Medical Assistant

A graduate of the program will have the potential to be employed as a:

• Medical Assistant: Prepares a patient for examination or treatment, takes vital signs, sterilizes instruments, performs simple lab tests, performs electrocardiograms, and assists the physician as needed.
• Claims Analyst: Processes insurance claims on a computer.
• EKG Technician: Operates and maintains electrocardiographic machines, records the heart’s electrical activity, and provides data for diagnosis and treatment of heart ailments by physicians.
• Laboratory Assistant: Performs simple laboratory procedures and venipunctures to collect blood specimens.
• Medical Records Clerk: Handles all patient medical records in areas such as progress notes and pulls records of patients on a daily basis.
• Medical Office Assistant: Performs a variety of duties such as bookkeeping, typing, filing, record keeping, customer relations, telephoning, general correspondence, appointments, and patient accounts.
• Phlebotomist: Draws blood samples from patients for lab tests and blood donations. Performs related duties involving patient care and specimen processing with strict adherence to safety procedures to prevent transmission of infectious diseases.

With additional education and/or work experience, graduates may find other opportunities for employment as follows.

• Medical Office Manager
• Medical Transcriptionist
• Insurance Coding Specialist

Students entering the Medical Assistant program should:

• Show commitment to the patient.
• Enjoy teamwork.
• Deal effectively with stressful, fast paced work.
• Possess effective listening skills.
• Communicate well with others through oral and written means.
• Have good mental dexterity.
• Demonstrate attention to detail.

Traditional Students:

• High School diploma or GED certificate or be currently enrolled in a secondary youth options program.
• Keyboarding skills at 30 wpm or greater.
• Biology
• Applied Math and Algebra.
• 4 years English with emphasis in grammar/writing.

Returning Students:

• Basic Education English.
• Basic Education Math & Science.

• Perform clerical functions.
• Perform bookkeeping procedures.
• Apply principles of medical asepsis.
• Perform specimen collection.
• Perform diagnostic testing.
• Process insurance claims.
• Provide patient care.
• Communicate effectively.
• Apply legal and ethical concepts.
• Instruct patients.
• Perform medical office operational functions.
• Demonstrate professionalism in a health care setting.

• Technical diploma, requiring a minimum of one year to complete.
• Day classes.
• High school articulation courses accepted.
• Financial aid available.
• Classes start in August.
• Modified part-time curriculum available in 4-semester plan.
• Students scoring less than 11th grade level in three or more TABE subtests must enroll under a modified program.
• Physical exam and health requirements met by March 15th.
• Meet Caregiver Background Check requirement (cost $12.00) by March 1st.
• Students must achieve a “C” grade or better (78%) in each course of the program curriculum to be eligible to progress.

• Graduation rate
• Graduate satisfaction
• Placement rate
• National certification
• Employer satisfaction

• Complete the application form.
• Interview with counselor.
• Pay $30 application fee (this is not refundable).
• Submit high school and any post-secondary transcripts.
• Students may re-apply to be admitted to a program for which they initially do not meet the Student Academic Achievement Plan (SAAP) criteria after they follow the additional courses and alternate program sequence prescibed for them.
• Complete a physical exam, documentation of recent two-step TB skin test, and meet health requirements as approved by the College Health Educator. Students are responsible for ALL costs associated with meeting these requirements.