Medical scribe vs clinical assistant

The differences between medical scribes and clinical assistants 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 scribe and a clinical assistant. Additionally, a clinical assistant has an average salary of $30,215, which is higher than the $30,045 average annual salary of a medical scribe.

The top three skills for a medical scribe include patients, medical terminology and excellent organizational. The most important skills for a clinical assistant are patients, customer service, and PET.

Medical scribe vs clinical assistant overview

	Medical Scribe	Clinical Assistant
Yearly salary	$30,045	$30,215
Hourly rate	$14.44	$14.53
Growth rate	16%	16%
Number of jobs	80,035	101,926
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 77%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Average age	37	37
Years of experience	12	12

What does a medical scribe do?

As a medical scribe, their main responsibility is to follow a physician's daily work and do charting of patient encounters in real-time by accessing their medical electronic health record (EHR). It is their duty to make sure the patient schedules are followed, generate referral letters for physicians and manage and sort medical documents within the EHR. Medical scribes can be held as data custodians, medical assistants, and nurses to focus on patient in-take and care throughout clinic hours. In addition, they manage patient flow through the clinic and increase productivity to cater to more patients.

What does a clinical assistant do?

A clinical assistant is responsible for assisting medical professionals with medical procedures and ensure a high level of patient care. Clinical assistants perform minor clinic procedures such as taking patients' temperature, sterilizing medical equipment, proper dumping of disposable items, responding to patients' inquiries and concerns, processing payments, arranging appointment schedules, and maintaining an organized record of patients' information, such as their medical history and health insurance records. A clinical assistant must strictly adhere to sanitary and hygienic procedures at all times to promote a safe and clean environment for the patients.

Medical scribe vs clinical assistant salary

Medical scribes and clinical assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Medical Scribe	Clinical Assistant
Average salary	$30,045	$30,215
Salary range	Between $23,000 And $38,000	Between $13,000 And $66,000
Highest paying City	Boston, MA	Brockton, MA
Highest paying state	Massachusetts	Massachusetts
Best paying company	Boston Medical Center	Columbia University in the City of New York
Best paying industry	Health Care	Pharmaceutical

Differences between medical scribe and clinical assistant education

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

	Medical Scribe	Clinical Assistant
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 77%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Most common major	Biology	Psychology
Most common college	-	-

Medical scribe vs clinical assistant demographics

Here are the differences between medical scribes' and clinical assistants' demographics:

	Medical Scribe	Clinical Assistant
Average age	37	37
Gender ratio	Male, 28.4% Female, 71.6%	Male, 18.4% Female, 81.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.0% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 24.3% Asian, 9.7% White, 50.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%	Black or African American, 11.1% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 21.1% Asian, 8.9% White, 53.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between medical scribe and clinical assistant duties and responsibilities

Medical scribe example responsibilities.

Manage sensitive and confidential materials such as patient health records following HIPAA regulations.
Adhere to OSHA guidelines while performing instrument sterilization in addition to managing medical inventory.
Rotate in internal medicine, surgery, obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics, orthopedic surgery, and burn medicine departments
Transcribe patient orders including laboratory tests results, radiology test findings, medications, allergies.
Utilize PC and LIS to enter and retrieve patient data, includes verifying orders and retrieving results using HIPAA compliance.
Perform Phlebotomy procedures on patients.

Clinical assistant example responsibilities.

Participate in multiple studies managing CTM activities for various therapeutic areas simultaneously including oncology, urology, transplant, and immunology.
Interview patients and interpret EKG recordings transmit via telephone.
Maintain CPR certification on yearly basis and perform errands as per the instructions of supervisor.
Act as a paramedic including CPR, heart defibrillator, first aid, emergency care.
Schedule necessary test such as nerve conductions studies, bone scans, and MRI's.
Conduct mini-meetings with small groups of doctors to encourage them to take ownership of their EMR forms.

Medical scribe vs clinical assistant skills

Common medical scribe skills

Patients, 18%
Medical Terminology, 17%
Excellent Organizational, 10%
Physician Assistants, 8%
Emergency Medicine, 6%
HIPAA, 4%

Common clinical assistant skills

Patients, 28%
Customer Service, 10%
PET, 8%
Vital Signs, 6%
CPR, 3%
Phlebotomy, 3%

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Healthcare Support Industry
Medical Scribe
Medical Scribe vs Clinical Assistant

Updated January 8, 2025

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