Medical assistants are a critical component of the thriving healthcare industry. The healthcare industry is growing every day and doctors and nurses must rely on skilled, trustworthy medical assistants to keep things running smoothly. This career offers a great working environment and the opportunity to help and heal people. However, there are many more  benefits.

#1 Expand your communication skills

Over time, medical assistants gain very good communication skills. These skills come from growing and improving administrative and clinical duties and working with both coworkers and patients. Medical assistant duties require strong communication skills and the ability to work well as a member of the team. Medical assistant students learn the functions of their job on through education, an off-site externship, and on-the-job training. Medical Assistant students learn how to listen to patients, answer questions, and take direction from physicians. Knowing what to say and when to say it takes time. However, with practice and experience, a medical assistant becomes very good at communication.

#2 Lots of job options

You can choose which aspect of the healthcare industry you want to work with. If you become a clinical medical assistant, you will work alongside physicians, nurses, and other healthcare professionals to provide direct patient care such as taking patient histories and vital signs, collecting and performing simple tests on blood and other specimens, providing care instructions to patients, and assisting with simple procedures.

If you become an administrative medical assistant, you will work in the ‘paperwork’ aspect of the practice such as answering phones, responding to emails, scheduling appointments, filing insurance claims, processing insurance, and patient payments, and maintaining office inventories. You may also be responsible for overseeing other office employees, cleaning waiting areas, transcribing notes, completing billing activities, and filing records.

In either one of these roles, you’ll be able to work at a variety of different clinical specialties, such as Allergy & Immunology, Dermatology, Diagnostic Radiology, Emergency Medicine, Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, and Medical Genetics.

#3 Flexible Hours

If you work in a clinic, you can choose to have a traditional work schedule. You may work at a family practice with Monday through Friday business hours. However, if you need a different type of schedule, you can choose to work in emergency care and choose shifts that will accommodate your responsibilities outside of work, such as childcare, elder care, or continuing education. Either way, becoming a medical assistant means you can look forward to enjoying a work-life balance.

Contact us to learn more about medical assistant classes and how MCC can help you get started on your new career!