More and more people seek medical help every day–the demand is just inevitably unstoppable. With that, the healthcare industry is also accelerating at a rapid speed. Find out what a medical assistant is and consider taking a training program to jump start your medical career today.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the employment of medical assistants is increasing much quicker than the average for all occupations―growing 29 percent from 2016 to 2026.1 The increasing demand for preventive medical services will result in physicians’ necessity for more assistants who will have to perform administrative and clinical duties.
What is a Medical Assistant?
A medical assistant is a multi-skilled professional who works alongside a physician in medical offices and clinics. The administrative and clinical tasks of a medical assistant may include (but not limited to) the following:
Administrative duties:2
- Record patient history and personal information
- Schedule patient appointments
- Enter patient information into medical records
- Coding and filling out insurance forms
- Arranging hospital admissions and laboratory services
- Handling correspondence, billing, and bookkeeping
Clinical Duties:3
- Measure vital signs, such as blood pressure
- Help physicians with patient examinations
- Give patients injections or medications as directed by physicians and as permitted by state law
- Prepare blood samples for laboratory tests
- Taking medical histories
- Explaining treatment procedures to patients
- Preparing patients for examination
- Preparing and administering medications as directed by a physician
- Transmitting prescription refills as directed
- Taking electrocardiograms
- Removing sutures and changing dressings
What Does it Take to be a Medical Assistant? 4
- Postsecondary education programs (such as Multi-Skilled Medical Assistant program at Helms College)
- Must be trained in the areas of Anatomy and physiology, Medical terminology, Medical law, and ethics, Psychology, Communication, Medical assisting administrative procedures, Medical assisting clinical procedures
- Significant qualities including analytical, detail oriented, interpersonal and technical skills
- Proper and relevant training (also provided by Helms College)in order to experience actual tasks
- Certification is not required but preferred
Why Enroll in Helms College School of Health Services?
The desire to implement smart care in this generation entails valuing patient-centered quality of medical services. This concept highlights the urgent and lavish need of the health economy for educated and well-trained medical assistants as they take a huge part in engaging with consumers and improving the patient experience.
Helms College assures you that the quality of education it provides will make you stay ahead of the rapidly-changing curve of the health care system. Students in the Multi-Skilled Medical Assistant program at Helms College receive the hands-on work and training needed to complete vital administrative and clinical tasks in the offices of physicians, hospitals, and other health-care facilities as listed above.5 Helms College Multi-Skilled Medical Assistant graduates are prepared for entry-level employment in all possible medical workplaces. It also promotes operational efficiency, technology use, population health management, wellness, and addressing the social determinants of health.
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