Therapy technician vs certified medical technician

The differences between therapy technicians and certified medical technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a certified medical technician has an average salary of $38,859, which is higher than the $28,943 average annual salary of a therapy technician.

The top three skills for a therapy technician include patients, rehabilitation and CPR. The most important skills for a certified medical technician are patients, vital signs, and CPR.

Therapy technician vs certified medical technician overview

	Therapy Technician	Certified Medical Technician
Yearly salary	$28,943	$38,859
Hourly rate	$13.91	$18.68
Growth rate	24%	5%
Number of jobs	36,360	164,424
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 53%	Bachelor's Degree, 28%
Average age	43	44
Years of experience	-	12

What does a therapy technician do?

A therapy technician is responsible for supporting therapists in providing the highest quality care services for the patients, administering treatment plans, and guiding patients to full recovery. Therapy technicians also perform administrative duties, such as updating patients' information on the database, monitoring patients' condition, reviewing medical charts, processing payments for therapy procedures, and performing medical examinations under the supervision of medical professionals. They operate various therapy equipment, inspect the performance of the machinery, and ask for maintenance support for repairs or replacement as needed.

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.

Therapy technician vs certified medical technician salary

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

	Therapy Technician	Certified Medical Technician
Average salary	$28,943	$38,859
Salary range	Between $22,000 And $37,000	Between $28,000 And $53,000
Highest paying City	Seattle, WA	Denton, TX
Highest paying state	Washington	Alaska
Best paying company	Seattle Cancer Care Alliance	Favorite Healthcare Staffing
Best paying industry	Health Care	Health Care

Differences between therapy technician and certified medical technician education

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

	Therapy Technician	Certified Medical Technician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 53%	Bachelor's Degree, 28%
Most common major	Kinesiology	Nursing
Most common college	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor	University of Connecticut

Therapy technician vs certified medical technician demographics

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

	Therapy Technician	Certified Medical Technician
Average age	43	44
Gender ratio	Male, 28.6% Female, 71.4%	Male, 20.4% Female, 79.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 14.4% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 12.9% Asian, 9.5% White, 57.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	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	8%	8%

Differences between therapy technician and certified medical technician duties and responsibilities

Therapy technician example responsibilities.

Perform basic living care for patients and assist with exercises under supervision of a rehabilitation team member.
Provide patient assistance with rehabilitation protocol with appropriate education and technique while monitoring vital signs and effects of treatment.
Direct patients to need areas with crutches, wheel chairs, walkers, canes etc.
Work with the physical and occupational therapists to guide patients through prescribe exercise program efficiently and safely.
Prepare materials for assessments and provide assistance to individuals through hands-on methods and direct contact observations by assisting the rehabilitation supervisor.
Attend professional development workshops in augmentative communication devices, sign language, and skill integration.

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.

Therapy technician vs certified medical technician skills

Common therapy technician skills

Patients, 23%
Rehabilitation, 14%
CPR, 8%
Patient Safety, 6%
Occupational Therapy, 5%
Physical Therapy, 5%

Common certified medical technician skills

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

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Healthcare Practitioner and Technical Industry
Therapy Technician
Therapy Technician vs Certified Medical Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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