Surgery scheduler vs medical office administrator

The differences between surgery schedulers and medical office administrators 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 a medical office administrator. Additionally, a surgery scheduler has an average salary of $34,472, which is higher than the $34,252 average annual salary of a medical office administrator.

The top three skills for a surgery scheduler include patients, medical terminology and customer service. The most important skills for a medical office administrator are patients, patient care, and customer service.

Surgery scheduler vs medical office administrator overview

	Surgery Scheduler	Medical Office Administrator
Yearly salary	$34,472	$34,252
Hourly rate	$16.57	$16.47
Growth rate	-8%	-8%
Number of jobs	56,058	179,503
Job satisfaction	5	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 26%	Bachelor's Degree, 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 a medical office administrator do?

A medical office administrator is responsible for performing administrative and clerical duties within a health care institution, supplying physicians and medical professionals with patients' information, and coordinating with insurance companies. Medical office administrators handle the information and data management system to ensure the accuracy of patients' details, medical history, and treatment plans. They also schedule doctor appointments and cancellations, as well as monitoring the inventory of medical supplies. A medical office administrator submits payment reports, respond to patients' inquiries and concerns, and process billing disputes.

Surgery scheduler vs medical office administrator salary

Surgery schedulers and medical office administrators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Surgery Scheduler	Medical Office Administrator
Average salary	$34,472	$34,252
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $43,000	Between $27,000 And $41,000
Highest paying City	Danbury, CT	Anchorage, AK
Highest paying state	Connecticut	Alaska
Best paying company	University of California, Berkeley	University of California, Berkeley
Best paying industry	Health Care	Health Care

Differences between surgery scheduler and medical office administrator education

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

	Surgery Scheduler	Medical Office Administrator
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 26%	Bachelor's Degree, 31%
Most common major	Health Care Administration	Health Care Administration
Most common college	-	-

Surgery scheduler vs medical office administrator demographics

Here are the differences between surgery schedulers' and medical office administrators' demographics:

	Surgery Scheduler	Medical Office Administrator
Average age	49	49
Gender ratio	Male, 6.5% Female, 93.5%	Male, 9.4% Female, 90.6%
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 medical office administrator 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.

Medical office administrator example responsibilities.

Re-Evaluat & improve policy manual, develop standards for HIPPA, OSHA, manage care, billing and medical compliance.
Facilitate client relationships and manage surgery schedules, financial consultations, follow up care and ongoing maintenance.
Used knowledge of medical procedures and customer service, record medical histories and schedule patients for hospitalization and other procedures.
Scan new information such as daily progress notes, physical exams, labs and diagnostic testing into EMR.
Advise and counsel patient regarding food, fluid, medicine intake and restrictions prior to surgery including drop regime.
Organize patient charts and loose reports, as well as paper work from daily operations for scanning into EMR system.

Surgery scheduler vs medical office administrator skills

Common surgery scheduler skills

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

Common medical office administrator skills

Patients, 21%
Patient Care, 10%
Customer Service, 8%
Insurance Verification, 5%
Phone Calls, 5%
Appointment Scheduling, 4%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Surgery Scheduler
Surgery Scheduler vs Medical Office Administrator

Updated January 8, 2025

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