How to Choose a Medical Assistant School near Bedford Virginia
Once you have decided to join the gratifying profession of health care and enroll in a medical assistant school near Bedford VA, 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 ultimately pick the right one? A number of potential students begin by evaluating the medical assistant schools that are closest to their homes and then lean toward those that have the cheapest tuition. While cost and location are very important, such things as accreditation, internship programs and job assistance are critical factors as well. You might decide to research a few online medical assistant programs as an alternative as well (more on that later). The bottom line is that before you select a college you need to finish your due diligence and compare all relevant qualifications of the colleges you are reviewing. And to assist you with that process, we have furnished several questions that you need to ask all of the colleges 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 Duties of a Medical Assistant
The job of a medical assistant can be diverse as well as demanding. Primarily their duty is ensure that the Bedford VA hospitals, clinics and other medical care facilities where they work operate successfully. Based on the type or size of facility, they can be more of an administrative assistant, a clinical assistant, or in smaller facilities both. They are responsible for providing direct assistance to the physicians, nurses and other health practitioners but may also be found performing duties in an office or at the front desk. A few of the potential functions of a medical assistant include:
- Filling out insurance forms and filing claims
- Scheduling and confirming appointments
- Taking vital signs and weighing patients
- Taking blood and other fluid and tissue samples
- Preparing instruments and rooms for doctors
- Supplying general support during examinations and procedures
Although medical assistants may perform almost any task they are qualified to under Virginia law, some prefer to specialize in a specific area and earn certification. Two of the choices offered are for the Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (CCMA) and the Certified Medical Administrative Assistant (CMAA) provided by the National Healthcareer Association (NHA).
Medical Assistant Courses
Compared to many other healthcare professionals, medical assistants are not required to become licensed, certified, or to have a college degree. However, a number of Bedford VA health care employers prefer to hire graduates of an accredited medical assistant training school (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 attain a certificate or diploma. These programs generally take about 1 year to finish, a few 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 normally two year programs offered at junior and community colleges together with vocational and technical 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 often have a clinical component involving an internship with a local medical practice. 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 Colleges
There are many accredited medical assistant programs available online as well. They are an excellent choice for those who might not have the time to attend classes on campus but could work them in if attended at home. This is a particularly good choice for students who continue to work full time while attaining their degree or certificate. As an added benefit, many online programs have lower tuitions than the more traditional on-campus options. Ancillary expenses including those for textbooks, commuting and school supplies can be lessened also. But bear in mind that all requirements for clinical training or internships must still be met, but they can often be carried out in Bedford VA area health care facilities. If you can learn without the formal structure of participating in supervised classes on campus, then this method of receiving your training 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 furnished.
Certification Programs for Medical Assistants
As previously mentioned, becoming certified is not a legal requirement, but is a good option for graduates who wish to advance their careers. Not only will it help in obtaining a position after graduation, but it might also enhance preliminary salary negotiations. A number of possible Bedford VA medical employers simply will not hire a medical assistant that has not obtained certification or accredited formal training. The most popular and possibly the most respected certification is the Certified Medical Assistant (CMA) provided by the American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA). In order to sit for the CMA exam, a candidate must have graduated or will graduate within 30 days from an accredited medical assistant program. Additional certifications are available as well, including the CMAA and the CCMA that we discussed earlier which are offered by the NHA.
What to Ask Medical Assistant Programs
Prior to reviewing your medical assistant school options, you have to choose which type of credential you want to attain, and if you would prefer attending classes on campus or online at home. Once those selections have been made, you can begin the process of evaluating medical assistant schools. As we discussed at the opening of this article, many prospective students limit their searches to the schools that are nearest to Bedford VA with the lowest tuition. Although cost and location are important qualifications, they are not the only ones. There are several additional considerations that you should explore when researching schools. To help you with that task, below are some questions that you need to ask about each of the programs you are thinking about before making your ultimate choice.
Is the Medical Assistant Program Accredited? There are a number of great reasons to ensure that the program you select is accredited. To begin with, accreditation helps guarantee that the instruction you receive will be both comprehensive and of the highest quality. Next, if you intend to become certified, you need to enroll in an accredited program. Two of the accepted agencies for accreditation are the Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools (ABHES) and the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP). If your school is not accredited by one of these organizations, you will not be qualified to take the CMA examination. Additionally, if you plan on obtaining a student loan or financial aid, they are normally not available for non-accredited programs. And finally, as mentioned previously, a number of prospective Bedford VA employers will not hire a medical assistant who has not graduated from an accredited school.
