Medical Assistant Duties Princeton NJ - Find Medical Assistant Programs Near You

How to Enroll In a Medical Assistant School Program near Princeton New Jersey

Princeton NJ medical assistant checking pulse Once you have decided to enter the gratifying profession of health care and enroll in a medical assistant school near Princeton NJ, it’s time to select a school that will furnish the proper training. But just how do you approach comparing and evaluating colleges so that you ultimately enroll in the best one? Many future students begin by researching the medical assistant schools that are closest to their homes and then gravitate toward those that have the lowest tuition. While cost and location are very important, such things as accreditation, internship programs and job assistance are critical issues also. You might want to research a few online medical assistant programs as an alternative as well (more on that later). The bottom line is that before you select a college you must finish your due diligence and compare all pertinent aspects of the schools you are assessing. And to help you with that task, we have provided some questions that you should ask all of the schools on your “maybe” list. But prior to starting that review, let’s briefly talk about the role of a medical assistant and the kind of training and credentials that are available.

The Duties of a Medical Assistant

medical assistant with Princeton NJ nursing home patient The responsibilities of a medical assistant can be varied as well as challenging. Primarily their function is to make sure that the Princeton NJ hospitals, clinics and other medical care institutions where they work run efficiently. Depending on the type or size of facility, they may be more of a clinical assistant, an administrative assistant, or in smaller facilities both. They are responsible for providing direct support to the physicians, nurses and other health practitioners but can also be found working in an office or at the front desk. Some of the many functions of a medical assistant include:

Completing insurance forms and submitting claims
Scheduling and verifying appointments
Weighing and taking patients vital signs
Collecting blood and other tissue and fluid specimens
Preparing rooms and instruments for physicians
Supplying basic support during examinations and procedures

Although medical assistants may perform almost any activity they are authorized to under New Jersey law, some elect to specialize in a specific area and obtain certification. Two of the choices offered are for the Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (CCMA) and the Certified Medical Administrative Assistant (CMAA) offered by the National Healthcareer Association (NHA).

Medical Assistant Education

In contrast to many other healthcare professionals, medical assistants are not required to become certified, licensed, or to earn a college degree. However, a number of Princeton NJ health care employers would rather hire graduates of an accredited medical assistant training school (more on accreditation later ) that have earned certification. There are generally two choices available for a formal education. The first and fastest route to becoming a medical assistant is to earn a diploma or a certificate. These programs normally take about a year to complete, a few as little as six to nine months. They are designed to teach the fundamentals of medical assisting and ready graduates for entry level positions. The second alternative is to attain an Associate Degree, which are usually two year programs provided at junior and community colleges together with vocational and technical schools. They are more expansive in nature than the certificate or diploma programs, and include liberal arts courses in addition to the medical assistant courses. They frequently have a clinical component involving an internship with a local medical facility. Associate Degrees are commonly a pre-requisite for and credits can be transferred to a 4 year Bachelor’s Degree in Medical Assistant Studies or a related field.

Medical Assistant Online Courses

woman attending medical assistant school online in Princeton NJ There are numerous accredited medical assistant programs available online also. They are an excellent choice for individuals who may not have time to attend classes on campus but could work them in if accessible at home. This is a particularly good choice for students who continue to work full time while pursuing their degree or certificate. As an additional benefit, some online programs have lower tuitions than the more conventional on-campus alternatives. Ancillary expenses including those for commuting, textbooks and school supplies may be minimized also. Just remember that all requirements for practical training or internships must still be satisfied, but they can often be performed in Princeton NJ area medical care facilities. If you can learn without the formal structure of going to supervised classes on campus, then this approach to receiving your training may be the right choice for you. Between the online courses and the clinical training, everything needed to achieve proficiency to perform as a medical assistant is provided.

Certification Options for Medical Assistants

As stated previously, becoming certified is not a legal mandate, but is a good choice for individuals who want to advance their careers. It will not only help in obtaining a job after graduation, but it may also enhance preliminary salary negotiations. A number of possible Princeton NJ medical employers simply will not employ a medical assistant that has not received certification or accredited formal training. Among the most popular and perhaps the most highly regarded certification is the Certified Medical Assistant (CMA) offered by the American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA). To qualify to sit for the CMA examination, a candidate must be a graduate or will graduate within thirty days from an accredited medical assistant program. Other certifications are offered also, such as the CMAA and the CCMA that we discussed earlier which are provided by the NHA.

Questions to Ask Medical Assistant Colleges

Questions to ask Princeton NJ medical assistant programs Prior to examining your medical assistant school alternatives, you must determine which kind of credential you would like to attain, and if you want to attend classes on campus or online from home. Once those decisions have been made, you can begin the procedure of researching medical assistant schools. As we covered at the opening of this article, some prospective students limit their searches to the colleges that are nearest to Princeton NJ with the most affordable tuition. Although cost and location are important qualifiers, they are by no means the only ones. There are several additional considerations that you must look at when researching programs. To assist you with that process, below are some questions that you need to ask about all of the programs you are considering before making your final choice.

