Curious about what Medical Assisting is? Admirably, medical assisting is one of the fastest growing careers these days. Statistics show that this job is estimated to rise for the next ten years due to the innovation of medical equipment and the increase number of population around the world.
If you wish to become a medical assistant, you don’t need a master’s degree. All you need is your high school diploma or a GED equivalent. Aspiring medical assistants must simply undergo programs which will only take six months to two years to complete.
The course for medical assisting includes the fundamental medical vocabulary, anatomy and physiology and supplementary administrative training like recordkeeping, bookkeeping, transcription, and so on and so forth.
Program courses are exclusively intended to give them a broad perspective in medical field to help them perform their errand productively and fruitfully. This is because medical assistants’ nature of work is to perform or to keep medical establishments organized and to keep it running smoothly. Also, since medical assistants are closely working with patients and with other medical staff like doctors and nurses, their program courses also include patient relations, ethics and medical laws and principles.
Although, some of the roles of medical assistants are identical a doctor assistant or a nurse, they are very different. Medical assistants carry out clerical and clinical tasks while nurses are more on treatments and patient management.
In the main a medical assistant handles administrative duties and or clinical duties.
1. Administrative Duties and Responsibilities
- Answering telephone calls
- Assist patients and families
- Appointment planning
- Fiscal recording and billing
- Bookkeeping
- Handling correspondence
- Filing and updating patient’s medical records
- Managing insurance forms
- Arranging hospital admissions
- Assisting in laboratory services
2. Clinical Duties and Responsibilities
- Taking patient’s health history
- Recording patient’s vital signs
- Preparing patients for medical examinations
- Assisting doctors during health examinations
- Explaining to patients the procedures that are to be done to them
- Collects and prepares the laboratory specimens
- Buying medical materials and equipments
- Disposing of infected medical materials
- Preparing medical instruments
- Making sure that hospital quarters such as waiting rooms and examination rooms are clean and tidy
In some hospitals medical assistants are allowed, under the custody of doctors to carry out basic medical tasks such as:
- Basic laboratory tests
- Prepare medications and administer medications too
- Instructing patients in taking medications and some diets
- Drug refills
- Draw blood
- Changing of dressings
- Removing sutures
Since medical assistants have a large scope of tasks, they should at all times stay focused and systematic. They must possess pleasing personality and must be good communicators for they must make the patients feel comfortable and easy before and or during examination. Also, medical assistants must be dainty and well groomed for they should look presentable when dealing with patients.
Duties and tasks of medical assistants vary depending in the hospitals they work. In small hospitals or clinics they are to perform both administrative and clinical duties while in large hospitals where there are other medical staff, medical assistants are encouraged to performed specific tasks under the direction of the department administrators.
Regardless where medical assistants work, they are very useful in helping healthcare workers to perform their jobs more effectively and efficiently. As a consequence, the growing needs of people’s medical attention are met through them.
What is a Medical Assistant? Today, medical assistants are one of the fastest growing professions in the health care business. Figures show that this job is estimated to rise for the next ten years due to the progression of medical equipment and the growing number of inhabitants around the globe.
If you desire to become a medical assistant, you don’t need a master’s degree. All you need is your high school credential or a GED equivalent. Aspirant medical assistants must simply undergo programs which will only take six months to two years to accomplish.
The course for medical assisting includes the fundamental medical terminology, anatomy and physiology and supplementary administrative training like recordkeeping, accounting, transcription, and so on and so forth.
The program courses are purposely designed to help hopeful medical assistants to be authoritative and competitive in their chosen vocation. This is because medical assistants’ nature of work is to perform or to keep medical establishments structured and to keep it running smoothly. Also, since medical assistants are directly working with patients and with other medical employees like doctors and nurses, their program courses also include patient relations, ethics and medical laws and principles.
Medical assistant is different from a physician assistant or a nurse. Medical assistants carry out clerical and clinical tasks while nurses are more on treatments and patient handling.
In general a medical assistant handles administrative duties and or clinical duties.
