Now more than ever, the medical field needs compassionate and empathetic people. If you have thought about a career in health care, now is a great time to get started. According to the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics, the need for medical assistants is projected to grow 18 percent between 2020 and 2030.
Medical assistant (MA) is a great introductory job into the health care industry that doesn’t require years of education or experience. This role can be a steppingstone to becoming a health care administrator, a medical assistant instructor, a nurse, or a clinical team leader.
Here is a closer look at what MAs do and what kind of skills a person would need to be in this role.
Daily tasks a medical assistant could do:
- Interact with patients to gather vitals, height and weight.
- Accurately transcribe, record, and store medical information.
- Sterilize instruments or medical equipment and prepare treatment rooms.
- Record patient medical history, stats, and test results.
- Walk a patient through a treatment or procedure, and medications.
- Collect, log, and prepare lab specimens.
- Help physicians during patient exam or treatment.
- Perform routine laboratory tests.
- Use a variety of medical tools.
Skills or training a medical assistant needs:
- Ability to show compassion towards a patient.
- Good oral and written comprehension.
- The ability to be sensitive with patient while providing personal or medical attention.
- Knowledge of or the ability to learn new software programs (billing software, medical software)
- Understanding of human behavior.
- Attention to detail.
Interested in learning how you can get started on a career in health care as an MA? Visit westmiworks.org/MARAP to learn about the Medical Assistant Registered Apprenticeship Program (MARAP). You can earn a wage while learning the skills to become a medical assistant!