Patient care technician vs clinical technician

The differences between patient care technicians and clinical technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a clinical technician has an average salary of $35,760, which is higher than the $32,806 average annual salary of a patient care technician.

The top three skills for a patient care technician include patients, vital signs and phlebotomy. The most important skills for a clinical technician are patients, vital signs, and phlebotomy.

Patient care technician vs clinical technician overview

	Patient Care Technician	Clinical Technician
Yearly salary	$32,806	$35,760
Hourly rate	$15.77	$17.19
Growth rate	9%	9%
Number of jobs	167,520	161,812
Job satisfaction	5	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 27%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Average age	34	44
Years of experience	-	12

What does a patient care technician do?

Patient care technicians are medical workers who work in clinics, hospitals, or other medical facilities under the supervision of doctors or other health professionals. They provide assistance to health professionals and patients. They help patients with mobility concerns get into hospital beds, bathrooms, wheelchairs, and more. They also help patients with their physical therapy sessions and other physical needs. They handle patient concerns and communicate these to attending physicians. They may be assigned to administer basic medical procedures such as checking vital signs and collecting samples from patients, among others.

What does a clinical technician do?

A clinical technician is responsible for operating and maintaining clinical equipment, ensuring the proper sterilization of all laboratory tools and kits to avoid contamination during medical procedures. Clinical technicians assist the patients with their medical inquiries and needs, collecting samples for laboratory, and helping medical professionals on surgeries and other medical operations. They also maintain medical charts, update patients' information on the database, and administer patients' medication. A clinical technician must have excellent knowledge of the medical industry, as well as strictly following internal guidelines and safety procedures during operations.

Patient care technician vs clinical technician salary

Patient care technicians and clinical technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Patient Care Technician	Clinical Technician
Average salary	$32,806	$35,760
Salary range	Between $24,000 And $43,000	Between $26,000 And $48,000
Highest paying City	Rochester, NH	Seattle, WA
Highest paying state	Vermont	Alaska
Best paying company	Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center	Brigham and Women's Hospital
Best paying industry	Health Care	Government

Differences between patient care technician and clinical technician education

There are a few differences between a patient care technician and a clinical technician in terms of educational background:

	Patient Care Technician	Clinical Technician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 27%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Most common major	Nursing	Nursing
Most common college	Emory University	University of Connecticut

Patient care technician vs clinical technician demographics

Here are the differences between patient care technicians' and clinical technicians' demographics:

	Patient Care Technician	Clinical Technician
Average age	34	44
Gender ratio	Male, 19.0% Female, 81.0%	Male, 26.6% Female, 73.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 14.3% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 20.1% Asian, 6.4% White, 51.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%	Black or African American, 12.8% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 16.5% Asian, 11.2% White, 53.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	15%	8%

Differences between patient care technician and clinical technician duties and responsibilities

Patient care technician example responsibilities.

Manage care and prepare medical records, transcription and supply orders.
Manage daily care of high acuity patients with neurological trauma/disorders and post-surgery.
Qualify to perform patient care responsibilities on catheter patients.
Transport patients using wheelchairs and stretchers and assist patients to ambulate safely.
Assist with transferring patients in and out of wheelchairs, recliners, and stretchers.
Apply protective restraints safely and appropriately, assist in the admission, discharge and transfer of patients as needed.

Clinical technician example responsibilities.

Prepare QC and QA samples for validity testing.
Resolve issues from level 1 EMR support as well as EMR issues transfer from other departments.
Recognize life threatening situations and activate the emergency response system while assisting with CPR and code cart.
Report and document description of patient care information in EMR in accordance with hospital policy and procedure.
Participate in reviews and QC of external central laboratory contracts, sample kits and manuals and ensure accuracy.
Assist in advance and basic life support techniques, perform EKG's, blood withdrawal, and computer order entry.

Patient care technician vs clinical technician skills

Common patient care technician skills

Patients, 24%
Vital Signs, 9%
Phlebotomy, 7%
CPR, 6%
Direct Patient Care, 5%
Customer Service, 5%

Common clinical technician skills

Patients, 27%
Vital Signs, 8%
Phlebotomy, 7%
Direct Patient Care, 7%
Customer Service, 6%
EKG, 4%

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Healthcare Practitioner and Technical Industry
Patient Care Technician
Patient Care Technician vs Clinical Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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