Online Medical Assistant Programs Redmond OR - Find Medical Assistant Programs Near You

How to Pick a Medical Assistant School near Redmond Oregon

Redmond OR medical assistant checking pulse Now that you have made a decision to join the rewarding profession of health care and enroll in a medical assistant school near Redmond OR, it’s time to select a college that will furnish the appropriate training. But just how do you undertake comparing and evaluating schools so that you subsequently pick the ideal one? Many future students begin by researching the medical assistant schools that are closest to their residences and then gravitate toward those that have the most affordable tuition. While location and cost are extremely important such things as accreditation, job assistance and internship programs are important factors as well. You might decide to take a look at some online medical assistant programs as an option also (more about that later). The main point is that before you select a college you need to carry out your due diligence and compare all relevant qualifications of the colleges you are reviewing. And to assist you with that process, we have furnished some questions that you should ask each of the schools on your short list. But before we start that review, let’s briefly talk about the function of a medical assistant and the type of training and credentials that are available.

The Duties of a Medical Assistant

medical assistant with Redmond OR nursing home patient The responsibilities of a medical assistant can be diverse as well as demanding. Primarily their job is to make sure that the Redmond OR hospitals, clinics and other healthcare centers where they work operate successfully. Based on the size or type 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 health practitioners but can also be found working in an office or at the front desk. A few of the potential responsibilities of a medical assistant include:

Filling out insurance forms and filing claims
Scheduling and confirming appointments
Taking vital signs and weighing patients
Collecting blood and other tissue and fluid samples
Preparing instruments and rooms for physicians
Giving general support during exams and procedures

While medical assistants can carry out almost any activity they are qualified to under Oregon 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) provided by the National Healthcareer Association (NHA).

Medical Assistant Training

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 Redmond OR health care employers choose to hire graduates of an accredited medical assistant training school (we’ll cover accreditation later ) that are certified. There are essentially two options provided for a formal education. The first and fastest path to becoming a medical assistant is to acquire a diploma or a certificate. These programs normally take about a year to finish, a few as little as 6 to 9 months. They are created to teach the fundamentals of medical assisting and ready graduates for entry level positions. The second option is to acquire an Associate Degree, which are typically 2 year programs offered at community and junior colleges together with technical and vocational schools. They are more comprehensive in design than the certificate or diploma programs, and include liberal arts courses in addition to the medical assistant courses. They frequently have a practical element requiring an internship with a local medical facility. Associate Degrees are often a pre-requisite for and credits can be transferred to a 4 year Bachelor’s Degree in Medical Assistant Studies or a related field.

Online Medical Assistant Schools

woman attending medical assistant school online in Redmond OR There are numerous accredited medical assistant programs offered online too. They are an excellent alternative for individuals who may not have time to attend classes on campus but could work them in if accessible at home. This is an especially good solution for students who continue to work full time while pursuing their certificate or degree. As an extra benefit, many online programs have lower tuitions than the more conventional on campus alternatives. Supplemental expenses including those for commuting, textbooks and school supplies might be reduced also. Just remember that any requirements for clinical training or internships must still be satisfied, but they can often be carried out in Redmond OR area medical care facilities. If you can learn without the rigid structure of attending supervised classes on-campus, then this approach to receiving your education might be the best option for you. With the online lessons and the practical training, everything needed to achieve proficiency to work as a medical assistant is provided.

Certification Programs for Medical Assistants

As earlier stated, certification is not a legal mandate, but is an excellent option for graduates who wish to boost their careers. Not only will it help in securing employment after graduation, but it can also help with preliminary salary negotiations. Some potential Redmond OR medical employers simply will not employ a medical assistant that has not received certification or accredited formal training. 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 apply for the CMA examination, an applicant must be a graduate or will be graduating within 30 days from an accredited medical assistant program. Additional certifications are offered also, including the CMAA and the CCMA that we discussed earlier which are offered by the NHA.

Questions to Ask Medical Assistant Programs

Questions to ask Redmond OR medical assistant programs Before you can start assessing your medical assistant school options, you have to decide which kind of credential you want to attain, and if you would prefer attending classes on campus or online at home. Once those choices have been made, you can begin the process of researching medical assistant schools. As we covered at the opening of this article, a number of students limit their searches to the colleges that are closest to Redmond OR with the cheapest tuition. Although cost and location are significant qualifiers, they are by no means the only ones. There are a number of additional issues that you need to explore when researching schools. To assist you with that task, following are a few questions that you should ask about each of the programs you are considering before making your final choice.

Is the Medical Assistant Program Accredited? There are a number of good reasons to make sure that the program you enroll in is accredited. First, accreditation helps ensure that the instruction you receive will be both extensive and of the highest quality. Next, if you intend to become certified, you must complete an accredited program. Two of the acknowledged 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 school is not accredited by one of these agencies, you will not be qualified to take the CMA exam. Additionally, if you plan on obtaining a student loan or financial assistance, they are often not available for non-accredited programs. And last, as mentioned previously, a number of potential Redmond OR 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 colleges design their programs to prep students to pass one or more certification examinations. First, you must find out which of the certifications the programs you are considering are preparing their students for. If you are interested in taking the CMA for instance, then naturally you will want to select a program focused on that certification. Second, ask what the program’s passage rate is for the certification and compare it to the national average. This is one of the ways to help assess the quality of a college’s program. Naturally programs with low rates are those that you will want to eliminate.

