Education Makes a Difference

Education pays - in higher earnings and lower unemployment rate Text version of Education Pays chart Note: Note: Data are 2010 annual averages for persons age 25 and over. Earnings are for full-time wage and salary workers. Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey.

Work for a Chiropractor

Accepting a position under the employ of a chiropractor is an excellent way for anyone, including medical assistants, to make a difference within their community and brings advancement opportunities along with certain benefits and decent pay.

Chiropractic Technologist or Chiropractic Assistant

Just like their medical assistant counterparts in a medical doctor's practice, the chiropractic technologist, or chiropractic assistant works under the direct supervision of a licensed chiropractor, performing both clerical and clinical tasks. While their scope of practice may vary from office to office and state laws and regulations generally may differ from state to state, their duties are assigned based on their qualifications and training and, of course, their ability to communicate, lift, escort, and position patients. The goal is to follow and achieve progressive treatment plan outcomes as defined by a medical physician, and/or the chiropractor.

The chiropractor's office hours typically are Monday through Friday from 8:00AM to 5:00PM; no holidays and weekends, unless they keep their office open on Saturdays to accommodate patients that cannot come in during regular work-week hours.

While chiropractors run their administrative and front office similar to any other medical practice and take a medical history the same way other health care providers do, when they examine their patients they primarily look at:

• Muscle strength versus weakness
• Patient's posture in different positions
• Spinal range of motion
• Structural abnormalities

Where Will I Work?

The vast majority of chiropractors operate their own practice; others are partners in a group practice, or partnership office setting. Their daily routine includes nutritional counseling, application and removal of supports and wraps, hot and cold compresses, exercises, decompression, physical and massage therapy regimens, rehab and weight loss counseling, acupuncture and sometimes general medical services. Many recommend nutritional products and natural supplements, ointments and topicals, herbals, pillows, mattresses and orthotics to relief neck pain, back pain, stiff joints and muscle tension.

One important employment prerequisite might be to have a limited x-ray license, since radiological imaging is such a big part of the chiropractor's work. Those wishing to enter into this newly emerging career must research whether there are any specific licensing requirements in their state of residency and the location in which they will practice their skill. Read more about excellent career and specialization opportunities for medical assistants working as a chiropractic assistant.

To learn more about the medical assisting career and what a medical assistant does please visit Medical Assistant Net on the Web.

Medical Assistant Training

Teaching Medical Assistant Skills

Medical Assistants must know a wide variety of skills pertaining to medical office administration routines and clinical tasks revolving around patient intake procedures, patient record management, medical history taking, setting up EKG s, spirometry, immunizations, blood draws, charting, measuring orthopedic fittings and such. Some situations may involve bio-hazard risks where Universal Standard Precautions must be practiced to protect themselves, their patients and coworkers from harm.

Medical assistant training programs vary. Most medical assistant training can be completed quickly at a career school or college in your city. Whether you are looking for classroom-based learning, morning, or evening classes, or online courses to suit your busy schedule we can help you find the right medical assistant training program that leads to desired medical assistant certificates and diplomas right here. To find medical assistant training near you complete the School-Finder form. You can browse though your area's vocational training schools, explore various training avenues and request more information from the institutions that interest you.

13 Incredibly Easy Steps to Becoming a Perfect Medical Assistant?

Are You Looking for 13 Incredibly Easy Steps to Becoming a Perfect Medical Assistant?

You are right, of course I am exaggerating! There is no such thing as easy recipe for making the perfect medical assistant; in fact, it takes hard work, interest, uniqueness and a dedication that comes from deep within. Some medical assistant students may think it all starts on the job in a medical office, where the medical assistant works diligently side by side with the physician and other health care professionals, applying all skills learned. But nothing could be further from the truth: Becoming a (well, okay... almost perfect) medical assistant and future success BEGINS with the right attitude in the class room and then CONTINUES later on at the work place.

