Medical Secretary

Medical Secretary Career Information

What Do Medical Secretaries Do?

Medical secretaries support doctors and physicians, while coordinating medical office operations. In small offices, medical adminstrators may handle everything from appointment setting and office supplies, to insurance billing and patient records. In larger facilities, medical secretaries may devote more time to a specific job function or to executive support (calendar management, travel arrangements, research assistance) for a particular physician.

What Makes Medical Secretaries Different from Other Administrative Assistants? 

For one thing, medical secretaries are the only kind of admins projected to see “much-faster-than-average” job growth over the next eight years.^[i]  Healthcare is a growing industry. If you’re drawn to a career in office support—a clean environment, a stable schedule, predictable routines—you might want to explore healthcare administration. As a medical secretary you could work in a physician’s office, a dental office, or in a hospital setting.

How Might Medical Secretaries Prepare for Their Roles?

Another key difference may involve job preparation. While mainstream secretaries can sometimes land jobs with basic customer service skills and computer experience, healthcare employers often prefer to hire admins who already have some background knowledge in medical office protocol.^[ii]  Earning an online associate degree in medical office administration is one way to obtain that background knowledge. You could learn medical records administration, insurance processing, billing management, and other industry standards.

What's the Average Salary for Medical Secretaries?

On average, medical secretaries earn about $32K per year. In states with a higher cost of living and other driving factors, the average salary is somewhat higher—like $39K in Massachusetts and almost $36K in California.^[iii]  Medical secretaries in dental offices also tend to earn more on average (over $36K)^[iv], so students may wish to consider study programs that include medical and dental administration.

Which Online Degrees Might Support This Career Goal?