Medical records clerks are employees in hospitals or clinics who manage office records. They are in charge of creating, updating, and filing patient-related medical records and other related documents. They ensure that all documents are correctly filled out and labeled before storing them safely in their respective storage areas. They may also be in charge of digitizing forms for easier access to files and back up purposes. They ensure that medical records are exact and updated. Medical records clerks should be organized and must always be on top of all tasks related to patient or medical records.

Medical Records Clerk Responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real medical records clerk resumes representing typical tasks they are likely to perform in their roles.

  • Manage transition from in-house transcription system to outsource transcription service.
  • Manage front office check-in, insurance verification and certifications from doctors.
  • Accept and process healthcare claims and confidential medical records; verify patient eligibility and manage the Medicare and Medicaid billing process.
  • Perform infant labs and update the system with results, triage incoming patients, perform necessary resuscitation to baby and mom.
  • Provide information to medical facilities and patients when necessary and respond to subpoenas and other general release of patient information.
  • Experience in CPT and ICD-10 coding.
  • Have a working knowledge of ICD-9-CM, CPT-4 and HCPCS coding.
  • Help student with reading and math.
  • Receive medical EOB's and investigate denials.
  • Post private money and insurance EOB's.
  • Supply correct HCPCS code on all procedures and services perform.
  • Train newly hire front end workers to use EMR and schedule appointment.
  • Sign out charts in MEDITECH computerize chart locator and sign in return charts.
  • Perform EKG and ICG, monitors blood flow through the arteries, machines.
  • Handle office heavy call volume from hospitals, attorneys, and MRI facilities.

Medical Records Clerk Skills and Personality Traits

We calculated that 27% of Medical Records Clerks are proficient in Patients, Customer Service, and Data Entry. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Integrity, and Technical skills.

We break down the percentage of Medical Records Clerks that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Patients, 27%

    Verified medical entitlements, coordinated benefits with medical providers, private hospital and other Veterans Administrations for patients transfers.

  • Customer Service, 9%

    Processed medical records request in efficient manner ensuring accuracy and provided customer with the highest quality product and customer service.

  • Data Entry, 7%

    Performed data entry, digital scanning and tracking of records ensuring confidentiality and proper storage/destruction of files were maintained.

  • Medical Terminology, 6%

    Required contact with various doctors and their offices to find requested information, also required familiarity with transcription and medical terminology.

  • HIPAA, 5%

    Maintained patient confidence and protected hospital operations by keeping information confidential; following release-of-information or HIPAA protocols.

  • Patient Care, 4%

    Conducted patient care evaluation studies and prepared cancer-related statistical reports as requested by the Cancer Committee or hospital administration.

Most medical records clerks list "patients," "customer service," and "data entry" as skills on their resumes. We go into more details on the most important medical records clerk responsibilities here:

  • Arguably the most important personality trait for a medical records clerk to have happens to be analytical skills. An example from a resume said this about the skill, "health information technicians must understand and follow medical records and diagnoses, and then decide how best to code them in a patient’s medical records." Additionally, other resumes have pointed out that medical records clerks can use analytical skills to "served as a receptionist and medical records clerk filing, data entry, scheduling appointments, taking incoming calls and messages. "
  • Another commonly found skill for being able to perform medical records clerk duties is the following: integrity. According to a medical records clerk resume, "health information technicians work with patient data that are required, by law, to be kept confidential." Check out this example of how medical records clerks use integrity: "evaluated & corrected duplicate medical record numbers for patient data integrity and continuity of patient care. "
  • Another skill that is quite popular among medical records clerks is technical skills. This skill is very critical to fulfilling every day responsibilities as is shown in this example from a medical records clerk resume: "health information technicians must use coding and classification software and the electronic health record (ehr) system that their healthcare organization or physician practice has adopted." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "maintained the technical process of international classification of disease icd-9 cm & cpt coding and diagnosis retaliated group (drg). "
  • In order for certain medical records clerk responsibilities to be completed, the job requires the skill "detail oriented." According to a medical records clerk resume, "health information technicians must be accurate when recording and coding patient information." As an example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies: "maintained updated patients records documented patient details including the treatments and personal facts while scheduling appointments. "
  • Yet another important skill that a medical records clerk must demonstrate is "interpersonal skills." Health information technicians need to be able to discuss patient information, discrepancies, and data requirements with other professionals such as physicians and finance personnel. This is clearly demonstrated in this example from a medical records clerk who stated: "demonstrated exceptional customer service and interpersonal skills by helping funeral directors and families with retrieving signed death certificates immediately. "
  • See the full list of medical records clerk skills.

    Choose From 10+ Customizable Medical Records Clerk Resume templates

    Build a professional Medical Records Clerk resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Medical Records Clerk resume.

    Medical Records Clerk Resume
    Medical Records Clerk Resume
    Medical Records Clerk Resume
    Medical Records Clerk Resume
    Medical Records Clerk Resume
    Medical Records Clerk Resume
    Medical Records Clerk Resume
    Medical Records Clerk Resume
    Medical Records Clerk Resume
    Medical Records Clerk Resume
    Medical Records Clerk Resume
    Medical Records Clerk Resume
    Medical Records Clerk Resume
    Medical Records Clerk Resume
    Medical Records Clerk Resume
    Medical Records Clerk Resume

    resume document icon

    Don't Have A Professional Resume?

