Medical Assisting Certificate

Program Code: CERMA
CERTIFICATE

The Medical Assisting Certificate is designed to prepare competent entry-level medical assistants in the cognitive (knowledge), psychomotor (skills), and affective (behavior) learning domains. Entry levels of practice may include a physician’s office, medical clinic, laboratory or other ambulatory health care facility.

Coursework will include medical business practices; (i.e., administrative functions, basic practice finances, managed care/insurance, and procedural/diagnostic coding), clinical practices; (i.e., anatomy & physiology, applied mathematics, and applied microbiology/infection control); applied communications; medical law and ethics; and safety and emergency practices. In addition, there is a total of 160 hours of externship required at an ambulatory medical office setting.

The business administrative duties include scheduling and receiving patients, preparing and maintaining medical records, performing basic secretarial skills and medical transcription, handling telephone calls and written correspondence, serving as a liaison between the physician and other individuals, and managing practice finances. Clinical duties include  asepsis and infection control, taking patient histories and vital signs, performing first aid, preparing patients for procedures, collecting and processing specimens, performing selected diagnostic tests and therapeutic modalities, assisting physicians with examinations and treatments, and preparing and administering medications as directed by the physician.

Medical Assistants graduating from this program will demonstrate critical thinking based on knowledge of academic subject matter required for competence in the profession. They will incorporate critical thinking based on knowledge, skills, and performance in the medical office practice.

Due to the nature of the courses in the Medical Assisting Certificate program, courses are to be taken in the order described below. This program begins each fall semester.

PROGRAM OUTCOMES/OBJECTIVES:

When students complete this program, they will be able to:

1. apply critical thinking skills to medical business practices.
2. perform basic skills in clinical practices.
3. demonstrate effective communication skills in the medical practice.
4. recognize boundaries in basic medical law and ethics.
5. perform basic skills in safety and emergency practices.