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Sports physician vs orthopedic surgeon

The differences between sports physicians and orthopedic surgeons can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 8-10 years to become a sports physician, becoming an orthopedic surgeon takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a sports physician has an average salary of $218,368, which is higher than the $137,571 average annual salary of an orthopedic surgeon.

The top three skills for a sports physician include ankle, internal medicine and private practice. The most important skills for an orthopedic surgeon are patients, spine, and EMR.

Sports physician vs orthopedic surgeon overview

Sports PhysicianOrthopedic Surgeon
Yearly salary$218,368$137,571
Hourly rate$104.98$66.14
Growth rate7%7%
Number of jobs39,5275,046
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 55%Bachelor's Degree, 39%
Average age4849
Years of experience106

Sports physician vs orthopedic surgeon salary

Sports physicians and orthopedic surgeons have different pay scales, as shown below.

Sports PhysicianOrthopedic Surgeon
Average salary$218,368$137,571
Salary rangeBetween $100,000 And $473,000Between $73,000 And $257,000
Highest paying City-Brockton, MA
Highest paying state-Maine
Best paying company-Trinity Health
Best paying industry-Manufacturing

Differences between sports physician and orthopedic surgeon education

There are a few differences between a sports physician and an orthopedic surgeon in terms of educational background:

Sports PhysicianOrthopedic Surgeon
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 55%Bachelor's Degree, 39%
Most common majorNursingNursing
Most common collegeUniversity of VirginiaNew York University

Sports physician vs orthopedic surgeon demographics

Here are the differences between sports physicians' and orthopedic surgeons' demographics:

Sports PhysicianOrthopedic Surgeon
Average age4849
Gender ratioMale, 64.0% Female, 36.0%Male, 34.1% Female, 65.9%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 6.4% Asian, 19.9% White, 65.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%Black or African American, 1.8% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 5.0% Asian, 12.7% White, 76.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage13%12%

Differences between sports physician and orthopedic surgeon duties and responsibilities

Sports physician example responsibilities.

  • Provide overall quality prenatal health care, gynecological services, patient triage, refer patients with complications, provide patient education service
  • Maintain current HIPPA, OSHA and other govern files.

Orthopedic surgeon example responsibilities.

  • Manage insurance authorization and hospital bookings for surgery.
  • Handle medical billing, medical transcription, and medical billing.
  • Perform surgical procedures of the foot and ankle in both a hospital and surgery center setting.
  • Provide conservative and surgical care of foot and ankle relate medical conditions for children and adults.
  • Register and interview patients for purpose of compiling medical history and record keeping.
  • Perform laparoscopic surgery on regular basis (cholecystectomy, appendectomy, gynecological surgery).
  • Show more

Sports physician vs orthopedic surgeon skills

Common sports physician skills
  • Ankle, 84%
  • Internal Medicine, 9%
  • Private Practice, 4%
  • Injury Prevention, 4%
Common orthopedic surgeon skills
  • Patients, 31%
  • Spine, 15%
  • EMR, 11%
  • Sports Medicine, 10%
  • Patient Care, 8%
  • Private Practice, 7%

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