What does a medical records manager do?

The main job of a medical records manager is to secure and maintain electronic and written data within a medical records department. Medical records managers retrieve patient records for medical personnel and physicians. They supervise the department's employees. It is their responsibility to document a patient's health information, which may include symptoms, histories, and exam results. They ensure that the confidentiality of patients will follow the proper record-keeping practices. Also, they manage electronic health records and computer software.
Medical records manager responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real medical records manager resumes:
- Manage 2nd/ 3rd and weekend shift supervisors and staff and develop unit (s) QA activities.
- Achieve this goal by providing clear policies/justification for initiatives which impact designated FTE's.
- Prepare documents for FOIA requests.
- Assign ICD-9 and CPT medical codes.
- Have knowledge of the latest CPT coding.
- Ensure compliance with medical/legal requirements, JCAHO standards.
- Track staff training requirements; update SharePoint with training metrics.
- Control SharePoint and Intranet sites including features, permissions and training.
- Brief and receive approval from senior officials and NARA for N1-257-11-1.
- Retire non-current records to agency staging and holding areas or to the NARA.
- Provide written and oral LCMS procedural guidance and customer support to DOD COMSEC accounts.
- Assist doctors and nursing staff in the navigation of document location within the Cerner application.
- Orient and train new providers and clinical / clerical staff on the use of the EHR.
- Handle the posting of all payments via mail and electronic payments through clearing house into EHR system.
- Attend depositions and appear in court in response to subpoenas, court orders; prepare affidavits; notarization of medical records.
Medical records manager skills and personality traits
We calculated that 29% of Medical Records Managers are proficient in Patients, HIPAA, and Patient Care. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Detail oriented, and Integrity.
We break down the percentage of Medical Records Managers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Patients, 29%
Acted as a liaison between in-patient facility and referral facilities/agencies and provides case management to patients referred.
- HIPAA, 10%
Directed management of all IT privacy and compliance activities and administration of breach investigation proceedings for HIPAA and international compliance requirements.
- Patient Care, 10%
Maintain a high level of patient care by assisting with phones, triage, scheduling and referrals and EKG's.
- EHR, 4%
Collaborated with the Medical Director and senior leadership to replace paper records system with EHR in Heritage Medical Group offices.
- Hippa, 4%
Performed initial planning to go-live activities including data security in compliance with HIPPA guidelines.
- Medical Terminology, 4%
Performed secretarial duties, utilizing knowledge of medical terminology and hospital, clinic and laboratory procedures.
Most medical records managers use their skills in "patients," "hipaa," and "patient care" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential medical records manager responsibilities here:
Analytical skills. The most essential soft skill for a medical records manager to carry out their responsibilities is analytical skills. This skill is important for the role because "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, a medical records manager resume shows how their duties depend on analytical skills: "adjudicated all problem insurance claims and supervised data entry staff. "
Detail oriented. Many medical records manager duties rely on detail oriented. "health information technicians must be accurate when recording and coding patient information.," so a medical records manager will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways medical records manager responsibilities rely on detail oriented: "transcribed medical reports and prepare detailed reports on audit findings. "
Integrity. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of medical records managers is integrity. This skill is critical to many everyday medical records manager duties, as "health information technicians work with patient data that are required, by law, to be kept confidential." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "manage all inpatient & outpatient icd-9 & cpt coding, (uncoded claims management, revenue integrity and charge-master analysis). "
Technical skills. A big part of what medical records managers do relies on "technical skills." You can see how essential it is to medical records manager responsibilities because "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." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical medical records manager tasks: "provided statistical data, expert advice, guidance, and technical assistance to senior executives with respect to directives. "
The three companies that hire the most medical records managers are:
- Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare3 medical records managers jobs
- Tenet Healthcare2 medical records managers jobs
- Universal Health Services2 medical records managers jobs
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Medical records manager vs. Health information technician
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.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, medical records manager responsibilities require skills like "ehr," "physician orders," "front desk," and "federal regulations." Meanwhile a typical health information technician has skills in areas such as "customer service," "data entry," "office equipment," and "transcription." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Health information technicians really shine in the government industry with an average salary of $35,705. Comparatively, medical records managers tend to make the most money in the technology industry with an average salary of $74,417.The education levels that health information technicians earn slightly differ from medical records managers. In particular, health information technicians are 3.0% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a medical records manager. Additionally, they're 0.4% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Medical records manager vs. Release of information specialist
A release of information specialist is primarily in charge of retrieving and releasing data to qualified recipients while adhering to the guidelines and confidentiality protocols that aim to protect sensitive information. Although the extent of their responsibilities usually depends on their industry or company of employment, it usually includes maintaining records of procedures and transactions, preparing and processing documents, organizing files, producing progress reports to managers, and keeping an eye out for any inconsistencies, resolving them promptly and efficiently.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, medical records manager responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "physician orders," "patient data," "chart audits," and "cpt." Meanwhile, a release of information specialist has duties that require skills in areas such as "customer service," "data entry," "phone calls," and "quality checks." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
Releases of information specialist earn a lower average salary than medical records managers. But releases of information specialist earn the highest pay in the insurance industry, with an average salary of $51,336. Additionally, medical records managers earn the highest salaries in the technology with average pay of $74,417 annually.In general, releases of information specialist achieve similar levels of education than medical records managers. They're 3.9% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.4% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Medical records manager vs. Reimbursement specialist
A reimbursement specialist is responsible for analyzing insurance documents, processing reimbursement claims, and releasing accurate billing statements for insurance claims. Reimbursement specialists must have excellent analytical skills, especially on performing clerical tasks to evaluate insurance cases, investigate cases, and update the account information of the clients on the database. They should also have impeccable communication skills and understanding of the insurance processes to be able to coordinate with the clients, explaining the procedures of their claims accurately, and coordinate with the insurance management to improve the claims processes.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, medical records managers are more likely to have skills like "patient care," "ehr," "physician orders," and "patient charts." But a reimbursement specialist is more likely to have skills like "customer service," "appeals," "medicare," and "hcpcs."
Reimbursement specialists make a very good living in the pharmaceutical industry with an average annual salary of $41,366. On the other hand, medical records managers are paid the highest salary in the technology industry, with average annual pay of $74,417.When it comes to education, reimbursement specialists tend to earn similar degree levels compared to medical records managers. In fact, they're 1.8% less likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.4% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Medical records manager vs. 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.
Types of medical records manager
Updated January 8, 2025











