Patient coordinator vs patient advocate

The differences between patient coordinators and patient advocates 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 coordinator and a patient advocate. Additionally, a patient advocate has an average salary of $36,325, which is higher than the $32,954 average annual salary of a patient coordinator.

The top three skills for a patient coordinator include patients, customer service and patient care. The most important skills for a patient advocate are patients, customer service, and patient care.

Patient coordinator vs patient advocate overview

	Patient Coordinator	Patient Advocate
Yearly salary	$32,954	$36,325
Hourly rate	$15.84	$17.46
Growth rate	-4%	-4%
Number of jobs	97,878	88,778
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 40%	Bachelor's Degree, 50%
Average age	40	40
Years of experience	4	4

What does a patient coordinator do?

A patient coordinator functions as the primary point of contact between health care professionals and patients in a medical facility. They mostly perform administrative tasks such as greeting visitors, answering calls, responding to inquiries, managing schedules, arranging appointments, processing payments, gathering information, and keeping records. Moreover, they assist in filling out forms, escorting patients to different rooms or offices, and setting treatment plans. Most importantly, they discuss and share necessary information with patients and families regarding medications, procedures, and proceeding care according to a physician's assessment.

What does a patient advocate do?

A patient advocate is responsible for supporting the patients with the medical processes in a healthcare institution, assisting them with insurance claims and medical billing disputes, verifying treatment procedures, and conducting referrals to medical professionals based on the patient's needs. Patient advocates facilitate a payment plan for the patients, discussing this plan to the financial department of the facility. They also address the patients' inquiries and concerns, as well as their complaints with hospital operations, immediately raising these issues to higher management.

Patient coordinator vs patient advocate salary

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

	Patient Coordinator	Patient Advocate
Average salary	$32,954	$36,325
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $41,000	Between $29,000 And $45,000
Highest paying City	Brockton, MA	Springfield, MA
Highest paying state	Massachusetts	Massachusetts
Best paying company	University of California, Berkeley	Cognizant
Best paying industry	Health Care	Health Care

Differences between patient coordinator and patient advocate education

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

	Patient Coordinator	Patient Advocate
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 40%	Bachelor's Degree, 50%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Patient coordinator vs patient advocate demographics

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

	Patient Coordinator	Patient Advocate
Average age	40	40
Gender ratio	Male, 11.2% Female, 88.8%	Male, 17.5% Female, 82.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.1% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 25.4% Asian, 6.2% White, 51.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	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%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between patient coordinator and patient advocate duties and responsibilities

Patient coordinator example responsibilities.

Comply with HIPAA regulations by discreetly and professionally handling all patients private medical information.
Gather personal plus insurance information and perform thorough insurance breakdowns for patients.
Communicate directly with patients to obtain initial patient information and respond to inquiries.
Process and update HIPAA relate paperwork and other require institutional forms as necessary.
Obtain all necessary documentation prior to surgery such as proof of identification, copy of insurance and require insurance referrals.
Respond in writing to all grievances in accordance with CMS and DNV guidelines.

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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.

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Patient coordinator vs patient advocate skills

Common patient coordinator skills

Patients, 30%
Customer Service, 11%
Patient Care, 6%
Patient Flow, 5%
Excellent Organizational, 4%
Check-In, 3%

Common patient advocate skills

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

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Updated January 8, 2025

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