How To Be A Medical Assistant East Lansing MI - Find Medical Assistant Programs Near You

How to Enroll In a Medical Assistant Training Program near East Lansing Michigan

East Lansing MI medical assistant checking pulse Once you have decided to join the gratifying field of health care and enroll in a medical assistant school near East Lansing MI, it’s time to select a school that will provide the proper training. But just how do you go about comparing and evaluating colleges so that you subsequently enroll in the ideal one? A number of potential students begin by evaluating the medical assistant schools that are closest to their residences and then gravitate toward those that have the cheapest tuition. While location and cost are very important, such things as accreditation, job assistance and internship programs are important issues as well. You may want to look into a few online medical assistant programs as an alternative also (more on that later). The main point is that prior to selecting a program you must finish your due diligence and compare all important aspects of the schools you are examining. And to help you with that task, we have furnished a few questions that you should ask each of the schools on your “maybe” list. But before we start that review, let’s talk a little bit about the role of a medical assistant and the kind of credentials and training that are offered.

The Duties of a Medical Assistant

medical assistant with East Lansing MI nursing home patient The job of a medical assistant can be diverse as well as challenging. Primarily their duty is ensure that the East Lansing MI clinics, hospitals and other healthcare institutions 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 facilities both. They are tasked with providing direct assistance to the physicians, nurses and other health professionals but may also be found performing duties in an office or at the front desk. A few of the many responsibilities of a medical assistant include:

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

While medical assistants can carry out almost any activity they are qualified to under Michigan law, some choose to specialize in a specific area and earn certification. Two of the options 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

Unlike most other healthcare practitioners, medical assistants are not mandated to become certified, licensed, or to earn a college degree. However, many East Lansing MI health care employers would rather hire graduates of an accredited medical assistant training program (more on accreditation later ) that are certified. There are generally 2 choices available for a formal education. The first and fastest way to becoming a medical assistant is to obtain a certificate or diploma. These programs typically take about 1 year to finish, some as little as 6 to 9 months. They are developed to teach the basics of medical assisting and prepare graduates for entry level positions. The second option is to acquire an Associate Degree, which are usually 2 year programs available at community and junior colleges in addition to 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 classes. They usually have a practical component requiring an internship with a local medical practice. 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.

Online Medical Assistant Programs

woman attending medical assistant school online in East Lansing MI There are a number of accredited medical assistant programs available online too. They are an excellent alternative for those who might not have the time to go to classes on campus but could fit them in if accessible at home. This is a particularly good alternative for students who continue working full time while pursuing their certificate or degree. As an additional benefit, many online programs have cheaper tuitions than the more conventional on-campus alternatives. Supplemental costs such as for commuting, textbooks and school supplies can be minimized as well. But keep in mind that any requirements for clinical training or internships must still be met, but they can usually be completed in East Lansing MI area medical care facilities. If you can learn without the rigid structure of participating in supervised classes on-campus, then this mode of getting your education might be the ideal choice for you. Between the online lessons and the practical training, everything necessary to achieve proficiency to perform as a medical assistant is furnished.

Certification Programs for Medical Assistants

As previously mentioned, certification is not a legal requirement, but is a good idea for graduates who wish to boost their careers. It will not only help in securing employment after graduation, but it can also help with preliminary salary negotiations. Many potential East Lansing MI medical employers just will not hire a medical assistant that has not received accredited formal training or certification. Among the most popular and perhaps the most respected certification is the Certified Medical Assistant (CMA) provided by the American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA). In order to apply for the CMA exam, a candidate must be a graduate or will be graduating within 30 days from an accredited medical assistant program. Alternative certifications are available also, including the CMAA and the CCMA that we discussed earlier which are provided by the NHA.

Concerns to Ask Medical Assistant Colleges

Questions to ask East Lansing MI medical assistant programs Before you can start evaluating your medical assistant school options, you must determine which kind of credential you would like to earn, and if you would prefer attending classes on-campus or online from home. Once those decisions have been made, you can start the process of comparing medical assistant schools. As we covered at the beginning of this article, many students confine their searches to the colleges that are nearest to East Lansing MI with the cheapest tuition. Although location and cost are significant qualifiers, they are by no means the only ones. There are several additional factors that you need to look at when evaluating schools. To assist you with that process, following are a few questions that you need to ask about all of the schools you are thinking about before making your final selection.

