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Medical clinics and hospitals manage a complicated array of administrative and medical procedures in the course of delivering health services. The medical assistant plays a critical role in ensuring that these logistics proceed smoothly. Serving as vital support staff on the front lines of medical care, medical assistants handle everything from answering phones to performing diagnostic lab tests.
What Does a Medical Assistant Do?
Learning how to become a medical assistant is an exercise in cross-functional training. Medical assistants perform a wide range of clinical and administrative tasks to keep a private practice, medical clinic, or hospital flowing smoothly. Some administrative duties include:
Clinical responsibilities could add the following tasks to your list:
The type of medical clinic will also shape your job description. Some of the specialized roles available to medical assistants include:
Your exact duties as a medical assistant depend on both the size of your clinic and the type of services available there. An intimate private practice may challenge you to wear many hats, reporting directly to an office manager or the care provider. At a larger practice or hospital, you can specialize in a specific area under the supervision of a department administrator, as part of a team of medical assistants.
What Are the Steps to Becoming a Medical Assistant?
There are several routes to becoming a medical assistant. You can learn how to become a medical assistant on the job, but most employers expect some formal education. Generally, the path to a medical assistant career looks something like this:
All medical assistant programs have a combination of classroom and hands-on clinical training. You can find one- and two-year programs in medical assisting at vocational or technical high schools, adult vocational schools, and colleges. One-year programs lead to a certificate or diploma in medical assisting, while a two-year investment earns you an associate's degree.
How to Become a Great Medical Assistant
Medical assisting is a broad designation covering entry-level administrative assistants as well as seasoned professionals. A great medical assistant offers either breadth or depth of expertise. Depending on the medical office, you might deliver the most value by determining what needs to be done and in what order to achieve efficient patient care. Or you might advance into specialized clinical responsibilities, reducing the workload of medical practitioners through your skilled assistance.
Here's how to become a medical assistant of the highest order. Advance your professional standing and capacity through:
Medical assisting offers a world of career opportunity for ambitious health care workers. One of the fastest-growing occupations in the U.S., medical assisting is forecasted to grow about 34 percent between 2008 and 2018, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. With formal training in medical assisting, you can tap into this surge of job opportunities and help the health care industry meet growing patient demand in the coming decade.
Resources for Medical Assistants
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