Below are thirteen real-world tips that helped me personally to make my medical assistant school days enjoyable and successfully graduate:

1. "Hello, my name is Danni!" Introduce yourself to your classmates and instructors. You don't want to just be a face in the crowd.
2. "Front row? No way!" Do it! Sit in the front row! Most study groups form from those you associate with during classes. Sit in the front row with the students who are, or want to be brilliant.
3. "Yikes, I don't want a partner!" Really??? Select your lab partner with care and once you found a good match, practice, practice, practice together to solidify every simple and the most challenging skills (injection, blood draw, urinalysis anybody?).
4. What is your image? During even the most boring lecture look interested. The secret of a good image is striving to be that which you wish to appear. Learning how to deal properly with a boring situation, or a person that is boring is a good skill to cultivate in any discipline.
5. Get the most from your textbooks! Take your materials out of your house to study. Get away from distractions, undone dishes, radio and TV. (Tip: the doughnut shop or all night cafe will offer ample amounts of coffee).
6. Read nursing journals and medical assistant magazines. Often current articles will compliment your text and make the information more easily understood. Use individual sheets of paper or large index cards to make a file of disease/conditions and their treatments. List etiology, signs and symptoms, diagnostic tests, interventions, etc. and keep them in a binder for future reference as well as present study.
7. Take notes from your notes! After taking notes in class or from a book, put away the book and bring out a tape recorder and outline your notes so you can listen to them. A great way to also practice your medical terminology words. Also, turn course objectives as found in the beginning of each chapter of your workbook into questions - presto, instant study guide.
8. Name that thing! My medical assisting instructor during my medical assistant training amazed me! On the second day of class she single-handedly greeted every new student, about 30, by their first and last name (amazing!). However, if you are more like me and one of those who have trouble remembering names, protocols, lab values, or terminology write them down on index cards and keep them in your pocket. It works - take them with you everywhere you go! The more you use them the more you will solidify them.
9. If you can get your hands on them, use old CMA or RMA exam review materials as your study guide. Sort questions by topic as you go through school and study those questions pertaining to your current lesson. It will help you learn and give you a head start  when it's time to schedule your final examinations.
10. Clinical lab - Yippeee! Be helpful to the clinical lab instructor and work with your classmates toward the common goals. Practice taking all the different vital signs, never contradict publicly, don't interrupt with constant repeat questions (that's what you have instructors for!) and don't make your instructor hold your hand. Even if you're scared and have never done something before, jump in and follow instructions. If you don't know how to do a procedure, look it up, check the protocols, ask for additional help. Instructors would rather be "bothered" walking you through the procedure than fixing the mess if you do something wrong.
11. Thrive in clinical lab classes! Appreciate even the simplest things, such as how to properly greet a patient. Whether you are a complete novice, or have already been in another allied health career for  years, remember everyone begins at different levels. Focus on where you are going - not on how much you already know.
12. "1-2-3, deep breath!" In Venipuncture practice, take a moment to center yourself before working on somebody's arm. Most people respond best to a calm focused approach. Study your instructors. 
13. The more you know them the more likely you are to understand them and what they are expecting from you. Adjust your attitude, buy a good personal planner and log all projects, deadlines and tests in it. Plan a realistic schedule and follow it.

To learn more about the medical assisting career please visit Medical Assistant NET on the Web.

Dos and Don'ts in Medical Record Charting

1. ALL ENTRIES in medical records must be LEGIBLE, DATED AND SIGNED including their professional title and IDENTIFICATION so that any future reader can identify each entry's author.

2. Avoid using problem prone abbreviations listed in Table I below. Do not use abbreviations Use only abbreviations and symbols approved by your medical office, clinic, or hospital.

3. Use only approved chart forms with the patient's name, the date, and the time recorded on each sheet and on, if applicable, both sides of every sheet in the record.

