Find a Medical Assistant Job Description that Reflects Your Aptitude and Career Preferences
A medical assistant job description will state the type of work you will be involved in and also personal characteristics that are required. It will indicate the level of qualification required and also if they desire a candidate who has a certain amount of experience in a similar job. The description will also include whether it is a full-time or part-time position, if it is a day or night shift, the number of hours per week and the salary range.
A variety of medical assisting jobs will require a different medical assistant job description
There are four main categories of medical assisting jobs, each with a very different medical assistant job description.
Clerical medical assistants work in an office answering telephones, scheduling appointments, sorting mail and typing letters and therefore have the job requirements of a general office worker.
In addition to general clerical duties, administrative medical assistants carry out office work that is more medical related. They need to know medical terminology and spelling, understand medical documentation and coding, know how to file insurance claims, and have experience in data entry and advanced computer applications such as electronic medical records and appointment scheduling. They also tend to do the bookkeeping and accounting for a medical practice.
A much more hands-on medical job with patients is that of a clinical medical assistant. This type of medical assistant job description will include the ability to work as part of a team and in particular to be able to take instructions from the doctors and nurses you are assisting, to work within the guidelines for your job, as well as consulting with and reporting to seniors. Flexibility is needed in order to meet the needs of the team and perform different job assignments. You will be required to understand medical law as relates to your role and be ethical in all your relations with patients. Clinical medical assistants will also be involved in monitoring and recording patients’ vitals, preparing patients for examinations, explaining medical procedures, collecting specimens for testing, sanitizing medical supplies and disposing of used materials, preparing and administering medication under doctor supervision, applying dressings and giving injections. Some clinical medical assistant job descriptions will include taking x-rays, performing electrocardiograms, drawing blood and removing stitches. The extent to which a clinical medical assistant will assume certain responsibilities is determined by the laws of the individual states.
A specialized medical assistant job description will depend on the nature of the area of expertise and obviously requires additional qualifications or experience related to the specific area, for example, some medical assistants work in the areas of optometry, chiropody, podiatry or paediatrics, and others work in laboratories.
Reflecting the varied nature of this job, each medical assistant job description will vary greatly and will also be influenced by location, the type of setting and the size of the practice. A doctor’s office may require predominantly administrative skills, while another facility will cover a wide range of duties from cleaning waiting rooms, to answering phones and performing basic clinical tasks. Those who work in hospitals (around 12% of all medical assistants), usually find that duties are divided around a number of employees so a medical assistant job description in this setting may be much more focused on one type of work, as well as specialized medical assistants who have a more specific job description and work in a specialized setting. In most situations, a medical assistant job description will include a combination of administrative and clinical tasks.
The personal characteristics desired in a medical assistant job description
All medical assistant jobs will desire the personal characteristics of compassion, empathy, courtesy and friendliness since you will be dealing with the public, especially the elderly and infirm, and so will require care, kindness and patience in putting patients at ease and explaining doctor’s instructions. A neat and clean appearance with be a prerequisite. Manual dexterity and visual acuity are also needed. Medical assistants need to have excellent communication abilities in both oral and written skills and have strong organizational skills, being able to handle multiple tasks in a fast-paced environment. They must be competent and professional, respecting the confidential and sensitive nature of their job and have good interpersonal skills, being able to work with and under the direction of others, which will also require flexibility in their job assignments. To demonstrate dedication to their profession, medical assistants are required to participate in ongoing training.
The qualification requirements of a medical assistant job description
A medical assistant job description will state the level of training required such as a certificate, diploma or associate degree in medical assisting. Some may just require that you have graduated from an accredited medical assistant program but the vast majority of prospective employers will require that you are a Certified Medical Assistant, preferably by the American Association of Medical Assistants, which is recognised as the gold standard of medical assistant certification. This gives your future employer the guarantee that you have reached a certain level of knowledge and expertise in clerical and clinical skills and will therefore be a competent assistant and able to offer quality patient care.
Selecting a medical assistant job description that suits you
Through medical assistant training and the period of externship, you will likely have developed a preference for a certain aspect of medical assisting. You may prefer to work in an office or you may be someone who likes to work around patients. You may particularly enjoy the clinical nature of the work and may have an area in which you would like to specialize. The majority of medical assistants (62%) work in doctor’s offices but maybe shift work would suit your circumstances better, and a hospital would be a place that could provide you with this opportunity, it is always good to have a career path in mind so you can choose a medical assistant job description to which you are suited.
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