Welcome to My Medical Assistant Certification Site!
Welcome to my site about being a certified medical assistant and receiving my medical assistant certification. I’ve worked very hard on the site to bring you as much information as I can about how to become a medical assistant. Please feel free to look around at the different articles I’ve wrote about being a medical assistant.
To read about why I became a medical assistant : My medical assistant certification story
If you want to know what it is I do everyday as a certified medical assistant, check this article out: Certified medical assistant job description
To read about how to become a medical assistant : How to Become a Medical Assistant
If you would like to know what you’ll need to know to be a medical assistant here are articles with:
-Medical Assistant Requirements
To find out more about the test you’ll have to take to recieve your medical assistant certification and become a certified medical assistant: Medical Assistant Test
If you are having problems with the curriculum or the certified medical assistant test, check out these medical assistant resources.
If you are interested in an online medical assistant certification, you have to read this article first! Medical Assistant Certification Online
Lastly, if you already have a medical assistant certification and are wanting information on how to ACE that interview you’ve got, check out this medical assistant interview questions article! And medical assistant salaries by state!
Certified Medical Assistant Job Description
One of the most common questions I get from visitors to the site is what I do everyday as a certified medical assistant. To become a certified medical assistant you need to take 1-2 years of school, or if you already have a lot of experience, then you can use your background to just learn what to do on the job. I could have used my experience as a business administrator for my parent’s barber shop, but I chose to go back to school and do the courses in anatomy, medicine, first aid, pharmacology, lab techniques and ethics because I wanted to refresh my knowledge about these topics. I was 28 when I finally went back to school and I got my medical assistant certification when I was just about to turn 30. I’ve been a certified medical assistant for five years now and I’ve never been happier!
If you want to read more about medical assistant requirements, check out this blog post!
Certified Medical Assistant Administration and Office Duties
I work in the reception of a busy private neurosurgical clinic. I make sure that the clinic is running smoothly and because our business is so small, I do some clinical tasks as well and I report directly to our two surgeons and a business manager. Part of my medical administrative assistant tasks are to update and file patient medical records, fill out insurance forms and arrange for transfer from hospitals and laboratory services, such as blood tests.
Apart from the above, my standard duties are to answer telephones, greet patients, handle the day-to-day postal and e-mail correspondence, deal with the accounts and bookkeeping and schedule appointments with patients and the surgeons.
Medical Assistant Clinical Duties
Because we are such a small clinic, sometimes I also help out with some of the clinical duties. The most I’ve ever done is to record vital signs, but I was told at the job interview that I may have to assist as well sometimes by preparing laboratory specimens and performing basic tests! It’s very exciting. Sometimes I have to sterilize medical instruments and safely dispose of contaminated supplies.
I love working with patients in particular, and sometimes the surgeons ask me to explain medical procedures to them while they are working with another patient. I know a lot about diets, nutrition and fitness and I take part in a lot of marathons as a hobby, so I love telling patients about healthy lifestyles and how they can improve their overall level of health and fitness.
On rare occasions when the nurse is unavailable, I sometimes have to prepare patients for x-rays, use the EKG machine and even remove sutures and change dressings! I’m no longer afraid of blood since my accident with Gary and I absolutely love it when I get to assist with surgery somehow.
I’m an absolute freak when it comes to cleanliness and this is one of the reasons why my bosses love me. We do have a janitor who comes in twice a day, but during the day I usually keep everything neat and tidy and on occasion I may even wash up the hallway and sterilize the reception desk.
Oh, I get to wear a lab coat as well most 
of the day!
Check this article out if you want to learn more about medical assistant duties! Or this article for how to become a medical assistant!
Medical Assistant Salary
This is a common question, but I think I am paid very well. I started my salary at $29k 5 years ago, because of my previous 10 years’ experience in business administration, but now it has increased to $35k. While it is a bit smaller than the annual median for the country, I absolutely love my job and I can expect to get at least up to $50-60k if I work for another 10 years in this job.
If you want to learn what you could make as a certified medical assistant, check out this article about medical assistant salaries!
Without a doubt, getting my medical assistant certification was the best decision of my life and I’m going to stay here till I retire!
Check out some of my other articles, including information about medical assistant certification online, resources to help you on your way to getting your certification, and what medical assistant skills you will need to succeed at your new career!
Medical Assistant Resources
I’ve been searching the internet for medical assistant certification resources to help you on the path to your future. From the far reaches of the internet, I bring you the finest resources I could find.
As I’ve explained here on med-assistant-certification.com, when you are in school, you will have many different requirements as far as topics go;
- Biology
- Anatomy
- Physiology
- Chemistry
- Physical Science
The best place to brush up on all these subjects is actually, YouTube. Educator.com’s channel: EducatorVids has tons of science related videos that are short, concise, and easy to digest.
For other Biology related information, biologynews.net is also a good read.
When working on your medical assistant certification, it’s VERY important that you stand out from the rest of your class. Certified medical assistant is a designation that is not easily achieved, however, it is a growing field in the medical industry. It is inevitable that with the growing field, more competition for the top spots will occur. Being well-read on topics other than generic school studies is incredibly important.
Another way to set yourself up to grab the best paying and most rewarding positions is to have a network. The following are my top five blogs in the nursing arena! They will also give you a much better view of what a medical assistant is and the everyday duties of medical assistants in the health care industry.
1. Nurse Ratched’s Place: These are great stories by a professional with a clear, and easy to read writing style, entertaining and poignant.
2. Nurse POV Blogs – A collection of different blogs for a community of nurses.
3. Impacted Nurse – Here is the nitty gritty of everyday life as a certified medical assistant or nurse. This is where you will find real life cases of medicine in practice.
4. The Nursing Site Blog – Info on education in the medical industry!
5. Blood, Guts, and Coffee – I love a macabre sense of humor, and this blog definitely has it. Quips and quirks abound, the only downside, lack of updates for the nursing blog.
Once you get out of school, you’ll need information on how to find a good paying job, there are two different paths you can take, small clinic, or large hospital, for the larger companies:
CareerBuilder – These guys have been around a long time and will continue to be around.
Monster – Same as with CareerBuilder, both are well reputed and will attract the larger companies, which have more nursing and medical assistant jobs available.
The reason you want to go with these well known sites is because the employers will likely go to the most notable sites with their bulk jobs. Work smarter, not harder!
If you are trying to get a job with a medical clinic or with a specific doctor, you will need to read this article!
Also, be sure to check out the American Association of Medical Assistants website at http://www.aama-ntl.org/!