What is the Program’s Passing Percentage? The majority of accredited medical assistant colleges develop their programs to prep students to pass one or more certification examinations. First, you need to determine which of the certifications the programs you are considering are preparing their students for. If you are planning on taking the CMA for instance, then naturally you will want to enroll in a program concentrating on that certification. Next, ask what the program’s passage rate is for the certification and contrast it to the national average. Doing this is one of the methods to help evaluate the quality of a college’s program. Of course programs with lower rates are those that you will prefer to eliminate.
Which Programs are Offered? As we previously covered, there are generally two routes to obtaining medical assistant training. You can choose a diploma or certificate program and obtain entry level training in the shortest amount of time, starting at just 6 months, although the average is closer to 1 year. Or you can opt to earn an Associate Degree and get a more comprehensive education that will require approximately two years to complete in a junior college or trade school. Whatever program you decide to enroll in, make certain that the colleges you are looking at offer the type of program you have an interest in.
Are Internships Offered? Numerous medical assistant colleges sponsor internship programs with Bedford VA area healthcare providers. They are a great method to obtain hands-on practical training and experience. They may also assist students establish relationships within the Bedford health care community. And as an added benefit, they are an advantage on resumes and for job interviews too.
Is Job Placement Support Furnished? Landing that very first job may be a difficult task for medical assistant school graduates unless they obtain some assistance from a job placement program. Verify that the colleges you are researching offer job placement assistance in the Bedford VA area and ask what their placement rate is. If a program has a higher job placement rate for its students, it affirms that it has a good reputation within the medical community. It also indicates that it has a large 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 furnish greater access to teachers and face to face interaction. If convenient, try to sit in on a couple of classes before selecting a college to see what the teaching environment is like and how much attention the students receive.
Is Class Scheduling Accommodating? If you plan on attending a medical assistant college while you continue working full-time, it’s important that the program you choose provides classes that fit your schedule. If you need to attend classes at night or on weekends near Bedford VA, confirm that those times are offered. You might be able to fit your classes in more easily with an online college, but you will also need to schedule any internships or practical training that will be required. Additionally, ask what the policy is for making up classes that you may have to miss because of work, illness or family emergencies.
Enrolling in a Medical Assistant Program near Bedford Virginia?
If you are considering attending a medical assistant school in the Bedford VA area, following is some background information that may be both interesting and useful regarding your future campus location.
Bedford, Virginia
Bedford is an incorporated town and former independent city located within Bedford County in the U.S. state of Virginia. It serves as the county seat of Bedford County. As of the 2010 census, the population was 6,222.[3] It is part of the Lynchburg Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Bedford was originally known as Liberty, "named after the Colonial victory over Cornwallis at Yorktown." [4] Founded as a village in 1782, Liberty became Bedford County's seat of government, replacing New London which had become part of the newly formed Campbell County. Liberty became a town in 1839 and in 1890 changed its name to Bedford City. In 1912 Bedford reverted to town status, it resumed city status in 1968,[5] and once more it reverted to a town in 2013.[6]
Bedford is home to the National D-Day Memorial (despite the "National" in its name, the memorial is owned and operated by a non-governmental, non-profit, education foundation). The United States Congress warranted that this memorial would be the nation's D-Day Memorial and President Bill Clinton authorized this effort in September 1996. President George W. Bush dedicated this memorial as the nation's D-Day memorial on June 6, 2001. Bedford lost more residents per capita in the Normandy landings than any other American community. Nineteen soldiers from Bedford, whose 1944 population was about 3,200, were killed on D-Day. Three other Bedford soldiers died later in the Normandy campaign. Proportionally this community suffered the nation's severest D-Day losses.[7]
Enroll in the Best Medical Assistant Training Program Bedford VA
It’s imperative to start your new career on the right foot by choosing a medical assistant school that will furnish the right training. Whether you’re objective is to begin a career in medical care starting out as a medical assistant or to pursue medical assistance as your life long career, you need to get the appropriate information on available programs before making your selection. There are such a large number of schools offering training these days that you can make a decision based upon your individual circumstances and personal preferences. And as we have addressed in this article, verify that the program you choose is accredited by an acknowledged agency, for example the CAAHEP. This is especially important if you anticipate taking the CMA certification examination. You came to this site initially because you had an interest in Medical Assistant Colleges. 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 supplied in order to compare programs and make an informed decision. And by choosing the right program you can subsequently begin a gratifying career as a medical assistant in Bedford VA.
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