If you are in the academic or even career world, you know that getting an academic degree is one thing and getting certified is another. After your studies and attaining the degree, you’re required to take an American Association of Medical Assistants test.
But even before getting to the details of the profession, do you know that medical assisting is one of the fastest-growing jobs in a sector that is expanding tremendously? Now you know. The assistants work alongside nurses and physicians, mainly in ambulatory or outpatient care settings. These include medical clinics and offices. With the medical assistant program, you have cross-training, so you perform clinical and administrative duties. The medical assistant career is one of the fastest-growing in America and across the globe.
This job popularity and growth is attributed to the growing number of practicing physicians, outpatient clinics, and a high number of adults who need medical care and treatment.
How do you become a medical assistant?
A school diploma or equivalent
To pursue this career and attain education certification, high school math and science classes are essential. There is a minimum cut-off grade in those subjects, and therefore if you wish to pursue that career, you’ve to work hard and get the best you can.
Graduate from some accredited medical program
As a medical assistant, you will need to pass the AAMA or CMA exam. And for you to take the exam, you must graduate from a program accredited by the accrediting bureau of health education schools (ABHES). The program runs for about 9-12 months, and it’s available at colleges and career centers. Some community colleges offer a two-year medical program, and you earn an associate degree.
Apply for the medical assistant certification
Once you’ve graduated from a fully accredited medical assistant program that gives you a medical assistant outlook, you’re eligible to take the CMA exam. You have to take the exam not more than 30 days before graduation and after completing your practicum. The average cost for this is $120 for the members, and for non-members, it’s $250. You will be required to renew this every 60 months.
Pass the CMA exam
You have to sit for 200 multiple choice exams for four forty-minute test periods to qualify and get certified. Before the actual test, you can consider taking practice exams and reviewing courses to improve your potential success rate and learn how to become a certified medical assistant.
How do you succeed as a medical assistant?
After you have taken the tests and certified, you’re a fully-fledged medical assistant. The jobs are yours for the taking. But it’s one thing to get the job and another to succeed in the medical assistant duties.
Be proactive
Once you begin working and have been allocated daily duties, don’t wait to be told what you need to do. Interact with patients, anticipate their needs, and find solutions. Then you will have an easy time accomplishing your duties.
The medical assistant job, like many others, requires time for you to gain experience. That means you work closely with your colleagues and supervisors, so you gain the experience to succeed.
