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The differences between psychiatric nursing assistants and patient services assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-3 months to become both a psychiatric nursing assistant and a patient services assistant. Additionally, a patient services assistant has an average salary of $33,879, which is higher than the $30,184 average annual salary of a psychiatric nursing assistant.
The top three skills for a psychiatric nursing assistant include patients, mental health and vital signs. The most important skills for a patient services assistant are patients, customer service, and patient care.
| Psychiatric Nursing Assistant | Patient Services Assistant | |
| Yearly salary | $30,184 | $33,879 |
| Hourly rate | $14.51 | $16.29 |
| Growth rate | 9% | 9% |
| Number of jobs | 181,338 | 273,881 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 38% | Bachelor's Degree, 26% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 3 | 3 |
Psychiatric Nursing Assistants require the ability to carry out individual patient treatment programs, as well as verbalization of patients' needs, clear and concise communication of information, and ensuring patient safety and well-being. Paying out at around $26K per year, this position requires no formal education outside of a diploma or GED, but postsecondary courses in psychology may help. Those who choose this career will be called on to assist mentally impaired or emotionally disturbed patients under nursing or medical staff direction, assist patients with their daily living activities, lead them to and from examinations and treatment, and restrain patients who become violent.
A patient services assistant is responsible for handling initial patients' assessments by scheduling appointments. They also are responsible for processing patients' referrals to the appropriate medical professional and admission payments, validating health insurance details, recording patient's information on the database, and assessing medical history and related health information. A patient services assistant also responds to the patients' inquiries and concerns, provides health services recommendations, and processes medical procedures. A patient services assistant must have excellent communication and time-management skills and the ability to perform administrative and clerical tasks as needed.
Psychiatric nursing assistants and patient services assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Psychiatric Nursing Assistant | Patient Services Assistant | |
| Average salary | $30,184 | $33,879 |
| Salary range | Between $22,000 And $40,000 | Between $24,000 And $46,000 |
| Highest paying City | Olympia, WA | San Mateo, CA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | California |
| Best paying company | Maine Health/maine Mental Health Partners | Adobe |
| Best paying industry | Health Care | Government |
There are a few differences between a psychiatric nursing assistant and a patient services assistant in terms of educational background:
| Psychiatric Nursing Assistant | Patient Services Assistant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 38% | Bachelor's Degree, 26% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Nursing |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between psychiatric nursing assistants' and patient services assistants' demographics:
| Psychiatric Nursing Assistant | Patient Services Assistant | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 41.7% Female, 58.3% | Male, 18.2% Female, 81.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 16.8% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 20.8% Asian, 7.3% White, 49.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% | Black or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 17.9% Asian, 7.1% White, 58.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |