Medical Assistant Careers
Medical assistant careers are one of the fastest growing careers in the United States as indicated by the “United States Department of Labor – Bureau of Statistics”. Although there are a few medical assistants who only acquired their skill through “on the job trainings”, there are lots of institutions, vocational and technical schools, community and junior colleges that offer medical assistant programs for more successful medical assistant careers.
Medical assistant careers is said to be the fastest growing career from the year 2002 up to present. Graduates of medical assisting programs that are properly educated, experienced and certified or registered will have bright medical assistant careers.
Medical assistants’ duties, tasks and responsibilities are as follows: they are accountable for the maintenance of administrative, clerical and clinical tasks. They are responsible for preserving the efficiency of health offices and clinics, they must make sure that the office or clinic runs smoothly. The duties of medical assistants vary from office to office or vary from state to state.
Traditional medical assistant careers are limited in ambulatory care centers, urgent care facilities, or on general practitioner’s clinic. Recently, the medical assistant careers have begun to evolve. Lots of medical assistant careers are now both on private and public hospitals, inpatient and outpatient facilities. Medical assistants can now assist or help out a wide variety of general practitioners and specialists. Medical assistant careers that are “in demand” nowadays are the following: medical data and coding assistant; medical billing clerk; medical transcriptionist, medical records technician; and phlebotomist.
Medical assistant careers can be boosted by taking up medical assistant programs that specializes a particular area in health care. Medical assistant careers can also be advance to other health care careers like nursing. Medical assistants that take up additional formal trainings, along with their current career experience are candidates for great medical assistant careers.
The income of medical assistants varies from their experience, skill level and location. The average annual income of medical assistants in the United States alone during the year 2004 is about 24,000 U.S. Dollars. The income of medical assistants ranges from as low as eighteen thousand U.S. Dollars to as high as thirty-five thousand U.S. Dollars annually. Most employers would prefer medical assistants that have formal training or graduates of formal programs in medical assisting institutions and medical assistants that have extensive job experience.
A certified medical assistant must take a recertification examination every five years while a registered medical assistant must re-register every three years to maintain their credentials. They can re-register or recertify by continually attend “Certified Medical Assistant” meetings, conventions and seminars; or retake the initial examination to attest that they still have a certain level of knowledge of their particular health care area.