Radiation therapist vs therapist

The differences between radiation therapists and therapists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a radiation therapist has an average salary of $84,981, which is higher than the $55,943 average annual salary of a therapist.

The top three skills for a radiation therapist include patients, patient care and radiation oncologist. The most important skills for a therapist are social work, patients, and group therapy sessions.

Radiation therapist vs therapist overview

	Radiation Therapist	Therapist
Yearly salary	$84,981	$55,943
Hourly rate	$40.86	$26.90
Growth rate	6%	17%
Number of jobs	39,384	159,770
Job satisfaction	-	5
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 40%	Bachelor's Degree, 47%
Average age	42	41
Years of experience	2	-

What does a radiation therapist do?

A radiation therapist is a medical professional who works in hospitals or cancer treatment centers and treats cancer and other diseases in patients by giving radiation treatments. Radiation therapists are required to explain the treatment plans to patients as well as conduct x-ray tests on patients to determine the exact location of the area that requires treatment. They must examine radiation machines to ensure that they are safe and working properly. Radiation therapists must also follow safety procedures to protect patients and themselves from overexposure.

What does a therapist do?

A therapist is responsible for improving the patients' health conditions by evaluating their needs and providing physical and mental support. Therapists are licensed, medical professionals who specialize in different areas to perform treatments and bring relief to patients. Some of their duties include diagnosing patient's problems, performing counseling services, monitoring medication progress, customizing therapy activities for pain management, and consulting other health professionals as needed. Therapists must have extensive knowledge with the medical industry to detect patients' conditions easily and provide effective medications.

Radiation therapist vs therapist salary

Radiation therapists and therapists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Radiation Therapist	Therapist
Average salary	$84,981	$55,943
Salary range	Between $63,000 And $113,000	Between $39,000 And $80,000
Highest paying City	Los Angeles, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Mississippi	California
Best paying company	Cedars-Sinai	Childhelp
Best paying industry	-	Government

Differences between radiation therapist and therapist education

There are a few differences between a radiation therapist and a therapist in terms of educational background:

	Radiation Therapist	Therapist
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 40%	Bachelor's Degree, 47%
Most common major	Biochemistry, Biophysics, Molecular Biology	Psychology
Most common college	Duke University	California State University - Long Beach

Radiation therapist vs therapist demographics

Here are the differences between radiation therapists' and therapists' demographics:

	Radiation Therapist	Therapist
Average age	42	41
Gender ratio	Male, 34.3% Female, 65.7%	Male, 24.4% Female, 75.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.6% Unknown, 8.8% Hispanic or Latino, 9.8% Asian, 4.5% White, 69.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 4.0% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 11.3% White, 72.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	17%	12%

Differences between radiation therapist and therapist duties and responsibilities

Radiation therapist example responsibilities.

Manage all payroll, accounts receivable and payable, and maintain complete records of equipment and staff.
Manage daily clinical staffing needs by appropriately deploying PRN therapist when need, which save company from employing an additional FTE.
Perform SBRT and SRS, and IMRT treatments under the supervision of the physician.
Set up patients on treatment machine, port films and IGRT to line up patients.
Ensure treatment plans are consistent with oncologist's prescriptions and verify EMR for daily treatment delivery.
Monitor patients records through EMR, maintain weekly and monthly reports for the company, maintain and order supplies.

Therapist example responsibilities.

Manage ventilator and BiPAP's and create or update care plans per patient needs.
Demonstrate working knowledge of community mental health services identify in the Medicaid guidelines and attain contractual outcomes within designate time frames.
Provide on-call crisis intervention as well as standard treatment, rehabilitation and support services with some interventions requiring specialize therapy services.
Develop and implement an effective curriculum of DBT inform group and art therapy classes specifically tailor for chemically dependent patients.
Provide trauma-inform individual psychotherapy, TREM group treatment protocol, and EMDR.
Utilize current brain base therapeutic techniques to teach clients adaptive skills to utilize in daily lives.

Radiation therapist vs therapist skills

Common radiation therapist skills

Patients, 28%
Patient Care, 9%
Radiation Oncologist, 8%
Patient Treatment, 6%
Dosimetry, 4%
Treatment Planning, 4%

Common therapist skills

Social Work, 23%
Patients, 12%
Group Therapy Sessions, 8%
Crisis Intervention, 7%
Mental Health, 4%
Patient Care, 3%

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Healthcare Practitioner and Technical Industry
Radiation Therapist
Radiation Therapist vs Therapist

Updated January 8, 2025

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