Surgery scheduler vs patient access representative

The differences between surgery schedulers and patient access representatives 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 patient access representative takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a surgery scheduler has an average salary of $34,472, which is higher than the $33,603 average annual salary of a patient access representative.

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

Surgery scheduler vs patient access representative overview

	Surgery Scheduler	Patient Access Representative
Yearly salary	$34,472	$33,603
Hourly rate	$16.57	$16.16
Growth rate	-8%	-4%
Number of jobs	56,058	151,077
Job satisfaction	5	5
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 26%	Bachelor's Degree, 36%
Average age	49	40
Years of experience	2	4

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 patient access representative do?

A Patient Access Representative is the first point of contact of a patient in a hospital facility. Among the duties include the checking-in and out of a patient, gathering a patient's information for the Doctors and Nurses to use, communicates with the patient's family or caregivers, and processes insurance billing. Most of the time, A Patient Access Representative encounters the critically ill or injured which is why one must possess great communication skills and compassion.

Surgery scheduler vs patient access representative salary

Surgery schedulers and patient access representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Surgery Scheduler	Patient Access Representative
Average salary	$34,472	$33,603
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $43,000	Between $27,000 And $41,000
Highest paying City	Danbury, CT	Springfield, MA
Highest paying state	Connecticut	Massachusetts
Best paying company	University of California, Berkeley	University of California, Berkeley
Best paying industry	Health Care	Health Care

Differences between surgery scheduler and patient access representative education

There are a few differences between a surgery scheduler and a patient access representative in terms of educational background:

	Surgery Scheduler	Patient Access Representative
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 26%	Bachelor's Degree, 36%
Most common major	Health Care Administration	Business
Most common college	-	University of Pennsylvania

Surgery scheduler vs patient access representative demographics

Here are the differences between surgery schedulers' and patient access representatives' demographics:

	Surgery Scheduler	Patient Access Representative
Average age	49	40
Gender ratio	Male, 6.5% Female, 93.5%	Male, 14.5% Female, 85.5%
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, 12.5% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 19.9% Asian, 6.5% White, 55.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	9%	7%

Differences between surgery scheduler and patient access representative 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.

Patient access representative example responsibilities.

Use EMR software to manage patient records and files; reinforce and uphold patient confidentiality as required by HIPPA and clinic.
Conduct intensive screening of all Medicare, Medicaid and manage care patients for provider service eligibility.
Educate eligible applicants about Medicaid manage care and how to access benefits in a manage care environment.
Run internal reports to ensure ICD 9 and CPT procedure codes are accurate for billing for Medicare and Medicaid patients.
Deliver quality customer service and compassion while obtaining demographic and financial data from patients seeking emergency medical services.
Operate front desk check-in, preparation of charts, receive payments and balance books at the end of the day.

Surgery scheduler vs patient access representative skills

Common surgery scheduler skills

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

Common patient access representative skills

Patients, 20%
Customer Service, 13%
Medical Terminology, 9%
Patient Care, 5%
Patient Registration, 5%
Insurance Verification, 4%

Surgery Scheduler vs. similar jobs

Surgery Scheduler related careers

Surgery Scheduler related jobs

What similar roles do

Zippia Careers
Office and Administrative Industry
Surgery Scheduler
Surgery Scheduler vs Patient Access Representative

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse office and administrative jobs