Most people may be inclined to think that the only jobs in the medical field are those of surgeons, doctors, and nurses, but there are also another wide variety of jobs open in the medical field. Positions can range from the medical scientist to the administrative assistants who are often the face of a doctor’s office. The position of a medical assistant is an unlicensed, multi-skilled health professional who offers administrative, clerical and technical support to the physician assistant or the physician. Medical assistant provides services for front office, back office and other clinical laboratory areas. Medical assisting is a versatile career for men and women.
JOB FUNCTIONS OF A MEDICAL ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT:
Medical assistants perform administrative and clinical tasks which help to keep the offices of physicians, pediatrics, chemotherapy, and other health professionals operating smoothly on a day-to-day basis. Some of the duties of a medical assistant will vary from office to office and depend on the location and size of the practice, as well as on the practitioner’s specialty. In smaller offices, medical assistants may be required to handle both the administrative and clinical duties, as well as reporting directly to an office manager, doctor or other health practitioner. Medical administrative assistants who are in larger doctors offices are more likely to be specialized in a particular area of the job. Medical assistants should not be confused with physician assistants, who examine, diagnose, and treat patients under the direct supervision of a physician.
Some of the job functions which an administrative medical assistants usually perform are: updating and filing patients’ medical records, filling out insurance forms, arranging for hospital admissions and laboratory services, answering telephones, greeting and helping patients, scheduling appointments, and handling billing and bookkeeping
WORK ENVIRONMENT:
Most medical administrative assistants are employed in doctors offices. Some medical administrative assistance may also work in hospitals, medical clinics, or health maintenance organizations as well. Generally, a medical administrative assistant can expect to work a 40 hour week, and may include weekends. One can expect the working environment to be very clean and sterile because it will be in some form of a medical office. Additionally, the work environment is usually very pleasant in all seasons and will be air-conditioned or heated accordingly. Uniforms may be required, and are usually nurses scrubs, and in some offices they will give you a stipend to help cover the costs of the uniforms.Work schedules are often flexible and many employers are now offering excellent fringe benefits as well.
MEDICAL ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT EDUCATION:
Most of the formal education of medical administrative assistants often takes place in vocational school or community colleges.The course length does vary depending upon the school you are enrolled in, but usually ranges from programs that are completed in one to two years and many of these programs also offer internships. The curriculum presented must always be accredited if upon graduation you plan to become either certified or registered as a medical administrative assistant.
Labor statistics have indicated the medical administrative assistant career will continue to grow, in number of job opportunities until 2018. If you are looking for a career that is in the medical field, is rewarding and where you can make a difference, you may have found the right career choice in the medical administrative assistant.