1. Administrative Tasks
- Answering telephone calls
- Serve patients and families
- Appointment scheduling
- Fiscal recording and billing
- Clerical
- Handling correspondence
- Filing and updating patient’s medical records
- Handles insurance forms
- Arranging hospital admissions
- Assisting in laboratory services
2. Clinical Tasks
- Taking patient’s health history
- Recording patient’s vital signs
- Preparing patients for medical examinations
- Assisting doctors in health examinations
- Explaining to patients the procedures that are to be done to them
- Collects and prepares the laboratory specimens
- Purchasing medical materials and equipments
- Disposing of infected medical materials
- Preparing medical instruments
- Making sure that hospital quarters such as waiting rooms and examination rooms are clean and tidy
In some hospitals medical assistants are authorized, under the supervision of doctors to carry out elemental medical tasks such as:
- Basic laboratory tests
- Prepare medications and administer medications as well
- Instructing patients in taking medications and some diets
- Drug refills
- Draw blood
- Changing of dressings
- Removing sutures
Since medical assistants have a large scope of tasks, they should at all times stay focused and systematic. They must possess pleasing personality and must be good communicators for they must make the patients feel comfortable and easy before and or during examination. Also, medical assistants must be prim and well groomed for they should look presentable when dealing with patients.
Duties and tasks of medical assistants vary depending in the hospitals they work. In small hospitals or clinics they are to perform both administrative and clinical duties while in extensive hospitals where there are other medical employees, medical assistants are impelled to performed exclusive tasks under the supervision of the department administrators.
Regardless where medical assistants work, they are very functional in helping healthcare workers to perform their jobs more effectively and prolifically. As a consequence, the growing needs of people’s medical attention are met through them.
Certainly, there is no such thing as a perfect job. Even CEO of major multinational corporations in the nation are encountering difficulty in their businesses each day. What more if you are dealing with lives. Of course, although you are the top employee of the year in the hospital, you will still face problems from time to time.
Today the function of medical assistants is becoming dynamic. Aside from their administrative duties, they also work hand in hand with doctors, dietitians, nurses and patients as well. They ensure that all is in order. Although, they try their best to make sure that the whole thing is in order, there are still instances where they experience certain challenges in their work, here are some of them:
Difficult Patients
In a regular shift, medical assistants can bump into various people with deviating personalities. Patients and visitors may come from different walks of life. Not everyday is perfect and surely, the day will not end without one challenging patient who does not but find fault. These patients can vary from an elderly woman who is grouchy about her back all day long to a new mom who can’t wait to catch sight of her child’s pediatricians. Then again, even if that patient is the most annoying person there is in the clinic, still medical staff and that includes medical assistants must at all times show kindness and patience to all.
Communicating With Patient And Doctors
Medical assistants must be good communicators. In view of the fact that they are the ones who constantly communicates with doctors, nurses and patients, the medical assistant must know how to convey the message in the most accurate and explicit way possible. Besides vocal communication, medical assistants are generally in charge of other administrative responsibilities and they need to make sure that all their writings and notes are readable.
Working Late Or During Holidays
Like other medical professionals, medical assistants must be flexible and should be willing to work for extended hours, Occasionally they have to report on duty even if it is a holiday.
Emotional Attachment
All medical staff must be professional always. Prevent personal and emotional attachment as these can affect decision making. On the other hand, if you are dealing with lives, it is impossible not to be emotionally affected when someone dies from a terrible disease particularly if that person has been in the hospital for more than a month.
Hitting The Ego
The roles of medical assistants are encompassing that there are times they are mistaken as nurses. They are faced with the trouble of explaining their roles to others. They have to flawlessly and patiently stretch the fact that they are not nurses. This is sometimes a very complex condition to be into.
Taxing Work Environment
Every day is another experience when working in a hospital setting. There are instances where the volume of patients are just average and there are times wherein it is so overpowering. When there are so many patients to cater to, medical assistants need to stay in focus. They do not let the situation overcome them or else they will not be able to carry out their duty well.
The things mentioned above are some of the common challenges faced by medical assistants and for sure by other health care providers as well. It is not an easy task to be a member of the hospital staff. People expect too much from doctors, nurses and other hospital staff. People trust that their health is in good hands. Since people are going to hospitals and clinics every day to seek medical assistance and to improve their lives, it is defining to avoid errors by staying logical especially in such a stressful situation.
