Medical Assisting
Medical assistants are a vital part of the medical profession. They perform many key functions, including:
- caring for patients
- carrying out routine treatments
- conducting lab tests
- maintaining office records
Depending on state regulations, they may also be called upon to perform a limited number of advanced medical tasks such as:
- drawing blood
- taking x-rays
- taking medical histories
- recording patients’ weight, pulse, heart reate, blood pressure and other vital signs
- explaining treatments to patients
As the name suggestions, medical assistants also spend a good deal of time helping doctors during exams.
Medical assistants also have clerical duties to fulfill. These duties include:
- answering telephones
- greeting patients
- updating medical records
- filling out insurance forms
- scheduling appointments
- arranging for hospital admission and lab services
We recommend you consider focusing on a specialty when you train to be a medical assistant. Many medical assistants have a speciality such as opthamology, in which case they do basic eye tests, test frames and teach people how to use contact lenses.
Medical assistants need to be conduct their work with absolute precision. Errors in procedures, treatments or records could result in serious injury to patients, staff, or themselves.
Education is important for anyone considering a career in medical assisting. To excel in your field, you will need to be competent in the following subjects:
Medicine and Dentistry: Knowledge of injuries, illnesses, and defects. Also includes the knowledge of setting up a plan for treatment.
Medical Assisting
Medical assistants are a vital part of the medical profession. They perform many key functions, including:
- caring for patients
- carrying out routine treatments
- conducting lab tests
- maintaining office records
Depending on state regulations, they may also be called upon to perform a limited number of advanced medical tasks such as:
- drawing blood
- taking x-rays
- taking medical histories
- recording patients’ weight, pulse, heart reate, blood pressure and other vital signs
- explaining treatments to patients
As the name suggestions, medical assistants also spend a good deal of time helping doctors during exams.
Medical assistants also have clerical duties to fulfill. These duties include:
- answering telephones
- greeting patients
- updating medical records
- filling out insurance forms
- scheduling appointments
- arranging for hospital admission and lab services
We recommend you consider focusing on a specialty when you train to be a medical assistant. Many medical assistants have a speciality such as opthamology, in which case they do basic eye tests, test frames and teach people how to use contact lenses.
Medical assistants need to be conduct their work with absolute precision. Errors in procedures, treatments or records could result in serious injury to patients, staff, or themselves.
Education is important for anyone considering a career in medical assisting. To excel in your field, you will need to be competent in the following subjects:
Medicine and Dentistry: Knowledge of injuries, illnesses, and defects. Also includes the knowledge of setting up a plan for treatment.
Clerical: Knowledge of general office work such as filing and recording information.
Biology: Knowledge of plants, animals, and living organisms and how they function.
English Language: Knowledge of the meaning, spelling, and use of the English language.
Therapy and Counseling: Knowledge of the effect of diseases and injuries. Knowledge of how to give advice on social or personal problems. Also includes the knowledge of setting up a plan for treatment.
Chemistry: Knowledge of the properties of substances and the changes that occur when they interact.
Psychology: Knowledge of people, their actions, and mental processes. This may include knowledge of how to treat emotional and behavioral problems.
Customer and Personal Service: Knowledge of providing special services to customers based on their needs.
Mathematics: Knowledge of the rules and uses of numbers. Areas of knowledge include arithmetic, algebra, geometry, and statistics.
Public Safety and Security: Knowledge of protecting people, data, and property.
You can learn everything you need to be a medical assistant through a formal training program. Professional, technical and two-year colleges offer medical assisting programs. A one-year program grants a certificate. Two-year programs grant an associate’s degree.
On-the-job Training
During your training, you work as an intern at a healthcare facility, such as a hospital or clinic. You work under the supervision of a fully trained medical assistant.
The following areas of study help you develop a kind of medical speciality that can make you more marketable as a health care practioner.
Electroneurodiagnostic Technology
Health Aide
Health Records Technology
Health Unit Coordination
Licensed Practical Nursing
Medical Assisting
Medical Coding and Billing
Medical Office Management
Medical Office Support
Medical Reception
Medical Secretarial Studies
Nursing Assisting
Ophthalmic Technology
Optometric Technology
Phlebotomy
Gaining certification as a medical assistant
While you don’t need a license to be a medical assistant, some states require medical assistants to take a training program or an exam before doing procedures such as drawing blood, giving injections, and taking x-rays.
Potential earnings as a medical assistant
The average wage for medical assistants in the United States is $1,970 per month ($11.35 per hour). Half of all medical assistants earn between $1,660 and $2,330 per month ($9.57 and $13.46 per hour). Wages vary by employer, location, level of education, experience and job responsibilities.
Medical Assisting – a great career is waiting for you!
Clerical: Knowledge of general office work such as filing and recording information.
Biology: Knowledge of plants, animals, and living organisms and how they function.
English Language: Knowledge of the meaning, spelling, and use of the English language.
Therapy and Counseling: Knowledge of the effect of diseases and injuries. Knowledge of how to give advice on social or personal problems. Also includes the knowledge of setting up a plan for treatment.
Chemistry: Knowledge of the properties of substances and the changes that occur when they interact.
Psychology: Knowledge of people, their actions, and mental processes. This may include knowledge of how to treat emotional and behavioral problems.
Customer and Personal Service: Knowledge of providing special services to customers based on their needs.
Mathematics: Knowledge of the rules and uses of numbers. Areas of knowledge include arithmetic, algebra, geometry, and statistics.
Public Safety and Security: Knowledge of protecting people, data, and property.
You can learn everything you need to be a medical assistant through a formal training program. Professional, technical and two-year colleges offer medical assisting programs. A one-year program grants a certificate. Two-year programs grant an associate’s degree.
On-the-job Training
During your training, you work as an intern at a healthcare facility, such as a hospital or clinic. You work under the supervision of a fully trained medical assistant.
The following areas of study help you develop a kind of medical speciality that can make you more marketable as a health care practioner.
Electroneurodiagnostic Technology
Health Aide
Health Records Technology
Health Unit Coordination
Licensed Practical Nursing
Medical Assisting
Medical Coding and Billing
Medical Office Management
Medical Office Support
Medical Reception
Medical Secretarial Studies
Nursing Assisting
Ophthalmic Technology
Optometric Technology
Phlebotomy
Gaining certification as a medical assistant
While you don’t need a license to be a medical assistant, some states require medical assistants to take a training program or an exam before doing procedures such as drawing blood, giving injections, and taking x-rays.
Potential earnings as a medical assistant
The average wage for medical assistants in the United States is $1,970 per month ($11.35 per hour). Half of all medical assistants earn between $1,660 and $2,330 per month ($9.57 and $13.46 per hour). Wages vary by employer, location, level of education, experience and job responsibilities.
Medical Assisting – a great career is waiting for you!