4. Use ink; never pencil.

5. Don't skip lines or leave spaces between entries.

6. Don't use vague, non-descriptive terms.

7. Don't get personal. Comments cannot be removed or changed. Refrain from entering into the chart any statement that does not deal directly with the patient's diagnosis, treatment, care or condition.

8. Don't use the medical record to comment on other health-care professionals or their actions.

9. Don't wait until the end of the day to chart.

10. Don't back date, add to or tamper with notes on the medical record.

11. Don't use terms unless medical assistants know what they mean.

12. Always legibly identify yourself by signature, or initials.

13. All entries in the medical record must be signed by the author. Federal law mandates that only the author can sign his/her entries in medical records.

Abbreviation to Avoid	Intended Meaning	Misinterpretation	Correction
D/C	discharge discontinue	Premature discontinuation of medication (intended to mean discharge) especially when followed by a list of discharge medications.	Use "discharge" and "discontinue"
MgSO4	Magnesium sulfate	Morphine sulfate
MSO4	Morphine sulfate	Magnesium sulfate
MTX	Methotrexate	Mitoxantrone
ZnSO4	Zinc sulfate	Morphine sulfate
q.d. or QD	every day	Mistaken as q.i.d. especially if the period after the "q" or the tail of the "q" is misunderstood as an "I".	Use "daily" or "every day" If abbreviation is used, capitalize and avoid use of periods.
q.o.d. or QOD	every other day	Misinterpreted as "qd"(daily) or "qid" (four times daily) if the "o" is poorly written	Use "every other day". If abbreviation is used, capitalize and avoid use of periods.
U or u	units	Read as zero (0) or a four (4) causing a 10-fold overdose or greater (4U seen as "40" or 4u seen as "44").	Unit has no acceptable abbreviations. Use "unit".
IU	international units	Misread as IV (intravenous)	Use "units"
TIW	three times a week	Mistaken as "three times a day"	Spell out "three times a week"
AU	each ear	Mistaken for OU "each eye"
SS	sliding scale (insulin) mistaken	for "55"	Spell out "sliding scale"
Zero after decimal point 1.0 (trailing zero)	1 mg	Mistaken as 10 mg if the decimal point is not seen	Do not use trailing zero's
No zero before a decimal dose .5 mg (no leading zero)	0.5 mg	Misread as 5 mg	Always use zero before a decimal when the dose is less than a whole unit

LEARNING TIP FOR NEW MEDICAL ASSISTANTS AND NURSING STUDENTS: SEEK PRACTICE

SCENARIOS for PRACTICE CHARTING (both medical office and phone call situations)!

Medical Assisting: Fundamentals of Patient Care

NEW! WEBSITE FOR MEDICAL ASSISTANT REVIEW

Medical Assisting: Fundamentals of Patient Care

Are you planning a career in medical assisting? Are you currently employed and need to upgrade your knowledge? Do you recognize a need for additional learning beyond basic patient procedures? Have you been out of the profession and want to come back again but don’t know where to start?

With the recent changes in the healthcare system, the role of the medical assistant is becoming increasingly important. The demands on the medial assistant’s knowledge are rapidly increasing. Recruiting of medical assistants into medical offices, clinics, and hospitals is becoming more and more the norm.

If you are a medical assistant or interested in the medical assistant profession, with primary focus on clinical aspects, you might benefit greatly from my new website. 

This new medical assistant website closely resembles a simple online course. 

It is perfect for beginners as well as those who have already completed some level of training. Come in to recall basic principles of medical assisting, solidify your knowledge of effective and efficient techniques in contemporary patient care, and review important topics and necessary skills you should know as a medical assistant in a modern healthcare system.

As a former medical assistant educator I found that students who remain focused and work diligently through each lesson are able to finish a similar syllabus within a rather short time (36 - 40 hours over 5 weeks.)  Here you can work at your own pace, but please remember that any student with a thirty day period of inactivity will have to be removed. Please don't let this happen to you.

