Physician specialist vs referral coordinator

The differences between physician specialists and referral coordinators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a physician specialist and a referral coordinator. Additionally, a physician specialist has an average salary of $210,219, which is higher than the $35,179 average annual salary of a referral coordinator.

The top three skills for a physician specialist include patients, patient care and surgery. The most important skills for a referral coordinator are patients, customer service, and medical terminology.

Physician specialist vs referral coordinator overview

	Physician Specialist	Referral Coordinator
Yearly salary	$210,219	$35,179
Hourly rate	$101.07	$16.91
Growth rate	-8%	-8%
Number of jobs	63,020	65,934
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 42%	Bachelor's Degree, 31%
Average age	49	49
Years of experience	2	2

What does a physician specialist do?

A Physician Specialist is a doctor who specializes in a particular field of medicine, such as pediatrics, urology, psychiatry, and more. Their responsibilities revolve around studying the patients' medical history, conducting assessments and evaluations, developing care and treatment plans, prescribing medication, and helping patients understand their conditions and symptoms. In some cases, a Physician Specialist may recommend patients to undergo surgeries and other procedures. Moreover, aside from treating and diagnosing medical conditions, a Physician Specialist maintains an active communication line with nurses and technicians for a smooth and efficient workflow.

What does a referral coordinator do?

A referral coordinator works with insurance companies and care providers to share essential patient information and assists primarily in scheduling appointments and managing health insurance issues. As a referral coordinator, you will work directly with the patient, patient families, or even social workers, depending on the job and patient needs. Other job responsibilities include general administrative or clerical tasks such as setting up appointments for new and existing patients, verifying insurance information before appointments, and answering phone calls.

Physician specialist vs referral coordinator salary

Physician specialists and referral coordinators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Physician Specialist	Referral Coordinator
Average salary	$210,219	$35,179
Salary range	Between $111,000 And $396,000	Between $27,000 And $44,000
Highest paying City	Bradenton, FL	Portland, ME
Highest paying state	Delaware	Maine
Best paying company	Saint Luke's Health System	Horizon Laser Vision
Best paying industry	Health Care	Health Care

Differences between physician specialist and referral coordinator education

There are a few differences between a physician specialist and a referral coordinator in terms of educational background:

	Physician Specialist	Referral Coordinator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 42%	Bachelor's Degree, 31%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Physician specialist vs referral coordinator demographics

Here are the differences between physician specialists' and referral coordinators' demographics:

	Physician Specialist	Referral Coordinator
Average age	49	49
Gender ratio	Male, 25.0% Female, 75.0%	Male, 10.2% Female, 89.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 12.0% Asian, 3.8% White, 70.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 12.0% Asian, 3.8% White, 70.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between physician specialist and referral coordinator duties and responsibilities

Physician specialist example responsibilities.

Manage providers' office and call schedules, outlook calendars and assist with surgery scheduling.
Generate referral letters for physicians, manage and sort medical documents within the EHR system, and assist with e-prescribing.
Review complete ultrasound and non-stress testing reports and assign appropriate ICD-10 and CPT codes.
Train in AllScripts EMR system.
Retrieve medical records from EMR and save to flash drive.
File written letters of appeal on claims deny by the Medicaid.

Referral coordinator example responsibilities.

Establish rapport with all PCP offices, hospital personnel, and manage care representatives.
Ensure CPT and ICD-9 coding are accurate and complete according to AMA's guidelines and for third party intermediaries.
Contact medical insurance companies and provide ICD-9 diagnosis and CPT procedure codes for patient's illness, condition or injury.
Apply ICD-9 and CPT-4 codes to complete referral requests online or via fax.
Conduct the entire office's EHR process and create a system to track old and new patient's records.
Incorporate core organizational values of quality, respect, integrity, partnership, and compassion in all activities and decisions.

Physician specialist vs referral coordinator skills

Common physician specialist skills

Patients, 39%
Patient Care, 23%
Surgery, 18%
Internal Medicine, 3%
Excellent Interpersonal, 2%
Patient Registration, 2%

Common referral coordinator skills

Patients, 30%
Customer Service, 12%
Medical Terminology, 7%
Patient Care, 4%
Data Entry, 4%
EMR, 3%

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Physician Specialist
Physician Specialist vs Referral Coordinator

Updated January 8, 2025

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