What Is a Medical Assistant?

The more you know about what a medical assistant is and does, the better you can understand and appreciate why so many men and women are drawn to this rewarding career in health care.

Over 819,000 physicians in the USA alone are in constant need of medical assistants, along with 2.4 million registered nurses, 77,000 occupational therapists, 182,000 physical therapists, 94,000 respiratory therapists and a multitude of other allied health professionals who also rely on medical assistants to keep the medical office running smoothly and patients taken care of.

A mdical assistant should not be confused with a nurse, or any non-physician licensed healthcare practitioners or clinicians, such as Physician Assistants (PA), Emergency Medical Assistants (EMA), licensed practical nurses (LPN), certified nephrology nurse (CNS), medicine aides (MA), or certified nurse's aides (CNA) although their abbreviated credentials can sometimes look similar to that of the medical assistant's credentials. Having a doctor present is required when medical assistants provide direct hands-on patient care.

Where Medical Assistants Work

As a medical assistant you will work in a well-lit, clean environment, where each medical office has its own unique expectations and needs. Likely, you will mostly assist doctors and skilled nursing staff in an ambulatory care setting which allows them to focus directly on the medical concerns of their patients without having to worry about basic daily administrative office routines and telephone distractions. Doctors and nurses assign specific routines to you and you will see to it that they get done. It is a job that provides the best of both worlds: work side-by-side with doctors and other licensed healthcare practitioners and build long term relationships with their patients.

Diversity of Medical Assistants

No two medical assistants are the same and each one brings unique talents, knowledge and training to the table. The palette of faces, ages, genders and ethnic backgrounds match the multitude of their colorful scrub tops: male, female, young, old, blond, brunette, tall, big, short, certified and non-certified; you name it, every medical assistant is special.

The medical assistant must work under the direct supervision of a doctor or other licensed healthcare provider. You mostly find them in a medical office, ambulatory emergency, or diagnostic screening facilities, colleges, universities, out-patient plastic surgery centers, and in some cases correctional facilities and physical rehabilitation centers.

• Administrative medical assistants update and file patients' medical records, fill out insurance forms, and arrange for hospital admissions and laboratory services.
  
• Clinical medical assistants have various duties, depending on State law. Some common tasks include taking medical histories and recording vital signs, explaining treatment procedures to patients, preparing patients for examinations, and assisting physicians during examinations.
  
• Ophthalmic medical assistants, optometric assistants, and podiatric medical assistants are examples of specialized assistants who have additional duties when they help ophthalmologists provide eye care.
  
• Podiatric medical assistants work under the supervision of a podiatrist where they may explain therapeutic exercises, wrap and bandage patient's feet, arrange examining room instruments and equipment, and purchase and maintain supplies and equipment.

Love Your Medical Assistant and What they Do!
Doctors everywhere agree: "We couldn't run the practice without our medical assistant! Their job duties range from front desk patient intake to exam room patient monitoring."

Physicians and hospitals in the USA rely heavily on the skills of their medical assistant team and new job offers for medical assisting positions open and close daily:

Doctors hire medical assistants so they can focus directly on health issues and medical concerns of their patients without having to worry about daily medical office clerical, administrative, organizational and managerial routines such as health insurance verification, co-payments, and scheduling activities. When the doctor enters the examination room they already have important information before them, such as vital signs, height, weight, current medications, a brief summary of the reason for the visit and any concerns the patient might have.

Jennifer Hernandez is a medicalassistant in nephrology: "I do all the clinicals and some admin. We do have a biller and a receptionist here, also. It is busy, but I love it. Taking back patients, vitals, meds, reconciliation and then urine dips and spinning the urine. I feel like I just fit in with the doctor! She is an amazing woman."

While medical assistants aren't doctors, licensed practitioners, or practicing clinicians they have earned their mark as valuable members of the health care team as a whole through their unmatched services in the medical office and a wide range of ambulatory clinics everywhere.

You will keep the doctor on schedule in a succinct manner, patients informed and comfortable, waiting areas and examination rooms clean, clinical floors on track and the over-all office workflow running smoothly. No matter how busy the office gets, you may also have to make room for new medical assistant hirees and medical assistant students on externship to show them the ropes and the necessary routines. All in all, as a medical assistant you will be BUSY acting as an important contributor to your employer's medical practice and business. To succeed you need to be vigilant, engaged, pro-active, alert, inquisitive and well informed, know what you are allowed to do and what a medical assistant is NOT allowed to do.