    What Health Information Technicians Do

    A health information technician is primarily responsible for managing and handling patient information, ensuring accuracy and confidentiality. They coordinate with various health care workers to gather patient data, laboratory results, test findings, and medical histories, encoding them in clinical databases in a timely and efficient manner. They must analyze every information to detect any inconsistencies, performing corrective measures right away. Furthermore, as a health information technician, it is essential to utilize particular software and systems when processing information, all while adhering to the hospital's policies and regulations.

    We looked at the average medical records clerk annual salary and compared it with the average of a health information technician. Generally speaking, health information technicians receive $2,113 higher pay than medical records clerks per year.

    While their salaries may differ, one common ground between medical records clerks and health information technicians are a few of the skills required in each craft. In both careers, employees bring forth skills like patients, customer service, and data entry.

    These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. A medical records clerk responsibility is more likely to require skills like "basic math," "math," "english language," and "scheduling appointments." Whereas a health information technician requires skills like "transcription," "rehabilitation," "chart completion," and "statistical reports." Just by understanding these different skills you can see how different these careers are.

    Health information technicians tend to make the most money in the government industry by averaging a salary of $35,705. In contrast, medical records clerks make the biggest average salary of $32,510 in the health care industry.

    Health information technicians tend to reach similar levels of education than medical records clerks. In fact, health information technicians are 1.4% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.0% more likely to have a Doctoral Degree.

    What Are The Duties Of a Health Information Specialist?

    A health information specialist is in charge of overseeing and developing strategies to optimize information management procedures in hospitals, physicians' offices, and other similar environments. Their responsibilities revolve around gathering and updating medical records, receiving and organizing files, and updating databases according to the appropriate coding systems and procedures. Furthermore, as a health information specialist, it is essential to coordinate with nurses and other staff to ensure accuracy in documentation, all while adhering to the company's policies and regulations.

    Next up, we have the health information specialist profession to look over. This career brings along a higher average salary when compared to a medical records clerk annual salary. In fact, health information specialists salary difference is $852 higher than the salary of medical records clerks per year.

    A similarity between the two careers of medical records clerks and health information specialists are a few of the skills associated with both roles. We used resumes from both professions to find that both use skills like "patients," "data entry," and "medical terminology. "

    But both careers also use different skills, according to real medical records clerk resumes. While medical records clerk responsibilities can utilize skills like "customer service," "basic math," "math," and "english language," some health information specialists use skills like "excellent organizational," "cycle management," "cerner," and "home health."

    Health information specialists may earn a higher salary than medical records clerks, but health information specialists earn the most pay in the health care industry with an average salary of $33,177. On the other side of things, medical records clerks receive higher paychecks in the health care industry where they earn an average of $32,510.

    In general, health information specialists study at similar levels of education than medical records clerks. They're 2.6% more likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.0% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

    How a Clerk Compares

    Clerks are responsible for many of the general administrative tasks in the office. They are in charge of manning office telephone lines, managing incoming and outgoing mails, filing paperwork and other needed records, scheduling and documenting meetings, typing out documents when needed, disseminating memos and other official announcements, and keeping an inventory of office equipment and supplies. Clerks should have good office skills, communication skills, business writing skills, and time management skills. They should also be able to treat any document or paperwork they handle with confidentiality.

    Let's now take a look at the clerk profession. On average, these workers make lower salaries than medical records clerks with a $1,328 difference per year.

    By looking over several medical records clerks and clerks resumes, we found that both roles utilize similar skills, such as "customer service," "data entry," and "basic math." But beyond that the careers look very different.

    Some important key differences between the two careers are a few of the skills necessary to fulfill responsibilities. Some examples from medical records clerk resumes include skills like "patients," "medical terminology," "hipaa," and "patient care," whereas a clerk might be skilled in "cleanliness," "pos," "customer satisfaction," and "sales floor. "

    Interestingly enough, clerks earn the most pay in the health care industry, where they command an average salary of $31,380. As mentioned previously, medical records clerks highest annual salary comes from the health care industry with an average salary of $32,510.

    When it comes to education, clerks tend to earn similar education levels than medical records clerks. In fact, they're 0.4% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.6% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

    Description Of an Admitting Clerk

    The job of an admitting clerk is to register and admit patients to a hospital. Admitting clerks interview patients in getting the necessary financial and medical information for the admission. They verify the insurance of patients and make sure that their registration forms are accurately signed. Usually, they work on the medical profession and hospital front lines. They welcome and face customers and need to understand medicine. Also, they are expected to manage doctors, nurses, patients, and hospital policies.

    The fourth career we look at typically earns lower pay than medical records clerks. On average, admitting clerks earn a difference of $658 lower per year.

    While both medical records clerks and admitting clerks complete day-to-day tasks using similar skills like patients, customer service, and data entry, the two careers also vary in other skills.

    Even though a few skill sets overlap, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a medical records clerk might have more use for skills like "basic math," "math," "english language," and "scheduling appointments." Meanwhile, some admitting clerks might include skills like "phone calls," "patient registration," "surgery," and "insurance cards" on their resume.

    Admitting clerks reach similar levels of education when compared to medical records clerks. The difference is that they're 0.2% more likely to earn a Master's Degree less, and 0.0% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.