Accredited Schools For Medical Assistant Portsmouth RI - Find Medical Assistant Programs Near You

How to Choose a Medical Assistant Training School near Portsmouth Rhode Island

Portsmouth RI medical assistant checking pulse Now that you have decided to enter the rewarding field of healthcare and enroll in a medical assistant school near Portsmouth RI, it’s time to select a school that will provide the appropriate training. But just how do you approach comparing and evaluating colleges so that you subsequently pick the right one? A number of future students begin by researching the medical assistant schools that are nearest to their homes and then lean toward those that have the cheapest tuition. While cost and location are extremely important such things as accreditation, job assistance and internship programs are important issues also. You may want to look into a few online medical assistant programs as an alternative also (more about that later). The bottom line is that prior to selecting a program you must carry out your due diligence and compare all relevant qualifications of the schools you are evaluating. And to assist you with that task, we have furnished some questions that you need to ask all of the colleges on your “maybe” list. But before we start that review, let’s briefly talk about the function of a medical assistant and the type of credentials and training that are offered.

The Role of Medical Assistants

medical assistant with Portsmouth RI nursing home patient The job of a medical assistant can be diverse as well as challenging. Primarily their job is to make sure that the Portsmouth RI hospitals, clinics and other medical care facilities where they work operate efficiently. Based on the size or type of facility, they may be more of a clinical assistant, an administrative assistant, or in smaller practices both. They are tasked with providing direct assistance to the physicians, nurses and other medical practitioners but can also be found working in an office or at the front desk. Some of the possible duties of a medical assistant include:

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

While medical assistants may perform almost any duty they are authorized to under Rhode Island law, some choose to specialize in a particular area and obtain certification. Two of the choices offered are for the Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (CCMA) and the Certified Medical Administrative Assistant (CMAA) provided by the National Healthcareer Association (NHA).

Medical Assistant Education

In contrast to most other medical practitioners, medical assistants are not required to become licensed, certified, or to have a college degree. However, a number of Portsmouth RI health care employers choose to hire graduates of an accredited medical assistant training program (we’ll cover accreditation later ) that have earned certification. There are generally 2 options offered for a formal education. The first and fastest route to becoming a medical assistant is to attain a certificate or diploma. These programs normally take about a year to finish, a few as little as 6 to 9 months. They are created to teach the fundamentals of medical assisting and prepare graduates for entry level positions. The second option is to obtain an Associate Degree, which are normally two year programs provided at junior and community colleges as well as vocational and technical schools. They are more expansive in nature than the certificate or diploma programs, and include general education courses in addition to the medical assistant training. They usually have a clinical element requiring an internship with a local medical practice. Associate Degrees are routinely 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 Colleges

woman attending medical assistant school online in Portsmouth RI There are a number of accredited medical assistant programs accessible online as well. They are a good alternative for students who may not have time to go to classes on campus but could fit them in if accessible at home. This is a particularly good solution for students who continue working full time while attaining their certificate or degree. As an added benefit, a number of online programs have cheaper tuitions than the more traditional on-campus alternatives. Supplemental costs including those for commuting, textbooks and school supplies might be minimized also. But keep in mind that any requirements for practical training or internships must still be fulfilled, but they can typically be completed in Portsmouth RI area medical facilities. If you can earn a degree without the rigid structure of participating in supervised classes on-campus, then this mode of receiving your training may be the best option for you. Between the online classes and the practical training, everything necessary to achieve proficiency to work as a medical assistant is provided.

Certification Programs for Medical Assistants

As stated previously, becoming certified is not a legal requirement, but is a good idea for those who want to advance their careers. It will not only help in obtaining a position after graduation, but it may also help with preliminary salary negotiations. A number of possible Portsmouth RI medical employers simply will not employ a medical assistant that has not attained accredited formal training or certification. Among the most popular and possibly the most respected 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 30 days from an accredited medical assistant program. Additional certifications are offered also, including the CCMA and the CMAA that we discussed earlier which are provided by the NHA.

Points to Ask Medical Assistant Colleges

Questions to ask Portsmouth RI medical assistant programs Prior to assessing your medical assistant school alternatives, you have to determine which type of credential you want to earn, and if you want to attend classes on-campus or online at home. Once those choices have been made, you can start the procedure of researching medical assistant schools. As we discussed at the opening of this article, a number of students limit their searches to the colleges that are closest to Portsmouth RI with the lowest tuition. Although cost and location are important qualifiers, they are by no means the only ones. There are several additional factors that you should explore when assessing schools. To assist you with that process, below are some questions that you should ask about all of the programs you are thinking about before making your ultimate selection.