Is the Medical Assistant Course Accredited? There are several great reasons to ensure that the college you enroll in is accredited. To start with, accreditation helps guarantee that the education you receive will be both comprehensive and of the highest quality. Second, if you plan on becoming certified, you must complete an accredited program. Two of the acknowledged organizations for accreditation are the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) and the Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools (ABHES). If your program is not accredited by either of these agencies, you will not be eligible to take the CMA examination. Also, if you plan on obtaining a student loan or financial assistance, they are often not offered for non-accredited programs. And last, as previously mentioned, many potential Princeton NJ employers will not employ a medical assistant who has not graduated from an accredited college.

What is the School’s Passing Percentage? The majority of accredited medical assistant schools design their programs to ready students to pass one or more certification examinations. To begin with, you need to learn which of the certifications the schools you are considering are preparing their students for. If you are planning on taking the CMA for example, then obviously you will need to enroll in a program concentrating on that certification. Second, ask what the school’s passage rate is for the certification and compare it to the national average. Doing this is one of the methods to help evaluate the quality of a school’s program. Naturally schools with lower rates are ones that you will want to eliminate.

Which Programs are Provided? As we covered earlier, there are essentially two routes to getting medical assistant training. You can enroll in a certificate or diploma program and obtain entry level training in the fastest amount of time, from as little as 6 months, however the average is closer to 1 year. Or you can opt to obtain an Associate Degree and receive a broader education that will require approximately two years to finish in a junior college or vocational school. Whatever program you choose to enroll in, confirm that the colleges you are considering provide the kind of program you have an interest in.

Are Internships Available? Numerous medical assistant schools offer internship programs with Princeton NJ area healthcare providers. They are a great method to receive hands-on clinical experience and training. They may also assist students build relationships within the Princeton medical community. And as an added perk, they are an advantage on resumes and for job interviews as well.

Is Job Placement Service Supplied? Getting that very first job may be a challenging task for medical assistant school graduates unless they have a little help from a job placement program. Verify that the schools you are interviewing provide job placement assistance in the Princeton NJ area and find out what their placement rate is. If a school has a higher job placement rate for its students, it affirms that it has a good reputation within the health care community. It also indicates that it has a broad network of contacts to help place students in positions.

How Large are the Classrooms? Class size may be an indication of how much individual instruction you will get during your training. Smaller classes and classes with a higher teacher to student ratio are more prone to provide increased access to teachers and face to face interaction. If possible, try to monitor a couple of classes before choosing a college to see what the teaching atmosphere is like and how much attention the students receive.

Is Class Scheduling Accommodating? If you plan on attending a medical assistant college while you continue to work on a full time basis, it’s imperative that the school you select provides classes that fit your schedule. If you need to attend classes in the evenings or on weekends near Princeton NJ, confirm that those times are available. You may be able to fit your classes in more easily with an online college, but you will still have to schedule all clinical training or internships that will be required. Additionally, ask what the protocol is for making up classes that you may have to miss due to work, illness or family issues.

Enrolling in a Medical Assistant Program near Princeton New Jersey?

If you are considering attending a medical assistant school in the Princeton NJ area, following is some background information that may be both interesting and useful regarding your future campus location.

Princeton, New Jersey

Princeton is a municipality with a borough form of government in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States, that was established in its current form on January 1, 2013, through the consolidation of the Borough of Princeton and Princeton Township. As of the 2010 United States Census, the municipality's population was 28,572, reflecting the former township's population of 16,265, along with the 12,307 in the former borough.[7][8][9][10][11]

Princeton was founded before the American Revolution and is best known as the home of Princeton University, located in the community since 1756. Although its association with the university is primarily what makes Princeton a college town, other important institutions in the area include the Institute for Advanced Study, Westminster Choir College, Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, Princeton Theological Seminary, Opinion Research Corporation, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Siemens Corporate Research, SRI International, FMC Corporation, The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Amrep, Church and Dwight, Berlitz International, and Dow Jones & Company.

Princeton is roughly equidistant from New York City and Philadelphia. It is close to many major highways that serve both cities (e.g. Interstate 95 and US Route 1), and receives major television and radio broadcasts from each. It is also close to Trenton, New Jersey's capital city, and Edison.

Pick the Right Medical Assistant Training Princeton NJ

Princeton NJ medical assistant student It’s imperative to begin your new career on the right foot by picking a medical assistant program that will provide the proper training. Regardless if you’re planning to launch a career in healthcare starting out as a medical assistant or to practice medical assistance as your life long career, you need to acquire the appropriate info on available programs prior to making your decision. There are so many schools offering training these days that you can make a decision based on your individual circumstances and personal preferences. And as we have addressed in this article, make certain that the program you decide on is accredited by an acknowledged agency, for example the CAAHEP. This is especially important if you intend on taking the CMA certification examination. You came to this site initially because you had an interest in Medical Assistant Duties. But irrespective of the type of credential that you intend to earn or if you have decided to attend either an on-campus or online school, be sure to ask the questions we have supplied in order to evaluate programs and make an informed decision. And by picking the best program you can subsequently start a fulfilling career as a medical assistant in Princeton NJ.