Which Programs are Offered? As we covered earlier, there are essentially two paths to acquiring medical assistant training. You can choose a certificate or diploma program and get entry level training in the fastest amount of time, starting at just 6 months, although the average is about 1 year. Or you can choose to acquire an Associate Degree and receive a broader education that will require approximately two years to complete in a junior college or vocational school. Whatever program you choose to pursue, confirm that the colleges you are looking at offer the kind of program you are interested in.

Are Internships Available? Many medical assistant colleges offer internship programs with Redmond OR area medical care providers. They are an excellent means to receive hands-on clinical experience and training. They can also help students establish relationships within the Redmond healthcare community. And as an added perk, they are an asset on resumes and for job interviews as well.

Is Job Placement Assistance Furnished? Finding that very first job may be a daunting undertaking for graduating medical assistant students unless they receive a little assistance from a job placement program. Confirm that the schools you are interviewing offer job placement assistance in the Redmond OR area and ask what their placement rate is. If a college has a high job placement rate for its graduates, it affirms that it has an excellent reputation within the healthcare community. It also indicates that it has a large network of contacts to help place students in jobs.

How Large are the Classes? Class size might be an indicator of how much individual attention you will receive during your training. Smaller classes and classes with a higher teacher to student ratio are more likely to furnish greater access to instructors and one-on-one interaction. If practical, try to monitor a few classes before enrolling in a college to experience what the teaching atmosphere is like and just how much attention the students receive.

Is Class Scheduling Accessible? If you plan on attending a medical assistant program while you continue to work full time, it’s essential that the program you enroll in provides classes that accommodate your schedule. If you need to attend classes at night or on weekends near Redmond OR, verify that those times are offered. You might be able to fit your classes in more conveniently with an online college, but you will still have to schedule any internships or practical training that will be required. Additionally, ask what the policy is for making up classes that you might have to miss because of illness, work or family responsibilities.

Enrolling in a Medical Assistant Program near Redmond Oregon?

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

Redmond, Oregon

Redmond is a city in Deschutes County, Oregon, United States. Incorporated on July 6, 1910, the city is on the eastern side of Oregon's Cascade Range, in the High Desert in Central Oregon. From Redmond there is access to recreational opportunities, including mountain biking, fishing, hiking, camping, rock climbing, white-water rafting, skiing, and golf. Redmond is a full-service municipality and one of the fastest-growing industrial and residential communities in Oregon. Redmond had a population of 26,215 in 2010,[5] and the population continues to grow at a rate of about 8 percent each year.

The city encompasses 15.5 square miles (40 km2) and is on a plateau, at an elevation of 3,077 feet (938 m). Redmond is 15 miles (24 km) north of Bend—the county seat of Deschutes County—144 miles (232 km) from Portland, 129 miles (208 km) from Salem—the capital of Oregon—and 126 miles (203 km) from Eugene.

Redmond was named after Frank T. Redmond, who settled in the area in 1905.[6] It was platted in 1906 by a company which would become part of Central Oregon Irrigation District building a canal.[7] Electrification and the Oregon Trunk Railway reached Redmond in 1911. The rail link opened markets for farmers and merchants. By 1930, the town had grown to 1,000 and by 1940 had nearly doubled. In the 1940s, Redmond was a U.S. Army Air base and commercial air service was established at Roberts Field after World War II. In the 1950s, 60s, 70s, and most of the 80s, the population remained relatively static, growing slowly around a small commercial/retail center and manufacturing industry. However, during the 1990s, the population began to grow along with most of Deschutes County. Between 2000 and 2006, Redmond's population grew 74.3%, making it among Oregon's fastest-growing cities each year. This growth continued through 2006, increasing the population to 23,500. Its growth is fueled by employment and a lower cost of living.

Pick the Right Medical Assistant Training Program Redmond OR

Redmond OR medical assistant student It’s essential to start your new career on the right foot by picking a medical assistant program that will provide the appropriate training. Whether you’re objective is to launch a career in medical care starting out as a medical assistant or to practice medical assistance as your lifetime career, you must obtain the right info on available programs prior to making your selection. There are such a large number of colleges offering training these days that you can make a decision based on your personal preferences and individual circumstances. And as we have discussed in this article, make certain that the program you choose is accredited by a recognized agency, for example the CAAHEP. This is particularly critical if you anticipate taking the CMA certification exam. You came to this site initially because you had an interest in Online Medical Assistant Programs. But regardless 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, don’t forget to ask the questions we have provided in order to compare programs and make an informed decision. And by selecting the best program you can subsequently start a rewarding career as a medical assistant in Redmond OR.