America faces an ongoing shortage of workers in the healthcare field. The nurse shortage has gotten a lot of press in recent years. Yet the shortage extends from paramedics clear on through to doctors. Becoming a medical assistant is one way that you can enter the field without the extensive education required for nurses and doctors. The Bureau of Labor predicts a 16 percent growth rate for medical assistants over the next ten years.
In Ohio, and most places, you’ll need certification to become a medical assistant. Keep reading to learn how to get your medical assistant certification in Ohio.
What Do Certified Medical Assistants Do?
Certified medical assistants’ exact duties can vary a lot, depending on their exact certifications and the job itself. Some of the more common duties include:
- Charting
- Infection Control
- Providing injections, state law permitting
- Drug testing
- Pregnancy testing
- Office admin tasks
Many CMAs also get certified as phlebotomy technicians and EKG technicians. CMAs with these certifications may also:
- Prepare and process medical samples
- Analyze echocardiograms
- Hazardous material management
Medical assistant jobs exist in hospitals, clinics, and doctors’ offices.
Basic Education
Before you can enter into any certified medical assistant training courses or take any exams, you must wrap up your high school education. Most training courses and the exams themselves require either a high school diploma or a GED equivalent.
If you’re still in high school and know that you want to become a medical assistant, there are some things you can do that will help prepare you. Lean in to your science classes. Pay special attention to your biology and chemistry classes.
Don’t ignore those math classes. There is a surprising amount of math involved in health care services.
You should take advantage of any basic medical care options your high school offers, such as CPR or first aid certifications.
Those classes and certifications will prove helpful if you pursue certifications as a phlebotomy technician, EKG technician, and pharmacy technician.
Online CMA Courses
You can find a wide range of online CMA courses, but you should take care that the provider has accreditation. Ohio, for example, wants CMA certification through the National Center for Competency Testing. As such, you’ll want an online program with NCCT accreditation.
The exact nature of the courses will vary. Some will provide all-inclusive packages that cover everything from phlebotomy to pharmacy technician skills, while others will break the program into tiers. Let’s look at some common tiers.
CMA 1
These courses typically provide the wide cross-section of skills you’ll need for the job and to successfully navigate the CMA certification exam. It will cover topics like:
- Injections
- Basic phlebotomy
- Basic pharmacology
- Admin and medical supply management
- HIPAA and OSHA regs
- Electrocardiograms
Since some of the skills involved require hands-on training and supervision, an internship is a fairly standard requirement.
CMA and Phlebotomy Tech
A tier like this prepares you for both the CMA certification exam and the phlebotomy technician exam. You cover all of the same material for the CMA.
In addition, you cover phlebotomy-specific information and skills that go beyond the CMA exam and prep your for the phlebotomy certification. Some of the ground you’ll cover includes:
- Phlebotomy techniques
- Patient assessment
- Point-of-care testing
- Documentation
- Anatomy and Physiology
In addition to the CMA internship, phlebotomy technicians must also complete a set of supervised blood draws.
Additional tiers typically add additional skills or certification preparation to the curriculum. It’s important to note that each addition to the program will extend the length of time it takes to complete the course or program. Comprehensive courses that include prep for multiple certifications may take upwards of nine months.
CMA College Programs
While many prefer the flexibility of online programs to help them fit their learning in around a job, it’s not the ideal situation for every person. For some, the classroom experience provides more benefits.
You not only get to ask your own questions but also hear the questions and answers of the other students. That can help solidify learning and allow for some basic networking among students and instructors.
If you fall into this category, then an in-person, college-based CMA program may suit your needs better. A number of colleges offer medical assistant classes in Ohio.
Just make sure you pick a clinical program and not a medical administrative assistant program. The administrative assistant program focuses on the office administration aspects of the job, rather than the medical aspects.
Certification Exam
If you’re looking to become a certified medical assistant in Ohio, you must gear up for the NCCT medical assistant exam. There are several other medical assistant certification exams, including:
- American Association of Medical Assistants certification
- National Healthcareer Association Certified Clinical Medical Assistant certification
- Nationally Registered Certified Medical Assistant certification
While all of these certifications cover similar ground, Ohio looks for the NCCT certification specifically.
The NCCT exam covers the following areas:
- Pharmacology
- Medical Procedures/Phlebotomy
- Diagnostic tests
- Office Procedures
- Medical office management
There are specific areas that you should watch out for, such as medical laws, ethics, and finance. These areas bridge away from strict medical knowledge into areas like compliance, information technology management, and even patient rights.
While important, these elements may not get as much coverage time as strict clinical skills in training courses.
Medical Assistant Certification in Ohio
The mass shortage of medical staff across the nation creates a lot of potential career paths for the medically inclined. One of the shortest paths to join the field is as a medical assistant. You’ll need your certification for that though.
While the process is relatively straightforward, it is important that you get the right medical assistant certification in Ohio. Specifically, you want the NCCT. Before that, though, you must complete an appropriately accredited course.
Phlebotomy Career Training offers accredited medical assistant courses both online and in-person. For more information, contact Phlebotomy Career Training today.
Nancy L. Kimmel obtained her PhD in Environmental Engineering in 2002, then went on to teach Physics and Mechanical Engineering at Lawrence Technological University, Henry Ford College and Oakland University. She obtained her Associate in Nursing from Henry Ford College and then went on to earn her Master Degree as a Family Nurse Practitioner and became Board Certified working as a licensed FNP in the State of Michigan. She then went on to Medical School where she is now in her 3rd year, and is also in the process of obtaining her Doctorate in Nursing Practice through Chamberlin University. She has authored the NET Study Guide, as well a several books on subjects of Math, ECG/EKG and Phlebotomy. She holds a patent on an Air Filter through the U.S. Patent Office.