Medical Assistant Bachelor Degree Eastham MA - Find Medical Assistant Programs Near You

How to Enroll In a Medical Assistant School Program near Eastham Massachusetts

Eastham MA medical assistant checking pulse Once you have made a decision to join the rewarding profession of healthcare and enroll in a medical assistant school near Eastham MA, it’s time to choose a college that will provide the appropriate training. But just how do you undertake evaluating and comparing colleges so that you subsequently pick the best one? A number of prospective students start by evaluating the medical assistant schools that are nearest to their residences and then gravitate toward those that have the lowest tuition. While location and cost are very important, such things as accreditation, job assistance and internship programs are critical factors also. You might choose to look into several online medical assistant programs as an option as well (more on that later). The main point is that prior to selecting a program you must finish your due diligence and compare all relevant qualifications of the colleges you are evaluating. And to help you with that process, we have included a few questions that you should ask each of the schools on your short list. But prior to starting that review, let’s briefly talk about the function of a medical assistant and the kind of training and credentials that are available.

The Role of a Medical Assistant

medical assistant with Eastham MA nursing home patient The job of a medical assistant can be diverse as well as demanding. Primarily their function is to make sure that the Eastham MA clinics, hospitals and other medical care facilities where they work run efficiently. Depending on the size or type of facility, they can be more of an administrative assistant, a clinical assistant, or in smaller facilities both. They are responsible for giving direct assistance to the nurses, doctors and other medical practitioners but can also be found performing duties at the front desk or in an office. A few of the many functions of a medical assistant include:

Filling out insurance forms and filing claims
Setting and verifying appointments
Weighing and taking patients vital signs
Taking blood and other fluid and tissue samples
Preparing rooms and instruments for physicians
Giving general support during examinations and procedures

While medical assistants can perform almost any duty they are authorized to under Massachusetts 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 Programs

In contrast to many other medical practitioners, medical assistants are not mandated to become certified, licensed, or to obtain a college degree. However, a number of Eastham MA health care employers prefer to hire graduates of an accredited medical assistant training program (we’ll cover accreditation later ) that are certified. There are generally two choices offered for a formal education. The first and shortest way to becoming a medical assistant is to acquire a diploma or a certificate. These programs generally take about a year to complete, a few as little as 6 to 9 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 usually 2 year programs provided at junior and community colleges together with technical and vocational schools. They are more extensive 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 requiring an internship with a local medical 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 similar field.

Medical Assistant Online Courses

woman attending medical assistant school online in Eastham MA There are numerous accredited medical assistant programs available online also. They are an excellent alternative for those who may not have the 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 working full time while attaining their degree or certificate. As an added benefit, some online programs have cheaper tuitions than the more traditional on campus options. Ancillary expenses including those for commuting, textbooks and school supplies may be minimized as well. Just keep in mind that all requirements for practical training or internships must still be met, but they can usually be completed in Eastham MA area health care facilities. If you can earn a degree without the rigid structure of going to supervised classes on-campus, then this method of receiving your training may be the best option for you. Between the online lessons and the practical training, everything needed to achieve proficiency to perform as a medical assistant is provided.

Certification Programs for Medical Assistants

As stated previously, becoming certified is not a legal mandate, but is an excellent option for individuals who want to boost their careers. Not only will it help in getting employment after graduation, but it may also help with preliminary salary negotiations. A number of potential Eastham MA medical employers just will not hire a medical assistant that has not obtained certification or accredited formal training. 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 apply for the CMA exam, a candidate must have graduated or will graduate within 30 days from an accredited medical assistant program. Alternative certifications are offered also, for instance the CMAA and the CCMA that we discussed earlier which are offered by the NHA.

Questions to Ask Medical Assistant Colleges

Questions to ask Eastham MA medical assistant programs Before you can start reviewing your medical assistant school options, you must decide which kind of credential you would like to earn, and if you would prefer attending classes on-campus or online from home. After those selections have been made, you can begin the process of researching medical assistant schools. As we covered at the opening of this article, some potential students restrict their searches to the schools that are nearest to Eastham MA with the cheapest tuition. Although location and cost are significant qualifiers, they are by no means the only ones. There are several additional issues that you need to look at when evaluating schools. To help you with that process, following are a few questions that you should ask about all of the schools you are thinking about before making your ultimate choice.

Is the Medical Assistant Program Accredited? There are a number of great reasons to ensure that the college you enroll in is accredited. To begin with, accreditation helps ensure that the training you receive will be both comprehensive and of the highest quality. Next, if you intend to become 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 allowed to take the CMA examination. Additionally, if you plan on applying for a student loan or financial assistance, they are frequently not offered for non-accredited programs. And finally, as mentioned previously, a number of potential Eastham MA employers will not employ a medical assistant who has not graduated from an accredited school.

