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| Degree Title: | Medical Assisting (Associate's) | ||
| School: | Mountain State University | ||
| Degree Description: |
The outlook for Medical Assisting is very bright. According to national labor statistics, Medical Assisting is the fastest-growing allied health profession in the US. The Mountain State University medical assisting program trains students to perform both clinical and administrative (business) skills-thus, the program is housed in both the School of Health Sciences and the School of Business and Technology. People who want to help and care for others, but are not drawn to being physicians or nurses, are good candidates to enter the field of medical assisting. People who have a business background or an interest in management enter medical assisting because they can build on their skills, possibly leading to a clinic management position. The medical assisting program comprises general studies in the humanities, business, and the natural sciences along with preparation for clinical and administrative health care positions. Medical assistant positions often include such tasks as: Reception Students learn to run the "front" office and can schedule appointments, answer the phone, call in prescriptions, prepare and maintain patient charts, do billing and collections, process insurance claims, transcribe medical documents, and perform many other administrative duties. Students also learn to assist the physician in the "back" office, which is the clinical area. They take patient histories, screen patients, take and record vital signs, do basic laboratory tests, do EKGs, perform venipuncture, give injections, and assist the physician with different procedures. Graduates are then eligible to sit for the Certified Medical Assisting exam, a national test which, when passed, give the privilege of using the credential CMA (Certified Medical Assistant). |
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