What Can A Certified Medical Assistant Do Smithfield RI - Find Medical Assistant Programs Near You

How to Pick a Medical Assistant School Program near Smithfield Rhode Island

Smithfield RI medical assistant checking pulse Now that you have decided to become a part of the rewarding field of health care and enroll in a medical assistant school near Smithfield RI, it’s time to select a college that will furnish the proper training. But just how do you approach evaluating and comparing colleges so that you subsequently enroll in the ideal one? Many potential students start 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 very important, such things as accreditation, internship programs and job assistance are critical factors as well. You may want to take a look at several online medical assistant programs as an alternative as well (more about that later). The main point is that before you select a program you need to complete your due diligence and compare all pertinent aspects of the schools you are reviewing. And to help you with that task, we have included a few questions that you need to ask each of the schools on your short list. But before we start that review, let’s talk a little bit about the role of a medical assistant and the type of training and credentials that are available.

The Role of a Medical Assistant

medical assistant with Smithfield RI nursing home patient The responsibilities of a medical assistant can be varied as well as demanding. Basically their function is ensure that the Smithfield RI clinics, hospitals and other medical care facilities where they work run successfully. Based on the type or size of facility, they can be more of an administrative assistant, a clinical assistant, or in smaller practices both. They are responsible for providing direct support to the nurses, doctors and other health practitioners but may also be found performing duties in an office or at the front desk. Some of the potential duties of a medical assistant include:

Completing insurance forms and filing claims
Scheduling and confirming appointments
Weighing and taking patients vital signs
Collecting blood and other tissue and fluid samples
Preparing instruments and rooms for physicians
Giving basic support during exams and procedures

Although medical assistants may carry out almost any duty they are qualified to under Rhode Island law, some elect to specialize in a particular area and attain certification. Two of the choices available are for the Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (CCMA) and the Certified Medical Administrative Assistant (CMAA) made available by the National Healthcareer Association (NHA).

Medical Assistant Training

Compared to many other healthcare practitioners, medical assistants are not mandated to become licensed, certified, or to have a college degree. However, many Smithfield RI health care employers prefer to hire graduates of an accredited medical assistant training program (more on accreditation later ) that have earned certification. There are essentially 2 choices provided for a formal education. The first and shortest path to becoming a medical assistant is to obtain a certificate or diploma. These programs usually take about 1 year to finish, 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 option is to earn an Associate Degree, which are normally two year programs provided at community and junior colleges together with vocational and technical schools. They are more comprehensive in design than the diploma or certificate programs, and include liberal arts courses in addition to the medical assistant classes. They often have a practical element requiring an internship with a local healthcare facility. Associate Degrees are commonly a pre-requisite for and credits can be applied to a four year Bachelor’s Degree in Medical Assistant Studies or a related field.

Online Medical Assistant Programs

woman attending medical assistant school online in Smithfield RI There are numerous accredited medical assistant programs offered online also. They are a good alternative for those who may not have time to go to classes on campus but could work them in if attended at home. This is a particularly good solution for students who continue to work full time while pursuing their degree or certificate. As an additional benefit, some online schools have cheaper tuitions than the more conventional on campus alternatives. Supplemental costs including those for commuting, textbooks and school supplies might be reduced as well. But keep in mind that any requirements for clinical training or internships must still be satisfied, but they can often be completed in Smithfield RI area health care facilities. If you can earn a degree without the formal structure of going to supervised classes on-campus, then this approach to receiving your education may be the right option for you. Between the online lessons and the clinical training, everything needed to achieve proficiency to perform as a medical assistant is furnished.

Certification Programs for Medical Assistants

As earlier stated, certification is not a legal mandate, but is an excellent idea for those who wish to boost their careers. Not only will it help in attaining employment after graduation, but it may also help with initial salary negotiations. Some potential Smithfield RI medical employers simply will not employ a medical assistant that has not received certification or accredited formal training. Among the most popular and arguably the most highly regarded certification is the Certified Medical Assistant (CMA) provided by the American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA). In order to sit for the CMA exam, an applicant must be a graduate or will graduate within 30 days from an accredited medical assistant program. Alternative certifications are available as well, such as the CMAA and the CCMA that we discussed earlier which are provided by the NHA.

What to Ask Medical Assistant Colleges

Questions to ask Smithfield RI medical assistant programs Prior to evaluating your medical assistant school options, you must choose which kind of credential you want to earn, and if you would prefer attending classes on campus or online from home. After those choices have been made, you can start the procedure of researching medical assistant schools. As we covered at the opening of this article, some potential students limit their searches to the colleges that are closest to Smithfield RI with the most affordable tuition. Although cost and location are important qualifiers, they are by no means the only ones. There are several additional issues that you need to examine when evaluating schools. To assist you with that process, below are a few questions that you need to ask about each of the schools you are thinking about before making your final choice.

Is the Medical Assistant Course Accredited? There are a number of great reasons to confirm that the program you enroll in is accredited. To begin with, accreditation helps guarantee that the training you receive will be both extensive 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 school is not accredited by one of these organizations, you will not be eligible to take the CMA examination. Also, if you plan on obtaining a student loan or financial assistance, they are frequently not available for non-accredited programs. And finally, as previously mentioned, many potential Smithfield RI employers will not hire a medical assistant who has not graduated from an accredited college.

