Patient care coordinator vs case manager

The differences between patient care coordinators and case managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a patient care coordinator and a case manager. Additionally, a case manager has an average salary of $43,118, which is higher than the $34,884 average annual salary of a patient care coordinator.

The top three skills for a patient care coordinator include patients, customer service and home health. The most important skills for a case manager are social work, patients, and community resources.

Patient care coordinator vs case manager overview

	Patient Care Coordinator	Case Manager
Yearly salary	$34,884	$43,118
Hourly rate	$16.77	$20.73
Growth rate	-4%	9%
Number of jobs	139,431	84,959
Job satisfaction	4	4.5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 40%	Bachelor's Degree, 64%
Average age	40	45
Years of experience	4	4

What does a patient care coordinator do?

A patient care coordinator or care coordinator is a trained health professional who manages patients' health care, such as the elderly or disabled. Patient care coordinators educate patients about their health conditions and develop a plan to address their personal health care needs. To comply with health care laws and regulations, care coordinators must attend training and courses so that they are updated with the new developments in health care. They are also required to take up licensure examination and should have experience in care coordination or clinical practices.

What does a case manager do?

A case manager is responsible for giving advice, handling plans for the client's recovery, and connecting with other human service professionals to ask for further options and recommendations for the client's concerns. Case managers should have excellent communication and listening skills to evaluate the client's needs, ensuring that they will have the utmost care and safety through efficient advocacy. A case manager should be able to provide a reliable support system for the client and monitor progress to achieve wellness and guarantee satisfaction.

Patient care coordinator vs case manager salary

Patient care coordinators and case managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Patient Care Coordinator	Case Manager
Average salary	$34,884	$43,118
Salary range	Between $23,000 And $52,000	Between $30,000 And $61,000
Highest paying City	Seattle, WA	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	Washington	New Hampshire
Best paying company	Homestead Hospice	Wellpath
Best paying industry	Health Care	Insurance

Differences between patient care coordinator and case manager education

There are a few differences between a patient care coordinator and a case manager in terms of educational background:

	Patient Care Coordinator	Case Manager
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 40%	Bachelor's Degree, 64%
Most common major	Nursing	Psychology
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	California State University - Long Beach

Patient care coordinator vs case manager demographics

Here are the differences between patient care coordinators' and case managers' demographics:

	Patient Care Coordinator	Case Manager
Average age	40	45
Gender ratio	Male, 11.7% Female, 88.3%	Male, 23.4% Female, 76.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.8% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 24.0% Asian, 6.3% White, 53.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 3.1% White, 74.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	7%	15%

Differences between patient care coordinator and case manager duties and responsibilities

Patient care coordinator example responsibilities.

Communicate with insurance companies on a continuous basis to ensure hospital reimbursement and attain authorization for home and rehabilitation services.
Manage caseload by providing care coordination to individuals with a primary intellectual/developmental disability diagnosis all of whom receive community-base waiver services.
Check in, check out patients, and do EKG's.
Gain knowledge relate to bundle payments for orthopedic patients and the rules and regulations set forth by CMS.
Respond to telephone inquiries, providing quality service to customers, PSR's and insurance representatives inquiring about patient accounts.
Prepare patients prior to MRI exam, obtain safety check lists and assist with the daily operations of the MRI department.

Case manager example responsibilities.

Manage all programs operations in accordance with HRA and industry regulations, agency policies and HIPAA guidelines.
Manage the care of patients with tuberculosis (TB) during their hospitalization and their discharge follow-up care.
Provide clients support with basic ADL's (shopping, payee services, budgets, managing and attending appointments).
Practice cognitive behavioral, DBT, motivational enhancement and structural family therapy.
Practice excellent customer service and build meaningful, professional relationships with families and patients.
Facilitate vocational rehabilitation and relate community services.

Patient care coordinator vs case manager skills

Common patient care coordinator skills

Patients, 32%
Customer Service, 13%
Home Health, 6%
Data Entry, 3%
Patient Appointments, 3%
Direct Patient Care, 3%

Common case manager skills

Social Work, 17%
Patients, 14%
Community Resources, 7%
Substance Abuse, 6%
Crisis Intervention, 5%
Rehabilitation, 5%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Patient Care Coordinator
Patient Care Coordinator vs Case Manager

Updated January 8, 2025

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