Patient coordinator vs patient care specialist

The differences between patient coordinators and patient care specialists 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 care specialist. Additionally, a patient care specialist has an average salary of $34,157, 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 care specialist are patients, patient care, and data entry.

Patient coordinator vs patient care specialist overview

	Patient Coordinator	Patient Care Specialist
Yearly salary	$32,954	$34,157
Hourly rate	$15.84	$16.42
Growth rate	-4%	-4%
Number of jobs	97,878	146,861
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 40%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
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 care specialist do?

A patient service or care specialist works at different medical facilities. Primary responsibilities include checking patients in and out, scheduling follow-up appointments as well as checking patient eligibility for services or programs. Patient service specialists should maintain a systematic referral log to correlate patient referrals to other specialists. Applicants for the job should have the basic computer knowledge to effectively manage data of patient's files, knowledge of medical terminologies, and possess good interpersonal and customer service skills.

Patient coordinator vs patient care specialist salary

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

	Patient Coordinator	Patient Care Specialist
Average salary	$32,954	$34,157
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $41,000	Between $20,000 And $55,000
Highest paying City	Brockton, MA	Boston, MA
Highest paying state	Massachusetts	Massachusetts
Best paying company	University of California, Berkeley	KPG
Best paying industry	Health Care	Health Care

Differences between patient coordinator and patient care specialist education

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

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

Patient coordinator vs patient care specialist demographics

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

	Patient Coordinator	Patient Care Specialist
Average age	40	40
Gender ratio	Male, 11.2% Female, 88.8%	Male, 20.3% Female, 79.7%
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, 11.7% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 21.1% Asian, 6.3% White, 55.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between patient coordinator and patient care specialist 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.

Patient care specialist example responsibilities.

Use EMR software to manage patient records and files; reinforce and uphold patient confidentiality as required by HIPAA and clinic.
Utilize software applications to document call interactions using medical terminology and responsible for initially engaging patients by explaining the services.
Verify CPT codes along with diagnosis code for guarantee payment for surgeries.
Process daily fee tickets and correctly enter office visit ICD 9 and CPT codes into the system for billing.
Adhere to HIPPA confidentiality guidelines.
Track Medicaid eligibility of clients.

Patient coordinator vs patient care specialist skills

Common patient coordinator skills

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

Common patient care specialist skills

Patients, 33%
Patient Care, 17%
Data Entry, 5%
Medical Terminology, 4%
CPT, 2%
CPR, 2%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Patient Coordinator
Patient Coordinator vs Patient Care Specialist

Updated January 8, 2025

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