Medical Assistant School Online Accredited Easton PA - Find Medical Assistant Programs Near You

How to Choose a Medical Assistant Training Program near Easton Pennsylvania

Easton PA medical assistant checking pulse Now that you have decided to join the gratifying field of healthcare and enroll in a medical assistant school near Easton PA, it’s time to choose a college that will provide the proper training. But just how do you go about comparing and evaluating schools so that you subsequently enroll in the ideal one? A number of future students start by researching 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, internship programs and job assistance are important issues as well. You may choose to take a look at several online medical assistant programs as an option also (more about that later). The bottom line is that before you select a college you must finish your due diligence and compare all important aspects of the colleges you are assessing. And to help you with that process, we have provided several questions that you should ask all of the schools on your short list. But before we start that review, let’s talk a little bit about the function of a medical assistant and the kind of training and credentials that are available.

The Function of Medical Assistants

medical assistant with Easton PA nursing home patient The responsibilities of a medical assistant can be diverse as well as demanding. Essentially their job is to make sure that the Easton PA clinics, hospitals and other medical care institutions where they work run efficiently. Depending on the type or size of facility, they can be more of an administrative assistant, a clinical assistant, or in smaller practices both. They are responsible for providing direct support to the physicians, nurses and other medical practitioners but can also be found working in an office or at the front desk. A few of the possible functions of a medical assistant include:

Filling out insurance forms and filing claims
Setting and confirming appointments
Weighing and taking patients vital signs
Collecting blood and other tissue and fluid samples
Preparing rooms and instruments for doctors
Supplying general support during examinations and procedures

While medical assistants can carry out almost any task they are authorized to under Pennsylvania law, some opt 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) provided by the National Healthcareer Association (NHA).

Medical Assistant Training

Compared to most other healthcare practitioners, medical assistants are not required to become licensed, certified, or to earn a college degree. However, many Easton PA health care employers choose to hire graduates of an accredited medical assistant training school (we’ll cover accreditation later ) that have earned certification. There are basically two options offered for a formal education. The first and shortest way to becoming a medical assistant is to earn a diploma or a certificate. These programs normally take about a year to complete, 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 obtain an Associate Degree, which are usually two year programs available at junior and community colleges together with technical and vocational schools. They are more expansive in nature than the certificate or diploma programs, and include liberal arts courses in addition to the medical assistant courses. 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 related field.

Medical Assistant Online Programs

woman attending medical assistant school online in Easton PA There are numerous accredited medical assistant programs available online also. They are a good alternative for students 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 option for students who continue working full time while pursuing their certificate or degree. As an extra benefit, a number of online programs have cheaper tuitions than the more conventional on-campus alternatives. Supplemental expenses such as for commuting, textbooks and school supplies might be minimized as well. Just keep in mind that any requirements for practical training or internships must still be fulfilled, but they can often be performed in Easton PA area health care facilities. If you can learn without the rigid structure of attending supervised classes on-campus, then this mode of receiving your education may be the right choice for you. Between the online courses and the practical training, everything needed to achieve proficiency to work as a medical assistant is provided.

Certification Options for Medical Assistants

As stated previously, certification is not a legal requirement, but is a good option for graduates who want to advance their careers. It will not only help in getting a job after graduation, but it may also help with initial salary negotiations. A number of possible Easton PA medical employers simply will not employ 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). To qualify to sit for the CMA examination, an applicant must be a graduate or will be graduating within thirty days from an accredited medical assistant program. Additional certifications are available as well, including the CCMA and the CMAA that we discussed earlier which are provided by the NHA.

Topics to Ask Medical Assistant Colleges

Questions to ask Easton PA medical assistant programs Prior to assessing your medical assistant school alternatives, you must decide which type of credential you would like to attain, and if you would prefer attending classes on-campus or online at home. As soon as those decisions have been made, you can begin the process of researching medical assistant schools. As we discussed at the opening of this article, some students restrict their searches to the schools that are nearest to Easton PA with the lowest tuition. Although location and cost are significant qualifications, they are not the only ones. There are several additional factors that you need to look at when assessing schools. To help you with that process, below are a few questions that you should ask about all of the schools you are considering before making your ultimate choice.

