Patient advocate vs ombudsman

The differences between patient advocates and ombudsmen 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 advocate, becoming an ombudsman takes usually requires More than 10 years. Additionally, an ombudsman has an average salary of $73,497, which is higher than the $36,325 average annual salary of a patient advocate.

The top three skills for a patient advocate include patients, customer service and patient care. The most important skills for an ombudsman are mediation, long-term care facilities, and conflict resolution.

Patient advocate vs ombudsman overview

	Patient Advocate	Ombudsman
Yearly salary	$36,325	$73,497
Hourly rate	$17.46	$35.34
Growth rate	-4%	6%
Number of jobs	88,778	1,305
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 50%	Bachelor's Degree, 62%
Average age	40	46
Years of experience	4	-

Patient advocate vs ombudsman salary

Patient advocates and ombudsmen have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Patient Advocate	Ombudsman
Average salary	$36,325	$73,497
Salary range	Between $29,000 And $45,000	Between $43,000 And $122,000
Highest paying City	Springfield, MA	-
Highest paying state	Massachusetts	-
Best paying company	Cognizant	-
Best paying industry	Health Care	-

Differences between patient advocate and ombudsman education

There are a few differences between a patient advocate and an ombudsman in terms of educational background:

	Patient Advocate	Ombudsman
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 50%	Bachelor's Degree, 62%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Southern California

Patient advocate vs ombudsman demographics

Here are the differences between patient advocates' and ombudsmen' demographics:

	Patient Advocate	Ombudsman
Average age	40	46
Gender ratio	Male, 17.5% Female, 82.5%	Male, 22.7% Female, 77.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.5% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 23.6% Asian, 6.8% White, 53.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 5.6% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 6.4% White, 75.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	7%	10%

Differences between patient advocate and ombudsman duties and responsibilities

Patient advocate example responsibilities.

Manage the complaint process as required by CMS for the hospital.
Provide support for emergencies by managing inappropriate behaviors, aggressive patients, CPR and persons in crisis.
Train to welcome and register patients at ESI triage window.
Document patients medical problems using ICD 9 and CPT coding for patients diagnosis.
Pull any incoming referrals, triage them, and schedule patients with the appropriate doctor.
Collect and review patient information to determine patients' eligibility for Medicaid and charity program assistance.

Ombudsman example responsibilities.

Facilitate development of veterans individual rehabilitation plans, which provide purpose, organization and empowerment to achieve life goals.
Mediate disputes between residents, families, and nursing home administration.
Organize family day meeting for those with soldiers and sailors on deployment.
Review serious issue cases to determine if the issues warrant OPM action.
Maintain good relationships with the chain of command, sailors, and military families.
Collaborate in the development of student's IEP plans and actively participate in IEP meetings.

Patient advocate vs ombudsman skills

Common patient advocate skills

Patients, 28%
Customer Service, 11%
Patient Care, 5%
Medicaid, 4%
Financial Assistance, 4%
Patient Accounts, 4%

Common ombudsman skills

Mediation, 14%
Long-Term Care Facilities, 10%
Conflict Resolution, 8%
Medicaid, 7%
Long-Term Care Residents, 5%
State Agencies, 5%