Medical assistant

From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A medical assistant (sometimes called an MA) is a medical professional who works in medical settings along with doctors and nurses. They do things to help doctors and nurses with their jobs, and may perform many different tasks.[1]

Some medical assistants are similar in some ways to a nurse. They take care of patients in hospitals and other medical facilities, and they perform other tasks to help run the office. They are different from a nurse mainly in that medical assistants cannot plan out what a patient's care will be like. They can only do what a nurse or a doctor instruct them to do.

Other types of medical assistants work in the reception area of a doctor's office, similar to a secretary. These medical assistants may file paperwork, update medical records, and greet patients.[2]

Education[change | change source]

Medical assistants usually go to school for between one and two years. They may hold an associate's degree,[3] or in some cases a certificate if they already have an associate's degree in something else.[4]

Pay range[change | change source]

Medical assistants tend to earn between $20,000 and $40,000 a year in salary.[5] Factors that influence a Medical Assistant's salary can be their location, the amount of training they have, the amount of time they've been working as a medical assistant, and the skills they've learned while working.

References[change | change source]

  1. Medical Assistant Schools Directory. [1] Archived 2015-03-19 at the Wayback Machine
  2. Medical Assistants - Occupational Outlook Handbook
  3. Medical Assistant Associate's Degree Programs - Medicalassistantschools.com
  4. Medical Assistant Diploma and Certificate Programs - Medicalassistantschools.com
  5. "Medical Assistant Salary - How Much do Medical Assistants Make?". Archived from the original on 2012-12-31. Retrieved 2012-12-07.