As nurses do you see the need for medical assistants?

Scrubby · Feb 9, 2008

I've said it before and here i go again. i'm against OR techs. I don't want them in my HCF, i will not participate in training them and this is the attitude of everyone i work with. Thankfully we don't have them much in Australia, we're trying to recruit as many nurses as we can so we don't need techs.

On the wards and nursing homes here i think that assistants can be very useful, can help with bathing, ADLs and allow nurses to do other duties such as IV's meds, etc. It's also a good opportunity for nursing students to learn hands on care and gain some understanding of what will be expected of them once they graduate.

widi96 · Feb 9, 2008

I work in a hospital and am not sure what a 'medical assistant' position would entail. I don't think I would like it because it takes away our important nursing role of determining whether or not the patient should have that medication. i.e holding insulin for a low sugar, or holding anti-hypertensives for a low bp or pt going to dialysis, etc. I don't know how they are trained and if they know what to look for. We do utilize CNA's on our unit and I absolutely love having them. There is one unit on our hospital that does not use them and I really would not want to work there. We have a larger patient load, but having the assistants to do the vitals, help people to the bathroom, etc is so much help. Two sets of hands are better than one.

ZippyGBR, BSN, RN · Feb 9, 2008

I've said it before and here i go again. i'm against OR techs. I don't want them in my HCF, i will not participate in training them and this is the attitude of everyone i work with. Thankfully we don't have them much in Australia, we're trying to recruit as many nurses as we can so we don't need techs.

interestingly if you look at the background of the ODP role in the UK it;s becasue Nurses couldn't wouldn't learn the technical side of being anaesthesia assistants ... the traditional pattern in perioperative environments is that 'boys' do anaesthesia ( as ODPs) and 'girls' are the scrubbers and do recovery... (as Nurses)

much of what goes on scrubside is not nursing per se and the ODP role isfrom management point ofview far better suited as their ore-registration trainign andeducation is perioperative facoused

On the wards and nursing homes here i think that assistants can be very useful, can help with bathing, ADLs and allow nurses to do other duties such as IV's meds, etc. It's also a good opportunity for nursing students to learn hands on care and gain some understanding of what will be expected of them once they graduate.

don't confuse the NA role with what students shoudl be doing ... if students are not gettign a preparation for practice it's time to look at pre-registration course design - in the way that EU states have and ended up with 4600 hours programmes with 2300 practice hours...

Scrubby · Feb 9, 2008

[interestingly if you look at the background of the ODP role in the UK it;s becasue Nurses couldn't wouldn't learn the technical side of being anaesthesia assistants ... the traditional pattern in perioperative environments is that 'boys' do anaesthesia ( as ODPs) and 'girls' are the scrubbers and do recovery... (as Nurses)]

That's interesting because in Oz there is pretty much an equal gender mix of anaesthetic nurses.

[much of what goes on scrubside is not nursing per se and the ODP role isfrom management point ofview far better suited as their ore-registration trainign andeducation is perioperative facoused]

Hmmm well from my experience of both scouting and scrubbing to be able to scout effectively you need to have an understanding of what is going on surgically. And you cannot understand if you are not capable of scrubbing. I have found that by doing both roles i am able to anticipate what the scrub or scout is going to need. I strongly disagree that scrubbing is not nursing. As a scrub i'm constantly advocating for my patient, ensuring that they are positioned correctly, ensuring sterility is maintained etc. I guess you could argue and say that a tech can do this too, but IMHO it's better for the completely vulnerable patient having a scout and a scrub with a nursing background, not just one nurse and someone who just knows how to hand instruments.

And to be perfectly honest i really love to scrub and don't want my job taken off me, or just have to circulate all day long because i like the variety.

husker_rn, RN · Feb 9, 2008

I do believe in having CNAs to help but this medical assistant thing bothers me. Seems like if we keep giving away parts of nursing we will someday find that it is no longer a profession.

pagandeva2000, LPN · Feb 9, 2008

Well, I'll put it this way, there should be room for everyone at the table to eat. I think that they contribute a great deal (the ones that work diligently, anyway). Nurses spend so much time pampering documentation (thanks to Joint Commission and a million other folks), that the basic needs of the patient may be neglected. If they are not going to hire more nurses to decrease the nurse:patient ratios, then, yes, give them assistants. I think that the position you may have met, though, was actually Certified Nursing Assistant. Medical Assistants primarily work in physician's offices.

Tweety, BSN, RN · Feb 9, 2008

I was just going to say it, pagandeva said if first. There's room for us all, and we all have a role to play.

I'm unfamiliar with what a Medical Assistant does, but I know some present themselves to patients as a nurse and that's wrong.

Medication aides make me a bit uncomfortable, but I think they have a role to play in arenas such as group homes, ALF's or LTC's with clients that are not acutely ill but need supervision taking their meds.

I love love love nursing assistant and techs and could not work without them. They are the backbone of patient care.

lpnstudentin2010, LPN · Feb 9, 2008

I'm unfamiliar with what a Medical Assistant does, but I know some present themselves to patients as a nurse and that's wrong.

Or sometimes patients assume they are nurses. Ths happened with me, at my docs office. I thought she was a nurse till we got talking one day and I found out she was an MA.

jlcole45 · Feb 9, 2008

There is a place for assistants, especially nursing assistants, but we as nurses have to be careful about delegating too much to our non-licensed co workers.

We do this too often and we will be out of a job.

I have issues with aides inserting foley's or doing anything that is invasive (or passing meds) because I worry that they are just doing a task and not critically thinking about it.

Of course the reason that they exist is because there hasn't been enough trained nurses to do the work. So this goes back to trying to recruit more folks to become nurses.

ann945n, RN · Feb 9, 2008

I think first its important to point out there is a HUGE difference between a CNA and a MA. I love CNA's I was one my self for several years. They are vital to the medical team and know their role and stay within their role which makes everyone safe. There is no way I could do my job without them

As for MA, they make me very nervous. They can do whatever a doctor trains them to do. Thus they can take over nursing roles in private offices. Personally there is no way I would let one touch me. I feel this position has gone WAY beyond what it was ment to be and is making now pseudo nurses who think they are nurses with out the training. I cant tell you how often I have corrected MA's that no they are not a nurse. I think that their role should stick to office type work in the private setting and the gathering of vitals. I do not think they should be able to pass meds, give injects, or do invasive procedures, talk to patient over the phone ect. Their vital role in private practice is going beyond their level of education and that is scary for everyone involved. I do think that when they stay within what they were originally ment to do though, they are a wonderful part of the team.

lpnstudentin2010, LPN · Feb 9, 2008

I think first its important to point out there is a HUGE difference between a CNA and a MA. I love CNA's I was one my self for several years. They are vital to the medical team and know their role and stay within their role which makes everyone safe. There is no way I could do my job without them
As for MA, they make me very nervous. They can do whatever a doctor trains them to do. Thus they can take over nursing roles in private offices. Personally there is no way I would let one touch me. I feel this position has gone WAY beyond what it was ment to be and is making now pseudo nurses who think they are nurses with out the training. I cant tell you how often I have corrected MA's that no they are not a nurse. I think that their role should stick to office type work in the private setting and the gathering of vitals. I do not think they should be able to pass meds, give injects, or do invasive procedures, talk to patient over the phone ect. Their vital role in private practice is going beyond their level of education and that is scary for everyone involved. I do think that when they stay within what they were originally ment to do though, they are a wonderful part of the team.

The MA in my docs office does many things. She does vitals, height and weight, gets your new medical history, if needed takes blood, ekg's, and calls patients with results of tests. this is what she has done to me as the patient, so she may do many other things that i do not know about,