Medical Assisting

Medical Assisting is a profession with many rewards, as practitioners can perform both administrative and clinical services, filling several roles in a variety of healthcare environments.  The Bureau of Labor Statistics clearly outlines that it is a growth field, with an anticipated 18% growth from 2020 to 2030. 

Medical Assistants work directly with providers and patients, with the goal of providing healthcare and ensuring patient safety. It is a position with a great deal of responsibility. 

As with any healthcare position, there are certain occupational risks that come into play with being a medical assistant, and those hazards include the following:

• Exposure to infectious diseases
• Sharps injuries
• Bloodborne pathogens and biological hazards
• Chemical and drug exposure
• Ergonomic hazards from lifting, sitting, and repetitive tasks
• Latex allergies
• Stress

At the same time, there are protections set up with the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA), and those protections are particularly important within a healthcare environment. OSHA has a series of standards that protect the safety of healthcare workers and patients.

Cognitive Demands

Medical Assistants must have sufficient cognitive skills to be able to analyze, calculate, reason, evaluate, effectively communicate, and engage in critical thinking processing within the complex and demanding realm of patient care. Medical Assistants, as part of the health care team, must be able to gather and process information rapidly in an ever-changing environment, with multiple demands made of them.

Behavioral and Emotional Demands

Medical Assistants must be able to maintain mature, professional, sensitive, and effective relationships with others while effectively communicating and providing service to their patients. Health care can be an emotionally demanding occupation, and graduate medical assistants must be able to perform their duties under a great deal of stress, while responding to ever changing demands.

Communication Skills

As an essential component of providing patient care, the Medical Assistant will do a great deal of talking, interpreting, and responding to verbal and nonverbal communications, gathering and processing pertinent data, interviewing patients, using the telephone as well as performing a variety of written and electronic communication, receiving, and responding to verbal orders from providers, and must be able to prioritize and perform many concurrent tasks.

English Language Competency

United States health care members primarily communicate in English; thus, Medical Assistants must be able to proficiently communicate in written, oral and electronic means. The ability to communicate in English is directly related to patient safety, cohesive care amongst various providers and the legal documentation requirements in health care. Most employers value multilingual Medical Assistants.

Physical Demands

Medical Assistants may spend a great deal of their professional day walking, standing, moving, and manipulating equipment, as well as lifting and moving objects, equipment and supplies. It is reasonable to anticipate lifting 20-25 pounds in any given day. The ability to lift up to 40-50 pounds may occasionally be required, depending on the specific type of care provided.

In the performance of certain patient care tasks; the Medical Assistant may be expected to have sufficient manual dexterity to safely perform various skills and techniques. Tasks and expectations may vary by clinical site and medical practice.

Medical Assistants may also be expected to have a level of visual and auditory acuity sufficient to meet the needs of their job tasks. Corrective equipment and devices may enhance the person’s ability to achieve the appropriate level of acuity. (Please see accommodations for disabilities.)

Students accepted into the Medical Assisting program are required to have a national background check and have all immunizations as well as a copy of their insurance card, drivers license, CPR card and a few other things for the program and in order to go out to practicum.

LWTech's Medical Assisting program uses Complio comprehensive tool for student screening, immunizations and compliance. The Complio Screening process is simple and straightforward with just five basic steps to complete. The process should take less than 20 minutes. 

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