Medical Assistant (MA) Certificate Program

What Is a Medical Assistant?

While most people tend to think of doctors and surgeons when they think of medical careers, the truth is that our healthcare system thrives because of support positions like medical assistants. Medical assisting professionals help keep healthcare facilities running smoothly by taking on a wide range of administrative and clinical responsibilities.

Medical assistants’ duties include tasks like:

• Recording patients’ histories and personal information for their medical records
• Measuring vital signs, including blood pressure, height, weight, and pulse rate
• Maintaining and organizing electronic health records and ensuring confidentiality and privacy
• Taking blood and preparing and labeling samples for laboratory tests
• Helping physicians with patient examinations and cleaning and sterilizing exam rooms and equipment
• Scheduling patient appointments and inputting insurance and payment information

The exact responsibilities a medical assistant handles varies depending on where you work and which state you work in. In larger facilities like hospitals, medical assistants may specialize in either administrative or clinical work, and some may even choose to specialize in a particular area of medicine, like ophthalmology, pediatrics, cardiography, and more.

How Do You Become a Medical Assistant?

Because interacting with patients and their confidential health information can be delicate work, requiring a lot of knowledge of both safety procedures and ethics standards, most healthcare employers are looking for medical assistants who have completed an accredited certificate program. And while certification isn’t always a state requirement, it is often preferred in job candidates. There are five accredited certifications for medical assistants:

• Certified Medical Assistant (CMA) from the American Association of Medical Assistants
• Registered Medical Assistant (RMA) from American Medical Technologists
• National Certified Medical Assistant (NCMA) from the National Center for Competency Testing
• Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (CCMA) from the National Healthcareer Association
• Certified Medical Administrative Assistant (CMAA) from the National Healthcareer Association

At Casa Loma College, our Medical Assistant program was designed to promote the professional values, lifelong learning, and critical-thinking skills required for the demands of the modern medical profession. We prepare our graduates for the skills they need to sit for a number of different certification exams with hands-on training in cutting-edge medical equipment, diagnostic testing, and electronic health record management. It’s important to note that any good Medical Assistant certificate program should also include a significant number of hours dedicated to practical clinical experience, both in lab settings and through externships.

What Will You Learn in Medical Assisting Classes?

The 32-week Medical Assistant certificate program is a blended learning program that covers general education, medical-focused topics, and clinical practicum by utilizing a combination of online and in-person classes. Students get practical experience through lab work, as well as in a wide variety of healthcare settings through externships, and it’s all completed in under a year. The program is built around the standards of the Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools (ABHES) and equips graduates with the knowledge and skills to sit for their Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (CCMA), Certified Medical Administrative Assistant (CMAA), and Certified Electrocardiography Technician (CET) credentials.

Our medical assisting courses cover topics like:

• Utilizing medical software and electronic health records, including privacy, confidentiality, and security of protected health information
• Managing patient appointments, oversight of the medical records system, and medical terminology
• Insurance terminology, the revenue cycle, and coding guidelines related to the billing processes
• Anatomy, physiology, pathology, procedures and tests, and pertinent safety standards
• Clinical laboratory and blood specimen collection, microbiology, immunology, and the principles of imaging
• Urinary, digestive, and reproductive systems, and assisting with minor surgical and special procedures

What’s the Outlook for Medical Assisting Careers?

Medical assisting careers have one of the brightest outlooks in the healthcare field, with employment in California projected to grow by 20% — four times faster than the average for all occupations.

Most of these jobs will likely come from the offices of doctors and physicians. As of 2021, they employed almost 60% of all medical assistants, with other common employers being state and local hospitals, outpatient care centers, and residential nursing facilities. A lot of the job growth in this area will be primarily driven by the aging population in the U.S. and the rising demand for medical services. This, in turn, will cause physicians and other healthcare employers needing skilled medical assistants to help with routine administrative and clinical tasks.

Get Started With a Medical Assistant Program

If you’re ready to meet this increasing demand for skilled medical assisting professionals throughout the United States, Casa Loma College is here for you. Enroll in our Medical Assistant certificate program and be on your way to a new career in as little as 32 weeks.

At Casa Loma, we’re here for our students, from enrollment to graduate and beyond, with everything from assistance with financial aid to career placement and job search resources. Be a part of the community at Casa Loma and contact us today about our Medical Assistant certificate program.