Lynn says:"I think this wariness in hiring a medical assistant comes from something we
don't want to admit-there are a lot of bad medical assistants out there. There
are too many schools and programs and many of them are lousy. The word gets
around to hiring personnel what those schools are and they won't trust a student
that went there. All they need to hear is one story of a student doing an
externship who didn't know how to PUT ON the blood pressure cuff properly and
that will make them leery. Who can blame them? How can anyone go through a
medical program for up to 9 months and get away with not knowing how to take a
blood pressure reading? But it happens. And the good students from these awful
schools get pushed in the background."
Lynn further writes: "This is NOT a field that is going to be gathering more respect as time goes by. There are too many programs popping up and that isn't a good sign. These are the schools that advertise on afternoon TV, during those (let's face it) trashy courtroom programs and they are trying to appeal to someone sitting around watching TV and eating out of a bag of chips (an actual commercial for medical assisting a few years ago).The only thing that is going to grow is this overabundance of MA programs and the large amount of ex-students looking for work who owe on loans. "
The way to remedy this situation is that future medical assistants make double sure they get into the right programs. For those who already are in the profession, I'd suggest certification to show the employer they are competent and serious about their career.
The resume of a medical assistant that is certified stands out from the rest. With so many medical assistants seeking jobs, they have do everything they can to get an edge over other applicants who also are looking.
I have always spoken out, and highly recommended that medical assistant students sign up only with schools that are ABHES and CAAHEP accredited, because only graduates of programs that are accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) or the Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools (ABHES) are eligible to take medical assistant certification/registration exams.
One program that's offered online, and ranks high in the Google Search Engine is St. Augustine School of Medical Assistants which is a total waste of money. Their text on the website looks good, and I am sure people are tempted to sign up but I have always warned of them... if you know what I mean.
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CHEA has issued the following warning:
http://www.chea.org/pdf/fact_sheet_6_diploma_mills.pdf
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Office of Occupational gives these statistics:
Medical Assistant/Healthcare Jobs
CareerBuilder.com lists the following Medical Assistant jobs:
Medical Assistant/Healthcare Jobs
