Short Medical Assistant Programs Ridgewood NY - Find Medical Assistant Programs Near You

How to Pick a Medical Assistant School near Ridgewood New York

Ridgewood NY medical assistant checking pulse Now that you have made a decision to enter the rewarding field of health care and enroll in a medical assistant school near Ridgewood NY, it’s time to choose a school that will furnish the proper training. But just how do you undertake evaluating and comparing schools so that you subsequently pick the best one? Many prospective students start by checking out the medical assistant schools that are closest to their residences and then gravitate toward those that have the lowest tuition. While cost and location are very important, such things as accreditation, job assistance and internship programs are important issues as well. You may decide to research several online medical assistant programs as an option as well (more on that later). The bottom line is that prior to selecting a college you must carry out your due diligence and compare all important qualifications of the schools you are assessing. And to help you with that task, we have furnished some questions that you should ask all of the schools on your “maybe” list. But prior to starting that review, let’s briefly talk about the role of a medical assistant and the kind of credentials and training that are available.

The Responsibilities of Medical Assistants

medical assistant with Ridgewood NY nursing home patient The duties of a medical assistant can be varied as well as challenging. Basically their role is to make sure that the Ridgewood NY hospitals, clinics and other healthcare facilities where they work run efficiently. Based on the size or type of facility, they may be more of an administrative assistant, a clinical assistant, or in smaller facilities both. They are responsible for providing direct assistance to the nurses, doctors and other medical professionals but can also be found performing duties at the front desk or in an office. A few of the potential functions of a medical assistant include:

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

Even though medical assistants can carry out almost any activity they are authorized to under New York law, some elect to specialize in a specific area and attain 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 Programs

Compared to many other medical professionals, medical assistants are not mandated to become certified, licensed, or to earn a college degree. However, many Ridgewood NY health care employers would rather hire graduates of an accredited medical assistant training school (more on accreditation later ) that have earned certification. There are generally 2 options provided for a formal education. The first and quickest path to becoming a medical assistant is to earn a certificate or diploma. These programs normally take about 1 year to finish, some as little as six to nine months. They are developed to teach the fundamentals of medical assisting and ready graduates for entry level positions. The second alternative is to acquire an Associate Degree, which are normally two year programs offered at junior and community colleges in addition to trade and vocational schools. They are more expansive in design than the certificate or diploma programs, and include liberal arts courses in addition to the medical assistant classes. They often have a practical component involving an internship with a local medical facility. Associate Degrees are commonly a pre-requisite for and credits can be transferred to a four year Bachelor’s Degree in Medical Assistant Studies or a related field.

Online Medical Assistant Classes

woman attending medical assistant school online in Ridgewood NY There are many accredited medical assistant programs available online as well. They are a good option for students who may not have the time to attend 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 schools have lower tuitions than the more traditional on-campus options. Supplemental expenses including those for commuting, textbooks and school supplies may be reduced as well. Just keep in mind that all requirements for clinical training or internships must still be satisfied, but they can usually be completed in Ridgewood NY area medical facilities. If you can learn without the formal structure of going to supervised classes on campus, then this approach to receiving your education may be the best choice for you. With the online courses and the practical training, everything needed to attain proficiency to perform as a medical assistant is furnished.

Certification Options for Medical Assistants

As earlier stated, certification is not a legal mandate, but is an excellent idea for those who want to advance their careers. It will not only help in obtaining a position after graduation, but it can also enhance preliminary salary negotiations. Many potential Ridgewood NY medical employers just will not hire a medical assistant that has not received accredited formal training or certification. One of the most popular and arguably the most highly regarded certification is the Certified Medical Assistant (CMA) offered by the American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA). In order to sit for the CMA examination, a candidate must be a graduate or will be graduating within 30 days from an accredited medical assistant program. Alternative certifications are available as well, such as the CCMA and the CMAA that we discussed earlier which are provided by the NHA.

Concerns to Ask Medical Assistant Schools

Questions to ask Ridgewood NY medical assistant programs Prior to evaluating your medical assistant school options, you have to decide which type of credential you want to earn, and if you want to attend classes on-campus or online at home. As soon as those choices have been made, you can start the procedure of comparing medical assistant schools. As we discussed at the opening of this article, many prospective students limit their searches to the colleges that are closest to Ridgewood NY with the lowest tuition. Although location and cost are significant qualifications, they are by no means the only ones. There are several additional issues that you should examine when assessing programs. To assist you with that task, below are some questions that you should ask about each of the schools you are thinking about before making your ultimate selection.