I firmly believe that acquiring a good grasp on skills and knowledge related to patient care, professional conduct, standard rules of safety, hygiene, aseptic techniques, as well as medical office management and legal issues provides a solid base from which to grow as a medical assistant.

This is a rather detailed medical assistant review, but it is by no means meant to be a replacement of the medical assisting curriculum taught at your local vocational training institutions or college medical assistant program.

Some knowledge of medical terminology and basic word parts may be helpful. The course follows a similar pattern a medial assisting text book would, but the difference is that this course is compacted to the most relevant information to give you solid, basic understanding of patient care and various situations that come along with it.

Danni R., CMA speaks

We Need More Protection from For-Profit Education Rip-Offs!

Tell the Obama administration we need more protection from for-profit education rip-offs!

The U.S. Department of Education has proposed new rules to protect students and taxpayers from career education programs that over-charge and under-deliver, but the rules need to be stronger. USA Today praised the Obama Administration for flagging the problem, but called the proposal "feeble" and "too accommodating."

Federal law requires career education programs that receive federal student aid to "prepare students for gainful employment in a recognized occupation." By defining "gainful employment" for the first time, the proposed rules make it possible to enforce this important law.

The for-profit college industry and its highly paid lobbyists are fighting hard to weaken the proposed rules, so exploitative businesses can keep profiting off federal student aid. That's why the Obama administration needs to hear from you today.

Take action and send your comment to the Department of Education!

Example letter:

Dear Jessica Finkel,

Career education programs that receive federal student aid funds must be held accountable for training students for good jobs without saddling them with unmanageable debt. The proposed rules on gainful employment are a good first step, but they should be strengthened to provide more meaningful protection for students and taxpayers starting next year. Ensuring access to affordable higher education is incredibly important for our economy, but for-profit programs that over-charge and under-deliver do more harm than good, and should not be subsidized by taxpayer financed student aid.

The Right Medical Assistant Diplomas and Certificates

WOW! Did you know...

If you follow the news you will learn that thousands of people have bought medical degrees from a bogus school in Liberia, Africa. Diploma mills make the unthinkable real! For a relatively small fee, and almost zero effort anybody can become a doctor, clergyman, or receive college level and advanced degrees.

It just blows the mind: doctors, clergymen, police officers, teachers, federal employees, such as White House staffers, National Security Agency employees, FBI agents, and a senior State Department official, purchased bogus degrees to seek employment, promotions, higher positions, and better pay.

A Warning about Diploma Mills!!!
Definitions:
1. Accreditation mill. "Accreditation mill" means an
entity that is created to give the appearance that certain substandard schools or institutions of higher education are legitimately accredited organizations, that is not recognized by any authorized state, professional or national agency and that has few, if any, standards for quality.

2. Diploma mill. "Diploma mill" means an institution of higher
education operating without accreditation or supervision of a state or a
nationally recognized professional agency and granting diplomas that are either fraudulent or, because of lack of proper standards, worthless.

Online Students:
Online students must be careful and know what to look for when they seek education or training. The best programs are those that are accredited by an organization that is approved by the United States Department of Education, or an accreditation body approved and recognized by the department, such as CAHEP or ABHES. But there also are institutions, which are not (yet!) accredited, but working on it, since accreditation does NOT happen over night.

Institutions:Insitutions that want to be licensed have to go through a rigorous review process by a commission of state elected officials who verify that the school meets a standard set of criteria; and many of them are planning, or are in the process of completing the much desired accreditation status. The institution of your choice should at least be licensed by their local Department of Education.

Bogus Certificates from diploma mills will not be worth the paper they are printed on. And any job placement assistance that might have been promised may consist of nothing but a copy of doctors listed in the local area's Yellow Pages (if that much!).

READ:
Extreme Caution Example!

© 2007 Danni R./Advanced Medical Assistant Custom Web Design, LLC.