What is the School’s Passage Percentage? Most of the accredited medical assistant schools develop their programs to prep students to pass one or more certification examinations. First, you need to determine which of the certifications the schools you are considering are preparing their students to take. If you are planning on taking the CMA for instance, then naturally you will want to enroll in a program targeting that certification. Second, learn what the school’s passage rate is for the certification and contrast it to the national average. This is just one of the means to help evaluate the quality of a college’s program. Obviously programs with lower rates are ones that you will prefer to avoid.

Which Programs are Available? As we covered earlier, there are basically two paths to acquiring medical assistant training. You can select a diploma or certificate program and receive 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 choose to obtain an Associate Degree and receive a more comprehensive education that will require about 2 years to complete in a community college or trade school. Whichever program you elect to pursue, verify that the colleges you are considering offer the kind of program you have an interest in.

Are Internships Available? A large number of medical assistant schools offer internship programs with Smithfield RI area medical providers. They are a great means to receive hands-on practical experience and training. They may also help students build relationships within the Smithfield health care community. And as an additional perk, they are an asset on resumes and for job interviews too.

Is Job Placement Help Supplied? Landing that initial job can be a difficult task for graduating medical assistant students unless they have a little assistance from a job placement program. Verify that the schools you are researching provide job placement assistance in the Smithfield RI area and ask what their placement rate is. If a college has a higher job placement rate for its graduates, it indicates that it has a good reputation within the healthcare community. It also indicates that it has a wide network of contacts to help place students in jobs.

How Large are the Classes? Class size might be an indicator of how much individual instruction you will receive during your training. Smaller classes and classes with a higher teacher to student ratio are more prone to furnish increased access to instructors and one-on-one interaction. If convenient, try to sit in on a couple of classes before choosing a program to witness what the teaching atmosphere is like and just how much attention the students get.

Is Class Scheduling Practical? If you plan on attending a medical assistant college while you continue to work full-time, it’s imperative that the school you enroll in provides classes that fit your schedule. If you have to attend classes at night or on weekends near Smithfield RI, make certain that those times are available. You may be able to fit your classes in more easily with an online college, but you will also have to schedule any clinical training or internships that may be required. Also, ask what the protocol is for making up classes that you may have to miss because of work, illness or family responsibilities.

Enrolling in a Medical Assistant Program near Smithfield Rhode Island?

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

Smithfield, Rhode Island

Smithfield is located in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. It includes the historic villages of Esmond, Georgiaville, Mountaindale, Hanton City, Stillwater and Greenville. The population was 21,430 at the 2010 census. Smithfield is the home of Bryant University, a private four year college.

The area comprising modern-day Smithfield was first settled in 1636 by several British colonists, including John Steere as a farming community and named after Smithfield, London. The area was within the boundaries of Providence until 1731 when Smithfield was incorporated as a separate town. Chief Justice Peleg Arnold lived in early Smithfield, and his 1690 home stands today. There was an active Quaker community in early 18th century Smithfield that extended along the Great Road, from what is today Woonsocket, north into south Uxbridge, Massachusetts. This Quaker community, and its members, became influential in the abolition movement, with members such as Effingham Capron and Abby Kelley Foster, and also gave rise to other Quaker settlements including one at Adams, Massachusetts where Susan B. Anthony was born as an early member. Elizabeth Buffum Chace is a well-known person from Smithfield who was influential in both abolition of slavery, and the women's rights movement. In the 19th century several mills were built in the town. In the mid-19th century the towns of North Smithfield, Rhode Island, and Lincoln, Rhode Island, became separate towns. The colonial ghost town of Hanton City is located within the boundaries of present-day Smithfield, but was a completely separate community in the eighteenth century. A Revolutionary war soldier, from the Smithfield side of the Massachusetts border, Captain James Buxton,[3] ended up as a Massachusetts militiaman and Continental Army veteran, who was deeded 300 acres in Worcester County by Governor John Hancock. For this reason Buxton was lost to the history of Rhode Island Revolutionary soldiers.(see South Uxbridge history). Buxton served at Valley Forge among other battles.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 71.9 km² (27.8 mi²). 68.9 km² (26.6 mi²) of it is land and 3.1 km² (1.2 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 4.25% water.

Pick the Best Medical Assistant School Smithfield RI

Smithfield RI medical assistant student It’s essential to start your new career on the right foot by enrolling in a medical assistant school that will furnish the appropriate training. Whether you’re goal is to begin a career in health care starting out as a medical assistant or to pursue medical assistance as your life long career, you must obtain the appropriate info on available programs prior to making your decision. There are such a large number of schools offering training nowadays that you can make a decision based on your personal preferences and individual circumstances. And as we have covered in this article, verify that the program you choose is accredited by an acknowledged organization, for example the CAAHEP. This is especially important if you plan on taking the CMA certification examination. You came to this site initially because you had an interest in What Can A Certified Medical Assistant Do. But regardless of the type of credential that you plan to earn or if you have made a decision to attend either an online or on-campus school, don’t forget to ask the questions we have provided so you can compare programs and make an informed decision. And by picking the ideal program you can ultimately start a fulfilling career as a medical assistant in Smithfield RI.