Patient service associate vs patient care specialist

The differences between patient service associates 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 service associate and a patient care specialist. Additionally, a patient care specialist has an average salary of $34,157, which is higher than the $31,992 average annual salary of a patient service associate.

The top three skills for a patient service associate include patients, customer service and medical terminology. The most important skills for a patient care specialist are patients, patient care, and data entry.

Patient service associate vs patient care specialist overview

	Patient Service Associate	Patient Care Specialist
Yearly salary	$31,992	$34,157
Hourly rate	$15.38	$16.42
Growth rate	-4%	-4%
Number of jobs	96,748	146,861
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 37%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Average age	40	40
Years of experience	4	4

What does a patient service associate do?

A patient service associate is responsible for providing high-quality care services to the patients, ensuring their satisfaction by assisting their medical needs and concerns. Patient service associates perform administrative duties, such as helping patients to fill-out forms, updating patients' information on the database, processing payments for medical procedures, storing patients' medical files, and monitoring the adequacy of medical tools and supplies. They may also conduct basic medical operations under the supervision of a physician or a health professional, adhering to strict protocols and regulations at all times to avoid hazards and health risks.

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 service associate vs patient care specialist salary

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

	Patient Service Associate	Patient Care Specialist
Average salary	$31,992	$34,157
Salary range	Between $26,000 And $39,000	Between $20,000 And $55,000
Highest paying City	Boston, MA	Boston, MA
Highest paying state	Massachusetts	Massachusetts
Best paying company	Virginia Eye Institute	KPG
Best paying industry	Health Care	Health Care

Differences between patient service associate and patient care specialist education

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

	Patient Service Associate	Patient Care Specialist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 37%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Patient service associate vs patient care specialist demographics

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

	Patient Service Associate	Patient Care Specialist
Average age	40	40
Gender ratio	Male, 18.2% Female, 81.8%	Male, 20.3% Female, 79.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 13.2% Unknown, 5.5% Hispanic or Latino, 19.0% Asian, 7.2% White, 54.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%	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 service associate and patient care specialist duties and responsibilities

Patient service associate example responsibilities.

Verify patient's insurance eligibility and other pertinent information according to HIPAA regulations and hospital policies.
Screen uninsure patients for medicaid and other programs, complete medicaid applications for qualify applicants.
Interview patients and conduct an analysis of potential eligibility for Medicaid and hospital charity programs.
Obtain accurate and detail diagnostic, demographic and financial information for patients requesting emergency hospital services.
Limit experience in attending patients needs, while perform in accordance with existing regulatory and hospital standards.
Obtain all necessary documentation prior to surgery such as proof of identification, copy of insurance and require insurance referrals.

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 service associate vs patient care specialist skills

Common patient service associate skills

Patients, 22%
Customer Service, 12%
Medical Terminology, 6%
Patient Care, 6%
Patient Service, 6%
HIPAA, 4%

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 Service Associate
Patient Service Associate vs Patient Care Specialist

Updated January 8, 2025

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