Being A Medical Assistant Thornton IL - Find Medical Assistant Programs Near You

How to Select a Medical Assistant School near Thornton Illinois

Thornton IL medical assistant checking pulse Once you have decided to enter the gratifying field of healthcare and enroll in a medical assistant school near Thornton IL, it’s time to choose a school that will furnish the right training. But just how do you undertake evaluating and comparing colleges so that you subsequently enroll in the right one? Most prospective students start by researching the medical assistant schools that are nearest to their residences and then lean toward those that have the most affordable tuition. While cost and location are extremely important such things as accreditation, job assistance and internship programs are critical factors also. You might want to look into some online medical assistant programs as an option also (more about that later). The main point is that before you select a college you must complete your due diligence and compare all pertinent aspects of the colleges you are evaluating. And to help you with that process, we have furnished a few questions that you need to ask all of the colleges on your “maybe” list. But prior to starting that review, let’s briefly talk about the responsibilities of a medical assistant and the type of training and credentials that are available.

The Role of a Medical Assistant

medical assistant with Thornton IL nursing home patient The role of a medical assistant can be varied as well as demanding. Essentially their role is to make sure that the Thornton IL hospitals, clinics and other medical care facilities where they work operate efficiently. Based on the type or size of facility, they can be more of a clinical assistant, an administrative assistant, or in smaller practices both. They are responsible for providing direct assistance to the physicians, nurses and other medical 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 submitting claims
Setting and confirming appointments
Weighing and taking patients vital signs
Collecting blood and other fluid and tissue specimens
Preparing instruments and rooms for physicians
Giving basic support during exams and procedures

Even though medical assistants may perform almost any task they are qualified to under Illinois law, some elect to specialize in a specific area and attain 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 Courses

Compared to most other healthcare professionals, medical assistants are not required to become licensed, certified, or to obtain a college degree. However, many Thornton IL health care employers prefer to hire graduates of an accredited medical assistant training school (more on accreditation later ) that are certified. There are generally 2 options provided for a formal education. The first and quickest route to becoming a medical assistant is to earn a certificate or diploma. These programs usually take about 1 year to complete, some as little as six to nine months. They are developed to teach the basics of medical assisting and ready graduates for entry level positions. The second option is to obtain an Associate Degree, which are normally 2 year programs offered at junior and community colleges in addition to technical and vocational schools. They are more comprehensive in nature than the diploma or certificate programs, and include general education courses in addition to the medical assistant courses. They usually have a practical component involving an internship with a local medical facility. Associate Degrees are often a pre-requisite for and credits can be transferred to a four year Bachelor’s Degree in Medical Assistant Studies or a similar field.

Online Medical Assistant Schools

woman attending medical assistant school online in Thornton IL There are a number of accredited medical assistant programs available online also. They are an excellent option for those who may not have the time to go to classes on campus but could fit them in if attended at home. This is an especially good solution for students who continue working full time while earning their degree or certificate. As an additional benefit, some online schools have lower tuitions than the more conventional on-campus options. Ancillary expenses including those for commuting, textbooks and school supplies can be minimized also. Just bear in mind that any requirements for practical training or internships must still be fulfilled, but they can typically be performed in Thornton IL area medical facilities. If you can learn without the formal structure of participating in supervised classes on-campus, then this mode of receiving your training may be the right option for you. With the online courses and the practical training, everything necessary to achieve proficiency to work as a medical assistant is furnished.

Certification Programs for Medical Assistants

As previously mentioned, becoming certified is not a legal mandate, but is a good option for those who wish to boost their careers. Not only will it help in securing a job after graduation, but it can also help with initial salary negotiations. A number of potential Thornton IL medical employers just will not hire a medical assistant that has not received accredited formal training or certification. The most popular and perhaps the most respected certification is the Certified Medical Assistant (CMA) provided by the American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA). To qualify to sit for the CMA examination, an applicant must be a graduate or will graduate within thirty days from an accredited medical assistant program. Additional certifications are available as well, such as the CCMA and the CMAA that we discussed earlier which are offered by the NHA.

Topics to Ask Medical Assistant Programs

Questions to ask Thornton IL medical assistant programs Before you can start examining your medical assistant school options, you have to decide which kind of credential you would like to earn, and if you want to attend classes on-campus or online at home. Once those selections have been made, you can start the procedure of comparing medical assistant schools. As we covered at the beginning of this article, some potential students restrict their searches to the colleges that are nearest to Thornton IL with the most affordable tuition. Although cost and location are significant qualifiers, they are not the only ones. There are a number of additional considerations that you must examine when researching schools. To assist you with that task, following are some questions that you should ask about all of the programs you are considering before making your ultimate choice.

