CMA Medical Assistant Bala Cynwyd PA - Find Medical Assistant Programs Near You

How to Select a Medical Assistant School Program near Bala Cynwyd Pennsylvania

Bala Cynwyd PA medical assistant checking pulse Now that you have decided to enter the gratifying field of health care and enroll in a medical assistant school near Bala Cynwyd PA, it’s time to choose a school that will furnish the appropriate training. But just how do you go about evaluating and comparing schools so that you subsequently enroll in the ideal one? Most prospective students start 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 very important, such things as accreditation, internship programs and job assistance are critical issues as well. You might want to look into several online medical assistant programs as an option also (more on that later). The main point is that before you select a college you must carry out your due diligence and compare all relevant qualifications of the schools you are examining. And to help you with that process, we have provided several questions that you need to ask each of the colleges on your “maybe” list. But before we start that review, let’s briefly talk about the responsibilities of a medical assistant and the type of credentials and training that are offered.

The Role of a Medical Assistant

medical assistant with Bala Cynwyd PA nursing home patient The responsibilities of a medical assistant can be diverse as well as challenging. Essentially their job is to make sure that the Bala Cynwyd PA clinics, hospitals and other healthcare facilities where they work run efficiently. Based 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 support to the nurses, doctors and other health professionals but may also be found performing duties at the front desk or in an office. A few of the possible duties of a medical assistant include:

Completing insurance forms and filing claims
Setting and verifying appointments
Taking vital signs and weighing patients
Collecting blood and other fluid and tissue specimens
Preparing instruments and rooms for doctors
Giving basic support during exams and procedures

While medical assistants can carry out almost any activity they are authorized to under Pennsylvania law, some opt 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 Education

Compared to most other medical practitioners, medical assistants are not mandated to become certified, licensed, or to have a college degree. However, a number of Bala Cynwyd PA health care employers would rather hire graduates of an accredited medical assistant training program (more on accreditation later ) that are certified. There are basically two options provided for a formal education. The first and shortest way to becoming a medical assistant is to attain a certificate or diploma. These programs normally take about a year to complete, a few as little as 6 to 9 months. They are designed to teach the fundamentals of medical assisting and prepare graduates for entry level positions. The second alternative 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 expansive in design than the certificate or diploma programs, and include liberal arts courses in addition to the medical assistant training. They usually have a practical element requiring an internship with a local medical facility. Associate Degrees are routinely a pre-requisite for and credits can be applied to a four year Bachelor’s Degree in Medical Assistant Studies or a related field.

Medical Assistant Online Courses

woman attending medical assistant school online in Bala Cynwyd PA There are a number of accredited medical assistant programs offered online also. They are a good option for individuals who might not have time to attend classes on campus but could work them in if attended at home. This is an especially good alternative for students who continue working full time while earning their certificate or degree. As an extra benefit, some online schools have lower tuitions than the more conventional on campus alternatives. Supplemental costs such as for commuting, textbooks and school supplies can be reduced as well. But keep in mind that any requirements for practical training or internships must still be satisfied, but they can often be completed in Bala Cynwyd PA area healthcare facilities. If you can learn without the formal structure of participating in supervised classes on-campus, then this mode of getting your training might be the right choice 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 earlier stated, becoming certified is not a legal requirement, but is an excellent choice for individuals who wish to boost their careers. Not only will it help in obtaining a position after graduation, but it can also enhance preliminary salary negotiations. Some possible Bala Cynwyd PA medical employers simply will not hire a medical assistant that has not received certification or accredited formal training. Among the most popular and perhaps the most respected certification is the Certified Medical Assistant (CMA) offered by the American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA). To qualify to sit for the CMA exam, a candidate must be a graduate or will graduate within thirty days from an accredited medical assistant program. Other certifications are available also, including the CMAA and the CCMA that we previously mentioned which are provided by the NHA.

Concerns to Ask Medical Assistant Colleges

Questions to ask Bala Cynwyd PA medical assistant programs Prior to examining your medical assistant school options, you have to decide which type of credential you would like to earn, and if you would prefer attending classes on-campus or online at home. Once those choices have been made, you can start the procedure of evaluating medical assistant schools. As we covered at the opening of this article, a number of prospective students restrict their searches to the schools that are closest to Bala Cynwyd PA with the lowest tuition. Although cost and location are significant qualifications, they are by no means the only ones. There are a number of additional considerations that you should examine 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 thinking about before making your final selection.

Is the Medical Assistant School Accredited? There are a number of great reasons to confirm that the program you choose is accredited. To start with, accreditation helps ensure that the education you receive will be both extensive and of the highest quality. Next, if you plan on becoming certified, you need to complete 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 eligible to take the CMA examination. Additionally, if you plan on applying for a student loan or financial assistance, they are normally not available for non-accredited programs. And last, as previously mentioned, a number of prospective Bala Cynwyd PA employers will not hire a medical assistant who has not graduated from an accredited college.

