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The differences between medical records technicians and records specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a medical records technician and a records specialist. Additionally, a medical records technician has an average salary of $37,087, which is higher than the $33,273 average annual salary of a records specialist.
The top three skills for a medical records technician include patients, medical terminology and HIPAA. The most important skills for a records specialist are customer service, data entry, and office equipment.
| Medical Records Technician | Records Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $37,087 | $33,273 |
| Hourly rate | $17.83 | $16.00 |
| Growth rate | 11% | 11% |
| Number of jobs | 67,660 | 28,647 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 34% | Bachelor's Degree, 47% |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
A medical records technician is responsible for performing administrative duties, handling patients' medical records for medical purposes. Medical records technicians keep an organized database of patients' information, including medical history, diagnosis, healthcare treatments, laboratory schedules, and insurance details using specific healthcare coding procedures. Medical records technicians must be detail-oriented and highly organizational, especially on maintaining the accuracy and confidentiality of patients' information. This job is critical in the healthcare industry for the doctors' reference and determining treatment costs.
Records Specialists are administrative professionals who help manage the records of the company. These records may be physical documents or digital copies that are stored in a database. Records Specialists may assist in creating filing systems and knowledge management systems to ensure that the records they keep are easily accessible. They also keep an organized list or database of all the documents that are with them. Records Specialists are in charge of pulling up records upon the request of different departments or individuals. If they are working with physical copies, they ensure that these documents are returned to them. If they are working with digital copies, they ensure that the files they share are kept confidential. Records Specialists may also be in charge of analyzing trends and creating records-related reports.
Medical records technicians and records specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Medical Records Technician | Records Specialist | |
| Average salary | $37,087 | $33,273 |
| Salary range | Between $28,000 And $48,000 | Between $26,000 And $42,000 |
| Highest paying City | Long Branch, NJ | San Mateo, CA |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | Oregon |
| Best paying company | Guidehouse | Mt. San Antonio College |
| Best paying industry | Government | Government |
There are a few differences between a medical records technician and a records specialist in terms of educational background:
| Medical Records Technician | Records Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 34% | Bachelor's Degree, 47% |
| Most common major | Health Care Administration | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between medical records technicians' and records specialists' demographics:
| Medical Records Technician | Records Specialist | |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 18.8% Female, 81.2% | Male, 29.8% Female, 70.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.3% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 17.3% Asian, 8.7% White, 59.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3% | Black or African American, 8.9% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 17.5% Asian, 8.5% White, 59.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 9% |