Is the Medical Assistant School Accredited? There are a number of great reasons to confirm that the school you select is accredited. To begin with, accreditation helps guarantee that the education you receive will be both comprehensive and of the highest quality. Next, if you plan on becoming certified, you must complete an accredited program. Two of the accepted 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 school is not accredited by one of these agencies, you will not be allowed to take the CMA exam. Additionally, if you intend on obtaining a student loan or financial assistance, they are normally not available for non-accredited programs. And last, as mentioned previously, many prospective Portsmouth RI employers will not hire a medical assistant who has not graduated from an accredited college.

What is the School’s Passing Rate? Most of the accredited medical assistant schools develop their programs to prepare students to pass one or more certification examinations. To start with, you must determine which of the certifications the colleges you are reviewing are preparing their students for. If you are interested in taking the CMA for instance, then naturally you will want to enroll in a program focused on that certification. Next, learn what the school’s passage rate is for the certification and contrast it to the national average. Doing this is just one of the means to help evaluate the quality of a school’s program. Naturally programs with low rates are ones that you will want to eliminate.

Which Programs are Offered? As we previously covered, there are generally two paths to obtaining medical assistant training. You can enroll in a certificate or diploma program and get entry level training in the shortest amount of time, starting at just 6 months, however the average is closer to one year. Or you can elect to earn an Associate Degree and get a broader education that will require approximately two years to accomplish in a community college or vocational school. Whichever program you decide to pursue, make certain that the schools you are considering offer the type of program you have an interest in.

Are Internships Offered? Many medical assistant programs offer internship programs with Portsmouth RI area medical care providers. They are an excellent means to get hands-on practical experience and training. They may also help students develop relationships within the Portsmouth health care community. And as an additional benefit, they are an advantage on resumes and for job interviews too.

Is Job Placement Help Supplied? Finding that very first job can be a difficult task for medical assistant school graduates unless they have a little assistance from a job placement program. Confirm that the colleges you are interviewing offer job placement assistance in the Portsmouth RI area and find out what their placement rate is. If a college has a higher job placement rate for its students, it indicates that it has a good reputation within the healthcare community. It also signifies that it has a large network of contacts to help place students in positions.

How Big are the Classrooms? Class size can be an indication of how much personal instruction you will get throughout your training. Smaller classes and classes with a higher teacher to student ratio are more prone to offer increased access to teachers and face to face interaction. If practical, try to monitor a couple of classes before enrolling in a school to witness what the teaching atmosphere is like and just how much attention the students get.

Is Class Scheduling Accessible? If you plan on attending a medical assistant program while you continue working full-time, it’s important that the program you choose offers classes that fit your schedule. If you have to go to classes in the evenings or on weekends near Portsmouth RI, confirm that those times are offered. You might be able to fit your classes in easier with an online program, but you will still have to schedule all clinical training or internships that might be required. Also, find out what the protocol is for making up classes that you might have to miss because of work, illness or family responsibilities.

Enrolling in a Medical Assistant Program near Portsmouth Rhode Island?

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

Portsmouth, Rhode Island

Portsmouth is a town in Newport County, Rhode Island, USA. The population was 17,389 at the 2010 U.S. Census. Portsmouth is the second oldest municipality in Rhode Island, after Providence; it was one of the four colonies which merged to form the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, the others being Providence, Newport, and Warwick.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 59.3 square miles (154 km2), of which, only 23.2 square miles (60 km2) (39.14%) of it is land and 36.1 square miles (93 km2) (60.86%) of it is water. Most of its land area lies on Aquidneck Island, which it shares with Middletown and Newport. In addition, Portsmouth encompasses some smaller islands, including Prudence Island, Patience Island, Hope Island, and Hog Island.

Portsmouth was settled in 1638 by a group of religious dissenters from Massachusetts Bay Colony, including Dr. John Clarke, William Coddington, and Anne Hutchinson. It is named after Portsmouth, Hampshire, England. Roger Williams convinced the settlers that they should go there instead of settling in the Province of New Jersey, where they had first planned on going.

Choose the Ideal Medical Assistant Program Portsmouth RI

Portsmouth RI medical assistant student It’s imperative to begin your new career on the right foot by selecting a medical assistant program that will furnish the right training. Whether you’re planning to launch a career in medical care starting out as a medical assistant or to pursue medical assistance as your life long career, you need to acquire the appropriate information on available programs before making your decision. There are so many colleges providing training nowadays that you can make a decision based upon your personal preferences and individual circumstances. And as we have discussed in this article, confirm that the program you pick is accredited by an acknowledged agency, for example the CAAHEP. This is particularly critical if you intend on taking the CMA certification exam. You came to this site initially because you had an interest in Accredited Schools For Medical Assistant. But irrespective of the type of credential that you plan 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 compare programs and make an informed decision. And by choosing the ideal program you can subsequently begin a fulfilling career as a medical assistant in Portsmouth RI.