What are the top priorities of a medical assistant?

What It Takes to Become a Certified Medical Assistant

Becoming a certified medical assistant involves more than just enrolling in a course and turning up for class. To succeed in your career, you need to possess a combination of hard and soft skills. Check out the following criteria to determine whether a medical assistant position could be the right fit for you.  

Skills and Abilities
Medical assistants are required to carry out a diverse range of tasks on a daily basis, on everything from patient care to administration. Some essential skills are:

  • Communication. You will be spending your time speaking with and listening to coworkers and patients — in the case of the latter, many of whom you have never met before. Your job will also require basic writing skills, for creating reports, and a good telephone manner.
  • Medical procedures. Medical assistants must carry out a number of procedures, such as monitoring EKGs, drawing blood, charting vital signs, and obtaining initial patient information.
  • Customer service. You will need to provide the best quality service to all your patients.
  • Office procedures. Medical assistants often spend a significant portion of their time behind the scenes in an office environment, where professionalism and organizational skills play an important role.
  • Attention to detail. It is essential that you make no mistakes in patient care, written reports, and charting.
  • Problem solving. A great attribute for all medical assistants is the ability to detect a potential problem before it happens.

Knowledge
To pass your exams — for the Registered Medical Assistant, Certified Medical Administrative Assistant, and Electronic Health Records Specialist certifications, for example — and to later work independently without constant support and guidance, you need to be knowledgeable on a number of topics.

You will need a good understanding of anatomy, pharmacology, clinical skills, medical law, HIPAA, and CPT, to name just some subjects. For office-related tasks, you should be comfortable using computers, technology, and software. Your job may require you to use:

  • Email software
  • Medical software, for electronic records, patient management, and diagnoses
  • Microsoft Office suite

Interests and Passions
To enjoy your work and provide top patient care, you need to possess a few personal characteristics. You should have the desire to care for others, both in terms of physical care and emotional support. You must have no qualms about making contact with patients and certainly cannot be squeamish around blood and other bodily fluids. Lastly, it is extremely important that you are able to work in a group, as much of your work will involve cooperating with others. 

If you are equipped with the above qualities, are eager to learn the essential skills, and want to increase your knowledge, training to become a certified medical assistant could be right for you. Find a school that will provide you with appropriate hands-on training and teach you everything that you need to pass your certification exams and begin your new career.

Updating, recording, and filing medical information and forms. Greeting patients and answering questions. Serving as a liaison between the physician and patient. … Arranging hospital admission or lab procedures for patients.

What are some goals for a medical assistant?

Answer: The primary goal of medical assistants is to provide the best care possible to patients, with the focus entirely on the patient. It is a more personalized career than most other healthcare paths, as medical assistants are often some of the first and last people that patients see in a medical office.

What is expected of a medical assistant?

Medical assistants often take medical histories and record vital signs of patients. Medical assistants complete administrative and clinical tasks in the offices of physicians, hospitals, and other healthcare facilities. Their duties vary with the location, specialty, and size of the practice.

What are the top 3 priorities of a medical assistant?

  • Build Relationships with Patients. Being a good listener ranks high as one of the most vital medical assistant skills. …
  • Update Patient Medical Records. …
  • Prepare Exam Rooms. …
  • Manage Laboratory Tests and X-rays. …
  • Perform Routine Medical Tasks. …
  • Use Current Technology. …
  • Physician’s Office. …
  • Hospital.

Why are you interested in working as a medical assistant?

1. Personal fulfillment. Working in the health care industry allows you to help others by honing your medical-related knowledge and skills. Besides knowing the ins and outs of the medical practice, assistants interact a great deal with patients.

What pays more phlebotomy or medical assistant?

Medical assistants earn, on average, $15.61 per hour, whereas phlebotomists earn $17.61 per hour. However, unlike phlebotomists, medical assistants are able to earn more as they gain experience and become specialized in area of medicine, like pediatrics or cardiology.

Can medical assistants draw blood?

As a clinical medical assistant, you will support nurses, nurse practitioners, and physicians as they care for patients. You may: Take patient vital signs, including height, weight, blood pressure, or a medical history. … Remove stitches, change dressings, draw blood, or give injections.

What are the 5 smart goals?

What are the five SMART goals? The SMART acronym outlines a strategy for reaching any objective. SMART goals are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and anchored within a Time Frame.

What are the 4 types of goals?

There are four different types of goals: stepping stone goals, short term goals, long term goals, and lifetime goals.

What are the 3 types of goals?

There are three types of goals- process, performance, and outcome goals.

Is being a medical assistant Easy?

The medical assistant workday also includes plenty of structure and routine so as not to be too overwhelming. Outside of the day-to-day responsibilities, the most difficult parts of being a medical assistant are related to the unexpected clinical and administrative “emergencies” that can arise during a shift.

What does a medical assistant do in a hospital?

Collecting patient data including contact information, demographics, medical history, and insurance information. Assisting patients in correctly filling out paperwork. Keeping patient charts and records organized and up-to-date. Handling billing tasks and coordinating with insurance companies about patient coverage.

How can I be a good medical assistant?

  1. Willing to Help. This one may seem obvious. …
  2. Great at Time Management. Hospitals and other healthcare environments are busy places. …
  3. Excellent Communicator. …
  4. Great Problem Solver. …
  5. Well-Organized. …
  6. Follows Directions. …
  7. Compassionate. …
  8. Non-Judgmental.

Why should hire you Example answer?

“Honestly, I possess all the skills and experience that you’re looking for. I’m pretty confident that I am the best candidate for this job role. It’s not just my background in the past projects, but also my people skills, which will be applicable in this position.

What is your greatest strength as a medical assistant?

The strengths you pick should be relevant to the medical assisting field. “For example, excelling in time management, working as a team player, and having great listening skills and compassion for others are three strengths that match the qualities of a top-notch medical assistant,” Deahl says.

Can you tell me about yourself sample answer?

I’ve worked hard in my education and now I’m ready to apply my knowledge into practice. While I don’t have any real-life work experience, I’ve had a lot of exposure to the business environment. A lot of my courses involved working with real companies to solve real problems.

What is the main goal of a medical assistant?

The ultimate objective of a medical assistant is to maintain patient care under a supervising physician, usually with a unique blend of clinical and administrative responsibilities.

What is the first priority of a medical assistant?

The seven duties that are a medical assistant's first priority when arriving in the morning are unlocking the doors, checking messages from the previous night, checking e-mails, checking for lab results, turning on the computers and other machines, pulling health records for the day's patients, and checking the fax ...

What makes a successful medical assistant?

Medical assistants work with physically and emotionally vulnerable people, so emotional intelligence, the ability to sense what people are feeling through observation is essential for good communication. Practical skills are important, too. The ability to read, write and speak confidently is a must.

What are the top 10 characteristics that a medical assistant should possess?

Consider the following 10 qualities that an individual should have to help complete their medical assistant skill set:.
Communication Skills. ... .
Empathy. ... .
Courtesy. ... .
Stress Management. ... .
Technical Skills. ... .
Attention to Detail. ... .
Analytical. ... .
Stamina..