Patient access representative vs customer service representative

The differences between patient access representatives and customer service representatives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a patient access representative, becoming a customer service representative takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a patient access representative has an average salary of $33,603, which is higher than the $32,260 average annual salary of a customer service representative.

The top three skills for a patient access representative include patients, customer service and medical terminology. The most important skills for a customer service representative are cleanliness, POS, and data entry.

Patient access representative vs customer service representative overview

	Patient Access Representative	Customer Service Representative
Yearly salary	$33,603	$32,260
Hourly rate	$16.16	$15.51
Growth rate	-4%	-4%
Number of jobs	151,077	209,515
Job satisfaction	5	4
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 36%	High School Diploma, 33%
Average age	40	40
Years of experience	4	12

What does a patient access representative do?

A Patient Access Representative is the first point of contact of a patient in a hospital facility. Among the duties include the checking-in and out of a patient, gathering a patient's information for the Doctors and Nurses to use, communicates with the patient's family or caregivers, and processes insurance billing. Most of the time, A Patient Access Representative encounters the critically ill or injured which is why one must possess great communication skills and compassion.

What does a customer service representative do?

Customer service representatives are the first point of contact of the customers, acting as the frontiers of the company and help in driving customer loyalty and retention by leaving a great impression and resolving all of their concerns. They accommodate customer queries by providing useful and comprehensive information about any products or services. Some would use that as an opportunity to market and promote more sales. The most challenging issues they use to handle are customer complaints and processing of refunds and returns. They also assist in basic troubleshooting or accounts and payment setup with the use of specific guidelines or step by step procedures. At most, they help and solve customer issues on their own, but sometimes they would need support from supervisors or other departments.

Patient access representative vs customer service representative salary

Patient access representatives and customer service representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Patient Access Representative	Customer Service Representative
Average salary	$33,603	$32,260
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $41,000	Between $25,000 And $41,000
Highest paying City	Springfield, MA	Des Moines, WA
Highest paying state	Massachusetts	Washington
Best paying company	University of California, Berkeley	Oracle
Best paying industry	Health Care	Insurance

Differences between patient access representative and customer service representative education

There are a few differences between a patient access representative and a customer service representative in terms of educational background:

	Patient Access Representative	Customer Service Representative
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 36%	High School Diploma, 33%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	-

Patient access representative vs customer service representative demographics

Here are the differences between patient access representatives' and customer service representatives' demographics:

	Patient Access Representative	Customer Service Representative
Average age	40	40
Gender ratio	Male, 14.5% Female, 85.5%	Male, 30.5% Female, 69.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.5% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 19.9% Asian, 6.5% White, 55.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 11.6% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 21.2% Asian, 6.3% White, 55.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between patient access representative and customer service representative duties and responsibilities

Patient access representative example responsibilities.

Use EMR software to manage patient records and files; reinforce and uphold patient confidentiality as required by HIPPA and clinic.
Conduct intensive screening of all Medicare, Medicaid and manage care patients for provider service eligibility.
Educate eligible applicants about Medicaid manage care and how to access benefits in a manage care environment.
Run internal reports to ensure ICD 9 and CPT procedure codes are accurate for billing for Medicare and Medicaid patients.
Deliver quality customer service and compassion while obtaining demographic and financial data from patients seeking emergency medical services.
Operate front desk check-in, preparation of charts, receive payments and balance books at the end of the day.

Customer service representative example responsibilities.

Manage and plan escalations; assure HIPPA guidelines are followed for confidentially and privacy.
Maintain cleanliness and safety and assist patients as necessary.
Operate POS system and maintain exceptional and consistent customer service.
Exercise proofreading and basic math skills to maintain quality control over documents process
Work in customer service department entering information into customer relationship management (CRM).
Develop highly empathetic client relationships and earn reputation for exceeding good customer service rep goals.

Patient access representative vs customer service representative skills

Common patient access representative skills

Patients, 20%
Customer Service, 13%
Medical Terminology, 9%
Patient Care, 5%
Patient Registration, 5%
Insurance Verification, 4%

Common customer service representative skills

Cleanliness, 10%
POS, 7%
Data Entry, 6%
Sales Floor, 6%
Customer Service, 5%
Home Health, 5%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Patient Access Representative
Patient Access Representative vs Customer Service Representative

Updated January 8, 2025

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