Is the Medical Assistant College Accredited? There are many good reasons to verify that the college you enroll in is accredited. First, accreditation helps ensure that the training you receive will be both extensive and of the highest quality. Next, if you intend to become certified, you need to enroll in an accredited program. Two of the approved 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 program is not accredited by one of these organizations, you will not be qualified to take the CMA exam. Additionally, if you anticipate obtaining a student loan or financial aid, they are frequently not offered for non-accredited programs. And finally, as previously mentioned, many potential East Lansing MI employers will not hire a medical assistant who has not graduated from an accredited school.

What is the School’s Passing Rate? Most of the accredited medical assistant schools design their programs to ready students to pass one or more certification examinations. First, you must learn which of the certifications the programs you are considering are preparing their students to take. If you are planning on taking the CMA for example, then naturally you will need to choose a program concentrating on that certification. Next, find out what the program’s passage rate is for the certification and contrast it to the national average. Doing this is one of the means to help assess the quality of a college’s program. Of course schools with lower rates are those that you will want to eliminate.

Which Credentials are Provided? As we covered earlier, there are essentially two routes to obtaining medical assistant training. You can choose a diploma or certificate program and receive entry level training in the shortest amount of time, from as little as 6 months, although the average is closer to 1 year. Or you can decide to obtain an Associate Degree and receive a more comprehensive education that will require approximately two years to complete in a junior college or vocational school. Whichever program you elect to enroll in, make sure that the schools you are looking at offer the kind of program you have an interest in.

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

Is Job Placement Help Supplied? Getting that initial job may be a challenging task for medical assistant school graduates unless they obtain some assistance from a job placement program. Verify that the schools you are evaluating offer job placement assistance in the East Lansing MI area and ask what their placement rate is. If a school has a higher job placement rate for its students, it affirms that it has a good reputation within the healthcare community. It also suggests that it has a broad network of employers to help place students in jobs.

How Large are the Classes? Class size may be an indication of how much individual instruction you will receive throughout your training. Small 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 monitor a couple of classes before choosing a college to witness what the teaching environment is like and how much attention the students get.

Is Class Scheduling Accessible? If you plan on attending a medical assistant program while you continue working on a full time basis, it’s important that the program you choose provides classes that accommodate your schedule. If you have to go to classes at night or on weekends near East Lansing MI, make certain that those times are available. You may be able to fit your classes in easier with an online college, but you will also need to schedule any internships or clinical training that may be required. Also, find out what the policy is for making up classes that you may have to miss because of work, illness or family issues.

Enrolling in a Medical Assistant Program near East Lansing Michigan?

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

East Lansing, Michigan

East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan directly east of Lansing, the state capital. Most of the city is within Ingham County, with the rest in Clinton County. The population was 48,579 at the 2010 census, an increase from 46,420 in 2000. It is best known as the home of Michigan State University.

East Lansing was an important junction of two major Native American groups: the Potawatomi and Fox.[6] By 1850, the Lansing and Howell Plank Road Company was established to connect a toll road to the Detroit and Howell Plank Road, improving travel between Detroit and Lansing, which cut right through what is now East Lansing. The toll road was finished in 1853, and included seven tollhouses between Lansing and Howell.[7]

Michigan State University was founded in 1855 and established in what is now East Lansing in 1857. For the first four decades, the students and faculty lived almost entirely on the college campus. A few commuted from Lansing, and that number increased when a streetcar line was built in the 1890s, but there were few places to live in the then-rural area surrounding the campus.

Enroll in the Ideal Medical Assistant Training Program East Lansing MI

East Lansing MI medical assistant student It’s imperative to start your new career on the right foot by picking a medical assistant school that will furnish the right training. Whether you’re planning to begin a career in medical care starting out as a medical assistant or to pursue medical assistance as your lifetime career, you need to acquire the right info on available programs before making your decision. There are such a large number of schools providing training nowadays that you can make a decision based upon your personal preferences and individual circumstances. And as we have addressed in this article, confirm that the program you select is accredited by a recognized agency, such as the CAAHEP. This is especially critical if you plan on taking the CMA certification exam. You came to this site initially because you had an interest in How To Be A Medical Assistant. But regardless of the kind of credential that you plan to earn or if you have decided to attend either an on-campus or online school, make sure to ask the questions we have supplied in order to evaluate programs and make an informed decision. And by picking the right program you can ultimately begin a rewarding career as a medical assistant in East Lansing MI.