Medical Assistant Careers

Medical assistants carry out administrative and clinical tasks for physicians and other health practitioners. Their duties vary according to the size and specialty of the practice they work for. State regulations will also determine the type of clinical work medical assistants can perform. General job responsibilities of medical assistants include:

  • Creating and updating patient medical files
  • Scheduling patient appointments, answering phone calls, and filling out insurance forms
  • Assisting physicians with patient examinations
  • Drawing and preparing blood for laboratory tests
  • Preparing patients for X-rays, removing stitches, and changing dressings

The BLS reports that employment of medical assistants is expected to grow by 31% from 2010 to 2020. The health needs of the nation's large and aging baby-boom population is stimulating this faster-than-average job growth. As medical practices expand to accommodate more patients, physicians will need to hire more medical assistants to handle routine administrative and clinical tasks.

Medical assistants are not the same as physician assistants. Physician assistants examine, diagnose, and treat patients under the supervision of a physician.

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Job Boards

Find Your Job

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  1. Health Career Web
    Jobs.net

Professional Organizations

  1. American Association of Medical Assistants

    The AAMA provides education, certification, credential acknowledgment, and networking opportunities to medical assistant professionals.

  2. American Society of Podiatric Medical Assistants

    The ASPMA works to promote, improve, sustain, and advance the practice of Podiatric medical assisting.

  3. American Academy of Anesthesiologist Assistants

    The AAAA is a national organization that works to promote and advance the practice of Anesthesiologist assisting.

  4. American Dental Assistants Association

    The ADA is the leading source of oral health related information for dentists and patients. Founded in 1859, it's the world's oldest and largest dental organization.

  5. American Medical Technologists

    AMT is a non-profit professional association that represents more than 60,000 Allied Health professionals.

  6. American Association of Pathologists' Assistants

    The AAPA is a non-profit organization that promotes the highest education and professional standards of pathologists' assistants.

  7. American Academy of Physician Assistants

    The AAPA represents more than 86,500 certified physician assistants who work in all medical specialities across the United States.

  8. National Surgical Assistant Association

    The NSAA is a professional organization that sets the eductaional standards for surgical assistants. It also confers numerous credentials, such as Certified Surgical Assistant (CSA) certificate.

Publications

Calendar of Events

  1. 03 May 2013
    conference

    National Surgical Assistant Association

    This year's annual NSAA conference will be held at the Marriott Norfolk Waterside in Norfolk, Va.

  2. 25 May 2013
    conference

    AAPA 41st Annual Physician Assistant Conference

    This conference gives physician's assistants continuing eduction opportunities and the chance to network with their colleagues.

  3. 08 Jul 2013
    conference

    AMT 75th Educational Program & National Meeting

    AMT's national meeting, held in Pittsburgh, Penn. this year, brings medical technology professionals together so they can learn from and network with each other.

  4. 27 Sep 2013
    conference

    2013 American Association of Medical Assistants Annual Conference

    AAMA's annual conference features seminars, workshops, and networking opportunities for medical assistants and healthcare professionals.

Social Networks

  1. Medical Assistant Job Board

    This group provides networking opportunities to its more than 7,300 members.

  2. American Association of Medical Assistants

    This is the AAMA's Linkedin page. It gives members the chance to respond to discussion posts, share ideas, and network.

  3. Advanced Practice: Physician Assistant, Nurse Practicioner

    The Advanced Practice Group gives users the chance to ask and answer questions, view job opportunities, post jobs, and more.

  4. Physician Assistant Professional Network

    This group is for physician assistants who want to network with other professionals.

  5. American Dental Assistants Association

    This is the Linkedin page for the ADAA, which is the oldest and largest group that represents dental assistants.

  6. Medical Assistant Network

Get Experience

  1. United Health Group

    This internship opportunity is for United Health Group's office in New Braunfels, Texas.

  2. Volunteer Medical Assistant

    This opportunity is at the Care Net Pregnancy Resource Center of Atlanta.

  3. Medical Missions

    This organization advertises medical assistant mission trip opportunities to foreign countries, such as Haiti, Ecuador, Kenya, and Ghana.

  4. Project HOPE

    This organization accepts medical volunteers to work at sites around the world.

Licensure Information

  1. Step 1

    Graduate from an accredited medical assisting program.

  2. Step 2

    Pass a certification exam, such as the CMA exam from the American Association of Medical Assistants.

  3. Step 3

    Complete continuing education requirements every 60 months.

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Medical Assistant Careers at a Glance

Projected Job Growth

  • Job Growth for
    Medical Assistant Careers
  • 2013
  • 2023

Average Pay for Medical Assistant Careers

  • Annual Pay National Average
  • Hourly Pay National Average

Best States for Medical Assistant Careers

  Employment
in 2011		 Average
Annual Pay		 Average
Hourly Pay
California 82,280 $33,750 $16
Michigan 21,820 $28,410 $14
New Mexico 5,090 $28,220 $14

Sources:

Launching Medical Assistant Careers

Medical assistants typically have a high school diploma or the equivalent and a certificate or diploma from an accredited community college or vocational or technical school. In most states, there are no formal educational requirements to become a medical assistant, but many employers favor candidates who have graduated from an accredited certificate, diploma, or degree program. Some states do require clinical assistants to successfully complete an accredited program or state exam or both.

There are several accredited medical assistant certificate programs available completely online. Traditional on-campus programs may provide additional hands-on laboratory and field experience. Some of the classes you may take in a typical medical assisting certificate and degree program include:

  • Medical Terminology
  • Medical Billing and Insurance Claims
  • Basic Human Anatomy and Physiology
  • Introduction to Patient Medications

Certification for medical assistants is available from several accredited organizations, including Certified Medical Assistant (CMA) certification from the American Association of Medical Assistants and National Certified Medical Assistant (NCMA) certification from the National Center for Competency Testing. In order to be eligible to take the CMA exam, a medical assistant must complete a medical assistant program accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs or the Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools. No formal education is required to take the NCMA exam.