Becoming a medical assistant – A Complete Guide

From doctor’s offices to clinics to hospitals, medical assistant professionals provide backbone support for delivering medical care while ensuring that offices and clinics run evenly. Those interested in making their careers in this field can consider getting Medical assistant training in New York.

Here is a complete guide related to the responsibilities of a medical assistant and the education/training needed to start a career in this ever-demanding field.

Job responsibilities of medical assistant –

Medical assistant professionals work alongside physicians and nurses in outpatient or ambulatory care settings. A medical assistant training program provides cross-training to medical assistant aspirants so that they can perform various administrative and clinical responsibilities. The job role could include the below-mentioned responsibilities –

Administrative responsibilities –

• Helps collect the patient’s history and other important information.
• Entering patient information into the electronic medical record database.
• Accepting payment.
• Sending electronic patients’ medical prescriptions to pharmacies.
• Scheduling patient’s appointment for follow-up.

Clinical responsibilities –

• Taking patients to examination rooms for follow-up.
• Documenting patients’ medical records.
• Preparing patients for medical follow-up.
• Help physicians, physician assistants, or nurse practitioners with clinical procedures.
• Help collect patient specimens for laboratory tests.
• Disinfect examination rooms and instruments after the medical procedure.

Steps to become a medical assistant –

Becoming a medical assistant is a five-step process that includes education, training, certification, and employment. For the aspiring medical assistant, here is a step-by-step look at how one can start a career in this field.

Earning a high school diploma or equivalent –

A high school diploma is the minimum education requirement to start a career in this field. In addition, one can get high school classes in math and science.

Graduate from an accredited medical assistant training program –

One can pass the CMA (AAMA) exam to get a medical assistant job. To be eligible to sit in this exam, an aspirant can graduate from an accredited medical assistant school in New York.

Apply for a medical assistant certification –

After graduating from an accredited medical assistant training program, one must meet the eligibility requirements to take the CMA (AAMA) exam through the American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA). Aspirants must take this exam at most 30 days before graduating and completing their practicum.

Find employment –

After passing the exam and completing the certification, an aspirant becomes eligible to find a job in this field. And he may get jobs in outpatient clinics and physician’s offices.

Benefits of a career as a medical assistant –

Medical assistants are modern-day heroes and play a vital role in providing quality healthcare services across the country. Their dedication, passion, and commitment to work in this field can help many people. Are you interested in making your career in this medical field? If so, you should learn about a few benefits of this job profile. These are –

Excellent job outlook –

According to the stats, a prospective medical assistant can have a good chance of finding employment in this field. As per BLS 2018 stats, the job of medical assistants is expected to grow by 20% over the next few decades compared to other professions.

Relatively short training period –

It is essential to have a college education to get a better job. But some people do not want to spend sufficient time or finances to complete the many years of schooling. And some healthcare careers take many years to complete. But the path to becoming a medical assistant is relatively short compared to other medical career fields. And some institutes can offer an affordable training program.

Provide benefits to work in any state –

Pursuing a medical assisting job gives you the flexibility to work in any state without obtaining a new license or certification regarding this job. To become eligible to work in any state, one may consider getting National Certified Medical Assistant Certification, provided by the National Center for Competency Testing.

Ability to earn certification –

The ability to get certification in this in-demand career gives you leverage. Those with certification can show potential employers that they possess the required skills and knowledge to excel in this field. It can also lead to better shifts, higher pay, and more significant potential for advancement opportunities.

Springboard to advanced healthcare profession –

Are you planning to start your dream career as a nurse, health facility manager, or surgical technician but need clarification about whether you must wait to start chasing the career right away? If so, consider becoming a medical assistant first. Once you start working, you will gain experience in the healthcare environment and learn essential occupational skills.

If you want to start your career as a medical assistant in New York, enrolling in the medical assistant school in New York is one of the best options. Ace Institute of Technology is pleased to provide you medical assistant course in New York and help you start your career in this medical field. You can contact them for more information regarding this program!