Is the Medical Assistant Program Accredited? There are a number of good reasons to make sure that the school you choose is accredited. First, accreditation helps guarantee that the education you receive will be both comprehensive and of the highest quality. Next, if you plan on becoming certified, you need to enroll in an accredited program. Two of the acknowledged organizations for accreditation are the Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools (ABHES) and the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP). If your program is not accredited by either of these organizations, you will not be allowed to take the CMA examination. Additionally, if you anticipate obtaining a student loan or financial aid, they are frequently not available for non-accredited programs. And last, as previously mentioned, a number of prospective Easton 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 schools design their programs to prepare students to pass one or more certification exams. To begin with, you need to find out 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 choose a program concentrating on that certification. Second, find out what the school’s passage rate is for the certification and compare it to the national average. Doing this is one of the methods to help assess the quality of a school’s program. Naturally schools with low rates are ones that you will prefer to eliminate.

Which Credentials are Offered? As we previously covered, there are basically two paths to getting medical assistant training. You can select a diploma or certificate program and get entry level training in the shortest amount of time, from as little as 6 months, however the average is closer to one year. Or you can opt to earn an Associate Degree and receive a more comprehensive education that will take approximately two years to accomplish in a junior college or vocational school. Whichever program you decide to enroll in, confirm that the colleges you are looking at provide the type of program you are interested in.

Are Internships Offered? Many medical assistant schools sponsor internship programs with Easton PA area health care providers. They are an excellent way to get hands-on practical training and experience. They can also help students establish relationships within the Easton health care community. And as an additional perk, they are an asset on resumes and for job interviews too.

Is Job Placement Support Supplied? Getting that initial job can be a daunting task for medical assistant school graduates unless they obtain some help from a job placement program. Verify that the schools you are evaluating provide job placement assistance in the Easton 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 indicates that it has a wide network of contacts to help place students in jobs.

How Big are the Classrooms? Class size might be an indication of how much individual attention you will get throughout your training. Small classes and classes with a higher teacher to student ratio are more prone to provide increased access to teachers and one-on-one interaction. If possible, try to attend a couple of classes before choosing a program to experience 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 college while you continue to work on a full time basis, it’s important that the program you choose offers classes that fit your schedule. If you need to go to classes in the evenings or on weekends near Easton PA, verify that those times are available. You may be able to fit your classes in easier with an online school, but you will still need to schedule any internships or practical training that will be required. Also, find out what the protocol 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 Easton Pennsylvania?

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

Easton, Pennsylvania

Easton is a city in and the county seat of Northampton County, Pennsylvania, United States.[3] The city's population was 26,800 as of the 2010 census.[4] Easton is located at the confluence of the Delaware River and the Lehigh River, roughly 55 miles (89 km) north of Philadelphia and 70 miles (110 km) west of New York City.

Easton is the easternmost city in the Lehigh Valley, a region of 731 square miles (1,893 km2) that is home to more than 800,000 people. Together with Allentown and Bethlehem, the Valley embraces the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton metropolitan area, including Lehigh, Northampton, and Carbon counties within Pennsylvania, and Warren County in the adjacent state of New Jersey. Easton is the smallest of the three Lehigh Valley cities, with approximately one-fourth of the population of the largest Lehigh Valley city, Allentown. In turn, this metropolitan area comprises Pennsylvania's third-largest metropolitan area and the state's largest and most populous contribution to the greater New York City metropolitan area.

The city is split up into four sections: Historic Downtown, which lies directly to the north of the Lehigh River, to the west of the Delaware River, continuing west to Sixth Street; The West Ward, which lies between Sixth and Fifteenth Streets; The South Side, which lies south of the Lehigh River; and College Hill, a neighborhood on the hills to the north of downtown, which is the home of Lafayette College, a liberal arts and engineering institution. The boroughs of Wilson, West Easton, and Glendon are also directly adjacent to the city; the first and largest of which, Wilson, partially aligns in the same North-South Grid as the city of Easton.

Choose the Right Medical Assistant Program Easton PA

Easton PA medical assistant student It’s imperative to begin your new career on the right foot by choosing a medical assistant program that will provide the proper 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 life long career, you must get the appropriate info on available programs prior to making your selection. There are so many schools offering training these days that you can make a decision based upon your individual circumstances and personal preferences. And as we have discussed in this article, make sure that the program you select is accredited by an acknowledged agency, such as the CAAHEP. This is particularly important if you plan on taking the CMA certification exam. You came to this site initially because you had an interest in Medical Assistant School Online Accredited. But regardless of the type of credential that you plan to earn or if you have made a decision to attend either an on-campus or online school, don’t forget to ask the questions we have supplied so you can compare programs and make an informed decision. And by choosing the ideal program you can ultimately start a fulfilling career as a medical assistant in Easton PA.