What is the Program’s Passage Percentage? Most of the accredited medical assistant colleges create their programs to prepare students to pass one or more certification exams. First, you must learn which of the certifications the schools you are reviewing are preparing their students for. If you are planning on taking the CMA for example, then naturally you will need to enroll in a program targeting that certification. Next, ask what the program’s passage rate is for the certification and compare it to the national average. Doing this is just one of the ways to help evaluate the quality of a college’s program. Of course schools with lower rates are ones that you will prefer to avoid.

Which Programs are Available? As we previously covered, there are generally two paths to obtaining medical assistant training. You can select a certificate or diploma program and obtain entry level training in the shortest amount of time, starting at just 6 months, however the average is about one year. Or you can opt 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. Whatever program you choose to pursue, make sure that the schools you are reviewing provide the kind of program you have an interest in.

Are Internships Sponsored? Many medical assistant colleges sponsor internship programs with Bala Cynwyd PA area medical providers. They are a great way to receive hands-on practical experience and training. They may also help students build relationships within the Bala Cynwyd medical community. And as an additional perk, they are an asset on resumes and for job interviews as well.

Is Job Placement Service Supplied? Finding that very first job may be a daunting undertaking for graduating medical assistant students unless they obtain a little assistance from a job placement program. Verify that the colleges you are evaluating provide job placement assistance in the Bala Cynwyd PA area and find out what their placement rate is. If a program has a high job placement rate for its graduates, it affirms that it has an excellent reputation within the medical community. It also signifies that it has a broad network of contacts to help place students in positions.

How Big are the Classes? Class size may 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 provide increased access to instructors and face to face interaction. If practical, try to sit in on a few classes before choosing a school to observe what the teaching atmosphere is like and just how much attention the students get.

Is Class Scheduling Accessible? If you anticipate attending a medical assistant program while you continue to work on a full time basis, it’s imperative that the school you choose provides classes that fit your schedule. If you have to attend classes in the evenings or on weekends near Bala Cynwyd PA, verify that those times are offered. You may be able to fit your classes in easier with an online school, but you will still need to schedule all internships or clinical training that will be required. Also, ask what the protocol is for making up classes that you may have to miss due to work, illness or family emergencies.

Enrolling in a Medical Assistant Program near Bala Cynwyd Pennsylvania?

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

Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania

Bala Cynwyd ( /ˈbælə ˈkɪnwʊd/ BAL-ə-KIN-wuud)[1] is a community in Lower Merion Township which is located on the Main Line in southeastern Pennsylvania, bordering the western edge of Philadelphia at US Route 1 (City Avenue). It was originally two separate towns, Bala and Cynwyd, but is commonly treated as a single community. This came about when a single US Post Office served both towns (the "Bala Cynwyd" Branch) using ZIP code 19004. The community was long known as hyphenated Bala-Cynwyd. Bala and Cynwyd are currently served by separate stations on SEPTA's Cynwyd Line of Regional Rail.

Bala Cynwyd lies in the Welsh Tract of Pennsylvania and was settled in the 1680s by Welsh Quakers, who named it after the town of Bala and the village of Cynwyd in Wales. A mixed residential community made up predominantly of single-family detached homes, it extends west of the Philadelphia city limits represented by City Avenue from Old Lancaster Road at 54th Street west to Meeting House Lane and then along Manayunk and Conshohocken State Roads north to Mary Watersford Road, then east along Belmont Avenue back to City. This large residential district contains some of Lower Merion's oldest and finest stone mansions, built mainly from 1880 through the 1920s and located in the sycamore-lined district between Montgomery Avenue and Levering Mill Road, as well as split level tract houses built east of Manayunk Road just after World War II.

The oldest commercial district and the original center of Bala Cynwyd straddles the bridge over the old Pennsylvania Railroad tracks, originally belonging to the Columbia Railroad and now part of the SEPTA Cynwyd Line, along Montgomery Avenue at Bala Avenue. This district, long on the National Register of Historic Places, was settled shortly after William Penn's landing in Pennsylvania in 1682 and contains the village's oldest commercial buildings, some dating to the earliest years of the 19th century.[2] Bala Avenue itself is an extension of this original town center and comprises a specialized commercial district of its own more than a century old; it has long been known for its children's clothing stores, women's dress and consignment shops, the Bala Theater and a number of small restaurants. The remainder of Bala Cynwyd's original commercial district extends south along Montgomery Avenue as part of the Bala Cynwyd-Merion Commercial District and is coextensive with the commercial center of Merion, with its popular delicatessens and restaurants.[3]

Enroll in the Ideal Medical Assistant School Bala Cynwyd PA

Bala Cynwyd PA medical assistant student It’s imperative to start your new career on the right foot by choosing a medical assistant college that will furnish the proper training. Regardless if you’re goal is to launch a career in health care starting out as a medical assistant or to pursue medical assistance as your life long career, you must acquire the appropriate info on available programs before making your selection. There are so many colleges offering training these days that you can make a selection based upon your personal preferences and individual circumstances. And as we have covered in this article, make certain that the program you decide on is accredited by a recognized agency, such as the CAAHEP. This is especially important if you plan on taking the CMA certification examination. You came to this site initially because you had an interest in CMA Medical Assistant. But regardless of the type of credential that you intend 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 choosing the right program you can ultimately begin a rewarding career as a medical assistant in Bala Cynwyd PA.