Is the Medical Assistant Program Accredited? There are a number of great reasons to verify that the program you select is accredited. First, accreditation helps guarantee that the training you receive will be both comprehensive and of the highest quality. Second, if you intend to become 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 either of these organizations, you will not be allowed to take the CMA exam. Additionally, if you intend on obtaining a student loan or financial aid, they are frequently not available for non-accredited programs. And finally, as previously mentioned, many prospective Ridgewood NY employers will not employ a medical assistant who has not graduated from an accredited college.

What is the School’s Passage Percentage? Most of the accredited medical assistant colleges design their programs to prepare students to pass one or more certification exams. First, you must find out which of the certifications the programs you are considering are preparing their students to take. If you are interested in taking the CMA for example, then obviously you will want to select a program targeting that certification. Next, learn what the school’s passage rate is for the certification and compare it to the national average. This is one of the methods to help assess the quality of a school’s program. Obviously schools with low rates are ones that you will want to avoid.

Which Credentials are Offered? As we covered earlier, there are generally two routes to acquiring medical assistant training. You can choose a diploma or certificate program and get entry level training in the shortest amount of time, starting at just 6 months, however the average is about one year. Or you can choose to earn an Associate Degree and receive a broader education that will take about two years to complete in a junior college or trade school. Whichever program you elect to enroll in, confirm that the colleges you are considering offer the kind of program you are interested in.

Are Internships Sponsored? Many medical assistant programs sponsor internship programs with Ridgewood NY area medical providers. They are an excellent means to receive hands-on practical experience and training. They can also help students develop relationships within the Ridgewood health care community. And as an added benefit, they are an asset on resumes and for job interviews as well.

Is Job Placement Service Supplied? Finding that very first job can be a difficult undertaking for graduating medical assistant students unless they obtain some help from a job placement program. Verify that the colleges you are evaluating provide job placement assistance in the Ridgewood NY 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 healthcare community. It also suggests that it has a large network of contacts to help place students in jobs.

How Big are the Classes? Class size might be an indicator of how much individual attention you will get during your training. Smaller classes and classes with a higher teacher to student ratio are more prone to offer greater access to instructors and one-on-one interaction. If convenient, try to monitor a couple of classes before selecting a program to observe what the teaching environment is like and just how much attention the students receive.

Is Class Scheduling Accessible? If you plan on attending a medical assistant college while you continue working full-time, it’s important that the college you choose provides classes that fit your schedule. If you have to go to classes at night or on weekends near Ridgewood NY, make sure 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 any clinical training or internships that will be required. Additionally, ask what the protocol is for making up classes that you might have to miss due to work, illness or family emergencies.

Enrolling in a Medical Assistant Program near Ridgewood New York?

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

Ridgewood, Queens

Ridgewood is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. It borders the neighborhoods of Maspeth, Middle Village and Glendale, as well as the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Bushwick and East Williamsburg. Historically, the neighborhood straddled the Queens-Brooklyn boundary. The neighborhood is part of Queens Community Board 5.[5]

Originally, Ridgewood was part of the Dutch settlement Boswijk (Bushwick) and was later incorporated into the village of Breuckelen (now Brooklyn). A legacy of this past stands today; Onderdonk House, which was erected in 1709.[6] The house is the oldest Dutch Colonial stone house in New York City. Also located at the Onderdonk House site is Arbitration Rock, which was a marker for the disputed boundary between Bushwick and Newtown and essentially Brooklyn and Queens.

Although the area was originally farmed and settled by the Dutch during the 18th and 19th centuries, it was the secondary wave of English settlers who named it Ridgewood after the area's green and hilly terrain. The development of public transportation, from horse-drawn cars in the mid-19th century and later trolleys and elevated trains, helped to spur residential and retail development.[7] Most of the housing stock was built between 1905 and 1915 to house German immigrants who worked in the breweries and knitting factories that straddled the Queens-Brooklyn border.[8][9]

Pick the Best Medical Assistant School Ridgewood NY

Ridgewood NY medical assistant student It’s essential to begin your new career on the right foot by selecting a medical assistant college that will provide the proper training. Regardless if you’re objective is to launch a career in healthcare starting out as a medical assistant or to practice medical assistance as your life long career, you must obtain the right info on available programs prior to making your decision. There are such a large number of colleges offering training these days that you can make a selection based on your individual circumstances and personal preferences. And as we have covered in this article, confirm that the program you decide on is accredited by an acknowledged agency, for example the CAAHEP. This is particularly critical if you anticipate taking the CMA certification examination. You came to this site initially because you had an interest in Short Medical Assistant Programs. But regardless of the kind of credential that you intend 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 picking the right program you can subsequently begin a fulfilling career as a medical assistant in Ridgewood NY.