What is the Program’s Passage Rate? Most of the accredited medical assistant schools design their programs to ready students to pass one or more certification examinations. First, you must determine which of the certifications the schools you are looking at are preparing their students to take. If you are interested in taking the CMA for example, then of course you will want to enroll in a program targeting that certification. Second, ask what the program’s passage rate is for the certification and compare it to the national average. This is just one of the means to help evaluate the quality of a school’s program. Of course schools with low rates are ones that you will prefer to eliminate.

Which Credentials are Provided? As we previously covered, there are generally two paths to acquiring medical assistant training. You can enroll in a certificate or diploma program and obtain entry level training in the shortest amount of time, starting at just 6 months, although the average is about 1 year. Or you can decide to earn an Associate Degree and receive a broader education that will take about 2 years to complete in a community college or vocational school. Whichever program you decide to pursue, confirm that the colleges you are looking at offer the type of program you have an interest in.

Are Internships Provided? Numerous medical assistant colleges sponsor internship programs with Eastham MA area medical care providers. They are an excellent way to receive hands-on practical training and experience. They may also assist students establish relationships within the Eastham health care community. And as an additional benefit, they are an asset on resumes and for job interviews as well.

Is Job Placement Support Furnished? Landing that first job may be a challenging task for graduating medical assistant students unless they obtain some help from a job placement program. Verify that the schools you are evaluating offer job placement assistance in the Eastham MA area and find out what their placement rate is. If a program has a higher job placement rate for its graduates, it indicates that it has an excellent reputation within the medical community. It also signifies that it has a large network of contacts to help place students in jobs.

How Large are the Classrooms? Class size might be an indicator of how much individual instruction you will receive throughout your training. Smaller classes and classes with a higher teacher to student ratio are more likely to provide increased access to teachers and face to face interaction. If practical, try to sit in on a few classes before selecting a program to observe what the teaching environment is like and just how much attention the students get.

Is Class Scheduling Practical? If you anticipate attending a medical assistant school while you continue working on a full time basis, it’s essential that the program you select offers classes that accommodate your schedule. If you have to attend classes at night or on weekends near Eastham MA, make sure that those times are offered. You might be able to fit your classes in easier with an online program, but you will also need to schedule all internships or clinical training that will be required. Also, ask what the protocol is for making up classes that you might have to miss because of illness, work or family issues.

Enrolling in a Medical Assistant Program near Eastham Massachusetts?

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

Eastham, Massachusetts

Originally settled by the Nauset tribe, Eastham was the site where in 1620 a hunting expedition landed, comprised from the crew of the sailing vessel Mayflower, which had stopped in Provincetown harbor on Cape Cod Bay after a rough crossing of the Atlantic Ocean, which led to the first encounter of the Pilgrims and the local Nauset people at First Encounter Beach. The area would not be settled by Europeans, however, until 1644. The original lands included what are now the towns of Truro, Wellfleet, Eastham, Orleans and a small portion of Chatham. Eastham town was officially incorporated in 1651.

Eastham is the birthplace of Freeman Hatch, who in 1853 set the world record for a single-hull wooden sailing vessel from San Francisco around Cape Horn to Boston aboard the clipper ship Northern Light. Fishing and especially farming were early industries in the town, and writers and artists also came to the town. Gustavus Franklin Swift, born in Sagamore, MA, began his first meatpacking business in Eastham which later moved to Brighton, MA, Albany, NY, and eventually started the meatpacking industry in Chicago. It was in Eastham that Henry Beston wrote The Outermost House. The town is discussed at some length in Henry David Thoreau's Cape Cod as the somewhat rugged site of one of New England's largest summer "camp-meeting" evangelistic gatherings in the mid-19th century. The gatherings were at times attended by at least "one hundred and fifty ministers, (!) and five thousand hearers" at a site called Millennium Grove, in the northwest part of town. (The area is now a residential neighborhood, the only reminder being Millennium Lane.)

Today, Eastham is mostly known[citation needed] as the "Gate" to the Cape Cod National Seashore, which was founded in 1961 by President John F. Kennedy to protect Cape Cod's coast from erosion and overpopulation. The town is the site of many beaches, both on the Atlantic and bay sides, as well as the Nauset Light, which was moved to the town in 1923 from its old location in Chatham, and the Three Sisters Lighthouses, which have since been moved away from their now-eroded perches on the coast to a field just west of Nauset Light.[2]

Enroll in the Best Medical Assistant Program Eastham MA

Eastham MA medical assistant student It’s imperative to start your new career on the right foot by selecting a medical assistant school that will furnish the right training. Regardless if you’re planning to begin 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 selection. There are such a large number of 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, make sure that the program you decide on is accredited by a recognized organization, such as the CAAHEP. This is particularly important if you anticipate taking the CMA certification examination. You came to this site initially because you had an interest in Medical Assistant Bachelor Degree. But irrespective of the kind of credential that you intend to earn or if you have decided to attend either an online or on-campus school, don’t forget to ask the questions we have provided in order to compare programs and make an informed decision. And by selecting the ideal program you can ultimately start a fulfilling career as a medical assistant in Eastham MA.