Surgery scheduler vs certified medical technician

The differences between surgery schedulers and certified medical technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a surgery scheduler, becoming a certified medical technician takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a certified medical technician has an average salary of $38,859, which is higher than the $34,472 average annual salary of a surgery scheduler.

The top three skills for a surgery scheduler include patients, medical terminology and customer service. The most important skills for a certified medical technician are patients, vital signs, and CPR.

Surgery scheduler vs certified medical technician overview

	Surgery Scheduler	Certified Medical Technician
Yearly salary	$34,472	$38,859
Hourly rate	$16.57	$18.68
Growth rate	-8%	5%
Number of jobs	56,058	164,424
Job satisfaction	5	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 26%	Bachelor's Degree, 28%
Average age	49	44
Years of experience	2	12

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 a certified medical technician do?

Certified Medical Technicians are specialists in medical diagnoses by performing laboratory testing and analysis for hospitals and physicians. Their duties include lab sanitization to prepare for testing and collection, recording medical samples for testing, specimen preparation, blood drawing for donation and testing, and assisting physicians with sample collection as well as equipment handling in surgical rooms. They must also understand how to use complex and sensitive testing equipment such as cell counters, analyzers, microscopes, and centrifuges.

Surgery scheduler vs certified medical technician salary

Surgery schedulers and certified medical technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Surgery Scheduler	Certified Medical Technician
Average salary	$34,472	$38,859
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $43,000	Between $28,000 And $53,000
Highest paying City	Danbury, CT	Denton, TX
Highest paying state	Connecticut	Alaska
Best paying company	University of California, Berkeley	Favorite Healthcare Staffing
Best paying industry	Health Care	Health Care

Differences between surgery scheduler and certified medical technician education

There are a few differences between a surgery scheduler and a certified medical technician in terms of educational background:

	Surgery Scheduler	Certified Medical Technician
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 26%	Bachelor's Degree, 28%
Most common major	Health Care Administration	Nursing
Most common college	-	University of Connecticut

Surgery scheduler vs certified medical technician demographics

Here are the differences between surgery schedulers' and certified medical technicians' demographics:

	Surgery Scheduler	Certified Medical Technician
Average age	49	44
Gender ratio	Male, 6.5% Female, 93.5%	Male, 20.4% Female, 79.6%
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, 15.9% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 10.0% White, 53.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	9%	8%

Differences between surgery scheduler and certified medical technician 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.

Certified medical technician example responsibilities.

Maintain the cleanliness of storage areas, trays, centrifuges, refrigerators, freezers and work area.
Administer medications to patients according to their medication record as scheduled, as needed according to physician orders.
Perform laboratory test and procedures in areas including chemistry, hematology, urinalysis, coagulation, serology, and bacteriology.
Perform first aid and apply CPR when necessary.
Perform first aid or CPR during medical emergencies until paramedics arrive.
Assist the residents in their ADL needs and prepare their meals.

Surgery scheduler vs certified medical technician skills

Common surgery scheduler skills

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

Common certified medical technician skills

Patients, 17%
Vital Signs, 12%
CPR, 8%
Administer Medications, 7%
Resident Care, 6%
HIPAA, 6%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Surgery Scheduler
Surgery Scheduler vs Certified Medical Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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