Surgery scheduler vs appointment scheduler

The differences between surgery schedulers and appointment schedulers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a surgery scheduler and an appointment scheduler. Additionally, a surgery scheduler has an average salary of $34,472, which is higher than the $34,414 average annual salary of an appointment scheduler.

The top three skills for a surgery scheduler include patients, medical terminology and customer service. The most important skills for an appointment scheduler are patients, phone calls, and scheduling patient appointments.

Surgery scheduler vs appointment scheduler overview

	Surgery Scheduler	Appointment Scheduler
Yearly salary	$34,472	$34,414
Hourly rate	$16.57	$16.55
Growth rate	-8%	-8%
Number of jobs	56,058	17,639
Job satisfaction	5	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 26%	High School Diploma, 31%
Average age	49	49
Years of experience	2	2

What does a surgery scheduler do?

A surgery scheduler is responsible for organizing medical information, coordinating with doctors and other health professionals, and reaching out to patients to inform them of scheduled medical procedures and appointments. Surgery schedulers perform clerical and administrative duties, such as processing patients' payments, verifying insurance details, and updating their account information on the database. They also monitor the adequacy of inventory for medical operations and create purchase requests as needed. A surgery scheduler must have excellent communication skills, especially in responding to patients' inquiries and concerns and resolving complaints.

What does an appointment scheduler do?

An appointment scheduler works in the health care field in a medical office. Appointment schedulers contact patients with regards to their upcoming appointments. They direct calls to the appropriate staff members, pull medical records, and perform general clerical works. Their job involves educating patients or clients on health products and services. They also resolve the complaints and inquiries of the patients as well as other administrative duties.

Surgery scheduler vs appointment scheduler salary

Surgery schedulers and appointment schedulers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Surgery Scheduler	Appointment Scheduler
Average salary	$34,472	$34,414
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $43,000	Between $27,000 And $42,000
Highest paying City	Danbury, CT	Boston, MA
Highest paying state	Connecticut	Massachusetts
Best paying company	University of California, Berkeley	UC Santa Barbara
Best paying industry	Health Care	Internet

Differences between surgery scheduler and appointment scheduler education

There are a few differences between a surgery scheduler and an appointment scheduler in terms of educational background:

	Surgery Scheduler	Appointment Scheduler
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 26%	High School Diploma, 31%
Most common major	Health Care Administration	Business
Most common college	-	-

Surgery scheduler vs appointment scheduler demographics

Here are the differences between surgery schedulers' and appointment schedulers' demographics:

	Surgery Scheduler	Appointment Scheduler
Average age	49	49
Gender ratio	Male, 6.5% Female, 93.5%	Male, 12.4% Female, 87.6%
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 surgery scheduler and appointment scheduler duties and responsibilities

Surgery scheduler example responsibilities.

Manage medical records and patient information within HIPPA guidelines
Manage patient pre-op responsibilities, and generate all necessary paperwork.
Request financial screening services for patients with limit Medicaid packages, as well as the uninsured.
Provide patients with information that explain hospital admission policies, time of admission and HIPPA privacy guidelines.
Execute administrative tasks such as ordering supplies and working with CPT and DX codes relate to accurate patient billing.
Maintain HIPAA and confidentiality standards.

Appointment scheduler example responsibilities.

Manage patient pre-op responsibilities, and generate all necessary paperwork.
Utilize the appropriate screening tools to accurately schedule internally refer patients for MRI appointments.
Obtain and enter complete registration demographic and insurance verification information (primary and secondary) into EMR system.
Implement a new TCMS and EHR database for the doctor's internal use.
Organize & archive electronic documents; scan and link charts and documents into the EHR
Used knowledge of key medical terms to determine patient's symptoms and refer to triage nurse when applicable.

Surgery scheduler vs appointment scheduler skills

Common surgery scheduler skills

Patients, 26%
Medical Terminology, 10%
Customer Service, 9%
Patient Care, 5%
Surgical Procedures, 4%
Surgery Scheduling, 4%

Common appointment scheduler skills

Patients, 33%
Phone Calls, 10%
Scheduling Patient Appointments, 8%
Customer Service, 5%
Outbound Calls, 4%
Medical Terminology, 4%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Surgery Scheduler
Surgery Scheduler vs Appointment Scheduler

Updated January 8, 2025

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