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The differences between medical scribes and medical writers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-12 months to become a medical scribe, becoming a medical writer takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a medical writer has an average salary of $93,842, 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 medical writer are medical writing, patients, and clinical research.
| Medical Scribe | Medical Writer | |
| Yearly salary | $30,045 | $93,842 |
| Hourly rate | $14.44 | $45.12 |
| Growth rate | 16% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 80,035 | 59,516 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 77% | Bachelor's Degree, 57% |
| Average age | 37 | 46 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 2 |
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.
As the name entails, medical writers produce technical, educational, promotional, and technical content. They typically work with physicians, scientists, and subject matter experts to produce documentation that defines product usage and research results. Their duties and responsibilities may vary, but they perform some common tasks, including developing documentation related to clinical trials, creating monographs, and developing promotional materials. Medical writers are also responsible for creating grant proposals, writing newspaper and magazine articles, and creating presentations for conferences.
Medical scribes and medical writers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Medical Scribe | Medical Writer | |
| Average salary | $30,045 | $93,842 |
| Salary range | Between $23,000 And $38,000 | Between $63,000 And $137,000 |
| Highest paying City | Boston, MA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | Massachusetts | Virginia |
| Best paying company | Boston Medical Center | Biogen |
| Best paying industry | Health Care | - |
There are a few differences between a medical scribe and a medical writer in terms of educational background:
| Medical Scribe | Medical Writer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 77% | Bachelor's Degree, 57% |
| Most common major | Biology | Biology |
| Most common college | - | University of Southern California |
Here are the differences between medical scribes' and medical writers' demographics:
| Medical Scribe | Medical Writer | |
| Average age | 37 | 46 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 28.4% Female, 71.6% | Male, 33.6% Female, 66.4% |
| 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, 6.6% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 8.7% White, 71.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 11% |