Certified Medical Assistant

Students CNA/MA

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MVitiello

48 Posts

Well if you want to be a RN, I say go straight for that. It won't get any easier later. Or if you *really* feel the need to go for something easier to get into first, I advise LPN over MA. LPNs make more than MAs. And your LPN license can be applied toward getting your RN. Having been a MA won't really count toward anything when it comes to furthering your nursing career.[/quote']

Thank you.

OCNRN63, RN

5,978 Posts

Specializes in Oncology; medical specialty website.
Perhaps. Or perhaps you shouldn't bother commenting if you just want to be mean and sarcastic. Perhaps I'm new to this app/site and thought maybe just maybe if I put it up in general discussion someone would help me out. Guess not. Thanks though :)

It wasn't a mean comment; he/she was letting you know that we've had several forums on this issue, so if you use the "search" function, you're more likely to find the most information regarding your question. Please don't go looking for offense when none was likely intended.

MAtoLVN

44 Posts

I live in California and make $20 an hour as a CMA in a jail. LVN's make $35 and RN's make and average of $50 where I work. Most of my former classmates make $9-$12 as a CMA if they found a job.

DawnJ

312 Posts

Don't put all your eggs in one basket either. If that school is too overwhelmed to give you encouragement regarding acceptance, check out other schools in the area.

JustBeachyNurse, LPN

13,952 Posts

Specializes in Complex pedi to LTC/SA & now a manager.

Moved to CNA/MA Forum to elicit further response. There are several threads in this forum from others struggling with the same decision.

MA is medical model, generally relegated to an outpatient clinic or physician office. Some states have a defined scope of practice others do not. Training often includes front office tasks such as scheduling and insurance/patient billing that is not a part of nursing or nursing assistant education.

Generally speaking, CNA is one step of the nursing hierarchy. Some people are satisfied with the role of CNA and have no desire to progress to licensed nurse. An LPN can perform all the skills of a CNA and more. RN's can perform all the skills and duties within the scope of the LPN/LVN and more including management and sometimes administrative duties and public/community health.

Good luck. A search of this forum will likely offer a variety of experiences and opinions. Like others said, consider checking out other nursing programs to keep your options open.

MVitiello

48 Posts

It wasn't a mean comment; he/she was letting you know that we've had several forums on this issue, so if you use the "search" function, you're more likely to find the most information regarding your question. Please don't go looking for offense when none was likely intended.

I already apologized to him/her. Thank you for the information, I don't try to look for offense it's just most of the time, in my past, people are cruel.

Graduation2016

528 Posts

Specializes in OB.

In reality the CMA will take you about a year to complete, bare in mind it is a very expensive program.Like previous posts, most of the CMA's are employed in physician's offices, so if you want to work at a hospital, CMA is not the way to go.

Nursing is a long journey filled with lots of studying given the amount of pre-reqs to do and tons of dedication, sacrifices and up's and down's. From your posts you sound like you don't want to do all that work. Unless you feel that way because of how negative the counselor has been. If nursing is your real passion, you will go through with it, not because it is short, long, easy, hard, make less, more money, but because you really want to do nursing for a living. Good luck!

funtimes

446 Posts

MAs seem more like a hybrid of office worker and lab tech. They dont really do heavy patient care or acute care, and arent really trained for that kind of work, which is what I generally associate RNs with. So I generally dont see MA as a pathway to RN, unlike CNA, which is more closely related to Nursing(hence the name NURSING assistant).

ContraryRock

10 Posts

Hey, I am conflicted on how to go about my future career. I would love to be a RN but from talking to the counselors they say its almost impossible to get accepted into their 2 year nursing program. So I was thinking of doing CMA instead. Any suggestions? How much does a CMA make a year compared to an ADN? Thanks for the help.

Well, everyone else has commented on salary, so I'll say this: I am a CMA, used to work in a clinic within a hospital. I actually really enjoyed being a CMA. You learn lots of technical skills like phlebotomy, vitals, etc. You learn how to deal with physicians, especially if you work in a surgical clinic, you learn how to deal with patients, you really do learn a lot, but it's definitely not nursing. I'd advise you to go to a community college for the program if there is one available near you. Private schools are faster but way, way more expensive. I have decided to go for my RN because even though you get great hours, holidays, etc as a CMA, you usually don't make a lot of money. Also, working outside of a regular 9-5 schedule can be a problem. Unless you get in at an urgent care or someplace like that, there is not a lot of flexibility in scheduling.

I don't regret becoming a CMA, but if I had to do it over again, I would probably go for CNA.

Also, whatever RN program that is that you're trying to get in to sounds crazy. Even the BSN programs where I am are not that involved. Look around for other programs. There's definitely somewhere you'd be able to get in.

nguyency77, CNA

527 Posts

CMA is a very expensive program, as very few community colleges offer it. Many trade schools do, but it is outrageously expensive.

Read: schools in my area cost upwards of $20k for a CMA.

And nearly every newspaper ad that is asking for a CMA insists that the person be bilingual (English, Spanish and/or a regional language like Dine), have experience in both secretarial settings as well as drawing blood, and be willing to work for $10 an hour.

I would not really say that it is related to nursing, because most CMA work in physicians' offices. In my area, those that work in hospitals get to push paper, schedule appointments, and clock out at 4 PM.

Maybe you could look into other schools in your area that offer an ADN?

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