The medical assistant career encompasses many rewarding medical experiences that can grow as you experience new areas, gain in knowledge and skill and as you obtain certification in other areas. As you advance in your chosen career you will encounter one medical assistant job description after another that pertain to different opportunities including working in a small general medical practice, working in a surgical or medical hospital, or a large specialty clinic. The job descriptions will be your guide to choosing where you fit into the exciting field of medical assisting as you apply for each job. The medical assistant duties will vary as your career advances. Becoming certified will give you the ability to specialize and earn a higher certified medical assistant salary which can range anywhere from $35,000 to $37,000 annually.
Your career as a medical assistant may take you into a busy physician’s office, a university health center, or a surgical hospital unit. As a medical assistant you will be performing both administrative and clinical duties. You will be one of more than 484,000 medical assistants employed throughout the U.S. working side by side with other medical professionals.
In order to embark on your medical assistant career you will need to be a high school graduate. Certification is not required but being certified will open up many more opportunities for advancement and higher salaries. Certification opens the door to working in medical specialties such as obstetrics, ophthalmology, or podiatry.
There are many varied duties that can be performed during your career that contributes to a healthy medical practice such as answering phones, scheduling medical appointments, taking medical histories, recording important medical information such as vital signs and lab test results into patient medical records, preparing treatment rooms, instructing patients about medical treatments or medications, administering medications, helping a medical professional during a procedure and cleaning and sterilizing medical instruments. A medical assistant may also collect laboratory specimens such as tissue or blood samples.
To be successful in a medical assistant career a candidate must demonstrate that they possess people skills, and good communication skills. They must enjoy working with other medical professionals in a medical environment and desire to help others. The medical assistant career is considered to be a very demanding profession, which requires a wide variety of practical skills, the ability to make good decisions and the willingness to learn. Many medical assistants rely solely on, on-the-job training to perform their tasks while others attend 1 or 2 year certificate programs.
Unlike other career fields that ebb and flow with the economy, medical assistants are always in demand as are other healthcare professionals. This is a secure career that can be rewarding and lucrative now and in the future. Individuals choosing the medical assistant career gain immense satisfaction from being able to help others in medical situations to feel better by giving medical and emotional support. This career gives plenty of opportunity to interact with others on a daily basis.
