34,900 average annual salary of a medical assistant.

The top three skills for a medical officer include patients, public health and infectious disease. The most important skills for a medical assistant are patients, vital signs, and patient care.

Medical officer vs medical assistant overview

	Medical Officer	Medical Assistant
Yearly salary	$90,615	$34,900
Hourly rate	$43.56	$16.78
Growth rate	28%	16%
Number of jobs	103,222	189,915
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Associate Degree, 24%
Average age	47	37
Years of experience	6	12

What does a medical officer do?

A Medical Officer delivers health and first-aid provisions for patients as well as prepares and maintains the paper and electronic health care records of clients. They ensure that all related equipment and supplies are suitably maintained at all times.

What does a medical assistant do?

Medical assistants provide support to medical practitioners in both administrative and clerical tasks. They keep and update the patient's medical records, administer medicines under the supervision of a physician, assist during medical examinations, prepare medical samples for laboratory testing, manage the schedule of appointments, and assist the patients with their bills and in filling out needed forms, such as insurance-related documents. Medical assistants should have good communication skills and analytical skills, be organized, and be flexible. They should also have knowledge of how to operate some medical equipment such as x-ray machines.

Medical officer vs medical assistant salary

Medical officers and medical assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Medical Officer	Medical Assistant
Average salary	$90,615	$34,900
Salary range	Between $34,000 And $236,000	Between $27,000 And $43,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	Vancouver, WA
Highest paying state	Maine	Alaska
Best paying company	FHCB Health System	Columbia University in the City of New York
Best paying industry	Health Care	Health Care

Differences between medical officer and medical assistant education

There are a few differences between a medical officer and a medical assistant in terms of educational background:

	Medical Officer	Medical Assistant
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Associate Degree, 24%
Most common major	Medicine	Medical Assisting Services
Most common college	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor	-

Medical officer vs medical assistant demographics

Here are the differences between medical officers' and medical assistants' demographics:

	Medical Officer	Medical Assistant
Average age	47	37
Gender ratio	Male, 60.9% Female, 39.1%	Male, 10.4% Female, 89.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.7% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 8.0% White, 60.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 10.2% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 25.7% Asian, 8.8% White, 49.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%
LGBT Percentage	12%	6%

Differences between medical officer and medical assistant duties and responsibilities

Medical officer example responsibilities.

Lead efforts to support and continually improve the coordination and delivery of oncology services using evidence base guidelines.
Perform emergency and elective surgery for both obstetrics and gynecology cases.
Provide guidance to industry, stakeholders, and other experts within FDA on clinical issues and clinical trial designs.
Enter and scan patient history, current medical conditions, medications, immunizations and labs into the novel EHR system.
Facilitate performance improvement initiatives for CME credit.
Provide physicians with assistance during surgery or complicate medical procedures.

Medical assistant example responsibilities.

Create and maintain confidential patient files; implement EHR systems to automate patient records management for the purposes of meaningful use.
Adhere to OSHA guidelines while performing instrument sterilization in addition to managing medical inventory.
Participate in emergency surgical intervention in obstetrics and gynecology patients.
Demonstrate proficiency in taking patient history and vitals, venipuncture, injections, urinalysis and preparing examination trays.
Attend to new out patients in gynecology clinic, make clinical diagnosis and follow up.
Provide RMA support to physician, and patients, including but not limit to vitals and patient history.

Medical officer vs medical assistant skills

Common medical officer skills

Patients, 20%
Public Health, 17%
Infectious Disease, 8%
Diagnosis, 7%
Direct Patient Care, 4%
Internal Medicine, 4%

Common medical assistant skills

Patients, 20%
Vital Signs, 10%
Patient Care, 9%
Phlebotomy, 4%
CPR, 4%
EKG, 4%

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Medical Officer vs Medical Assistant

Updated January 8, 2025

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