Is the Medical Assistant School 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 comprehensive and of the highest quality. Second, if you plan on becoming certified, you need to enroll in an accredited program. Two of the accepted agencies 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 qualified to take the CMA exam. Also, if you plan on obtaining a student loan or financial aid, they are frequently not offered for non-accredited programs. And last, as mentioned previously, many potential Thornton IL 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 colleges design their programs to ready students to pass one or more certification examinations. To start with, you must learn which of the certifications the colleges you are reviewing are preparing their students for. If you are planning on taking the CMA for instance, then obviously you will want to enroll in a program targeting that certification. Next, ask what the school’s passage rate is for the certification and compare it to the national average. Doing this is just one of the methods to help evaluate the quality of a school’s program. Obviously schools with lower rates are those that you will want to eliminate.

Which Credentials are Provided? As we covered earlier, there are basically two routes to obtaining medical assistant training. You can enroll in a certificate or diploma program and receive entry level training in the fastest amount of time, starting at just 6 months, however the average is about 1 year. Or you can opt to earn an Associate Degree and receive a more comprehensive education that will require approximately two years to finish in a community college or vocational school. Whatever program you decide to enroll in, make sure that the schools you are reviewing provide the type of program you are interested in.

Are Internships Sponsored? A large number of medical assistant programs offer internship programs with Thornton IL area medical care providers. They are an excellent means to obtain hands-on clinical experience and training. They may also help students establish relationships within the Thornton health care community. And as an added perk, they are an asset on resumes and for job interviews too.

Is Job Placement Support Provided? Finding that first job may be a challenging task for medical assistant school graduates unless they obtain some assistance from a job placement program. Confirm that the colleges you are researching provide job placement assistance in the Thornton IL area and find out what their placement rate is. If a school has a higher job placement rate for its graduates, it affirms that it has a good reputation within the health care community. It also suggests that it has a wide network of employers to help place students in positions.

How Big are the Classes? Class size might be an indicator of how much personal attention you will receive throughout your training. Smaller classes and classes with a higher teacher to student ratio are more prone to furnish greater access to teachers and face to face interaction. If possible, 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 receive.

Is Class Scheduling Accommodating? If you plan on attending a medical assistant college while you continue working full time, it’s essential that the program you choose offers classes that fit your schedule. If you have to go to classes at night or on weekends near Thornton IL, make certain that those times are offered. You may be able to fit your classes in more easily with an online school, but you will still have to schedule all internships or clinical training that may 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 issues.

Enrolling in a Medical Assistant Program near Thornton Illinois?

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

Thornton, Illinois

According to the 2010 census, Thornton has a total area of 2.376 square miles (6.15 km2), of which 2.35 square miles (6.09 km2) (or 98.91%) is land and 0.026 square miles (0.07 km2) (or 1.09%) is water.[6]

The Village of Thornton, the oldest settlement in Thornton Township, is built atop a deep deposit of limestone which is over 400 million years old and was once the bottom of a warm water Silurian sea.[7]

Native Americans lived along the east side of Thorn Creek. Artifacts dating to 1400CE have been found at the Hoxie Farm Site. That land was once home to an Indian fortification consisting of outer ditches or trenches and inside the works of the fortification proper. In the 1500’s, this area was a Miami Indian campground. They were followed by the Blackhawk and Illini tribes. By 1674, they were displaced by Potawatomi, Ottawa, and Chippewa. On October 20, 1832, the Chief of the Potawatomi Tribe entered into the Tippecanoe Treaty with the U. S. Government. The tribe was moved to Oklahoma and most of the property was ceded to the white settlers.

Enroll in the Ideal Medical Assistant Course Thornton IL

Thornton IL medical assistant student It’s essential to begin your new career on the right foot by choosing 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 lifetime career, you need to obtain the appropriate information on available programs before making your decision. There are such a large number of schools offering training these days that you can make a selection based on your individual circumstances and personal preferences. And as we have addressed in this article, confirm that the program you select is accredited by a recognized agency, for example the CAAHEP. This is especially important if you plan on taking the CMA certification exam. You came to this site initially because you had an interest in Being A Medical Assistant. But irrespective of the kind of credential that you plan to earn or if you have made a decision to attend either an online or on-campus school, make sure to ask the questions we have provided so you can compare programs and make an informed decision. And by selecting the ideal program you can subsequently start a gratifying career as a medical assistant in Thornton IL.