CMA posing as nurse...?

Nurses General Nursing

Published

Hi,

I have a question: Is it legal for a CMA to pose as a nurse and give medical advice? I called the clinic here this a.m., because I have a fever & sore throat, and the clinic's receptionist, who I know is a CMA, answered the phone. I asked to speak with a nurse, and she said "This is her". Ok, I thought that was odd, but this tiny clinic here maybe doesnt have any nurses, so I told her about my symptoms and asked if I should come in to rule out strep throat. She then pretty much told me that i'd know if I had strep, because I would be "unable to function", so its probably viral and theres nothing they can do for that. Doesnt she overstep some bounderies here??? The result of this conversation was that I felt like I am probably overreacting, so I didnt go in, but my fever is still there. So I will most likely have it checked out tomorrow. I do not want any medical advice here. I just wanna know if a CMA is allowed to pose as a nurse & give advise like that, because I doubt it.

Thanks!

Specializes in EMS, ER, GI, PCU/Telemetry.
A quick way to know if someone is a nurse is this: If they hang a stethoscope from their rear-view mirror, they are not a nurse.

hey! i do that sometimes after work bc i will bring it in the house and forget where i put it. so that way it's in my car when i get in it, and i can put it in my bag. i am horrible for misplacing things, regardless of their size, lol.

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Specializes in Family Practice, Mental Health.
A quick way to know if someone is a nurse is this: If they hang a stethoscope from their rear-view mirror, they are not a nurse.

I guess that means I'm not a nurse.

You should probably let the California Board of Registered Nursing know that as well, 'cause there's about three other "nurses" I know who are out there driving around without a nursing license!

I feel so enlightened now.

I'm going to call in to work and tell them that I can't come in to work anymore 'cause I'm not a nurse since I hang my stetheoscope over the rearview mirror. :chuckle

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Specializes in Emergency Nursing.

If I were you I would find out her name and have her reported. Whenever you talk to anyone over the phone its a good idea to get their name and their formal title. I would also make sure to have it checked out, its better to be safe then sorry.

!Chris :specs:

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I am a CMA. I do not want to be a Nurse. I wanted to be a CMA so I am. With that said... I am seeing more and more that Nurses are feeling threatened by us. Because they dont understand what we are or what we do. We are made for the Physicians. We are to work with the Doctor. I don't know why they came up with the new positions. I hear because of all the crap that they have to hear from nurses. I have worked in places were the nurses tell the Doctors what they can and what they can't do. They belong to Nurses Unions Some of them not all of them. They demand a lot more money. We work with the Doctor become his right arm. Plus we do all the billing, coding, the Admin. stuff, the Blood Draws, we have such a wide variety of training. We are just like a LPN but we do MORE. No we do not have the NURSE after our name but we do not need it. A lot of places are going with the CMA I know it is because of the pay. We get paid a lot less then the nurse. There always has been a shortage of nurses. So they came up with us. I have met a few nurses that dont even draw blood or even know what a ICD-9 code is. And that is ok. We as CMA's Know it. Yes we can do perscriptions, write orders, and even put in an IV line if we are under the Physician They train us they're way. That is the difference between a CMA and a regular MA. We are not under the Nurses Like PCT's , LPN's, CNA's are They alaways try to tell us what to do. But you are not our boss. You are regulated I think by the Nurses Association or something like that. We are Regulated by the AMA Just like the Doctor's are. The Physicians created us. I am sorry that we all cannot work together. Nurses are threatened by us. No need to be. It is all about the PT.

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Specializes in ICU, PICC Nurse, Nursing Supervisor.

this is incorrect....a cma and a lvn/pn are no where near the same level of education.....you may do more front office or clerical duties but lvn's have more in depth knowledge of patho, medications and clinical procedures...i have been both a medical assistant and a lvn....nevertheless, until you become a nurse and understand the duties and responsibilities of both jobs you will not be able to have the full understanding of what i am saying....

are just like a lpn but we do more.
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Specializes in Utilization Management.
I am a CMA. I do not want to be a Nurse. I wanted to be a CMA so I am. With that said...I am seeing more and more that Nurses are feeling threatened by us. Because they dont understand what we are or what we do. We are made for the Physicians. We are to work with the Doctor. I don't know why they came up with the new positions. I hear because of all the crap that they have to hear from nurses. I have worked in places were the nurses tell the Doctors what they can and what they can't do. They belong to Nurses Unions Some of them not all of them. They demand a lot more money. We work with the Doctor become his right arm. Plus we do all the billing, coding, the Admin. stuff, the Blood Draws, we have such a wide variety of training. We are just like a LPN but we do MORE. No we do not have the NURSE after our name but we do not need it. A lot of places are going with the CMA I know it is because of the pay. We get paid a lot less then the nurse. There always has been a shortage of nurses. So they came up with us. I have met a few nurses that dont even draw blood or even know what a ICD-9 code is. And that is ok. We as CMA's Know it. Yes we can do perscriptions, write orders, and even put in an IV line if we are under the Physician They train us they're way. That is the difference between a CMA and a regular MA. We are not under the Nurses Like PCT's , LPN's, CNA's are They alaways try to tell us what to do. But you are not our boss. You are regulated I think by the Nurses Association or something like that. We are Regulated by the AMA Just like the Doctor's are. The Physicians created us. I am sorry that we all cannot work together. Nurses are threatened by us. No need to be. It is all about the PT.

Just wanted to say this whole post made me LOL :lol2:

Also, why in the world would nurses feel threatened by MAs/CMAs/RMAs when a nurse has infinitely larger career opportunities in comparison? :rolleyes:

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Specializes in L&D.
I am a CMA. I do not want to be a Nurse. I wanted to be a CMA so I am. With that said... I am seeing more and more that Nurses are feeling threatened by us. Because they dont understand what we are or what we do. We are made for the Physicians. We are to work with the Doctor. I don't know why they came up with the new positions. I hear because of all the crap that they have to hear from nurses. I have worked in places were the nurses tell the Doctors what they can and what they can't do. They belong to Nurses Unions Some of them not all of them. They demand a lot more money. We work with the Doctor become his right arm. Plus we do all the billing, coding, the Admin. stuff, the Blood Draws, we have such a wide variety of training. We are just like a LPN but we do MORE. No we do not have the NURSE after our name but we do not need it. A lot of places are going with the CMA I know it is because of the pay. We get paid a lot less then the nurse. There always has been a shortage of nurses. So they came up with us. I have met a few nurses that dont even draw blood or even know what a ICD-9 code is. And that is ok. We as CMA's Know it. Yes we can do perscriptions, write orders, and even put in an IV line if we are under the Physician They train us they're way. That is the difference between a CMA and a regular MA. We are not under the Nurses Like PCT's , LPN's, CNA's are They alaways try to tell us what to do. But you are not our boss. You are regulated I think by the Nurses Association or something like that. We are Regulated by the AMA Just like the Doctor's are. The Physicians created us. I am sorry that we all cannot work together. Nurses are threatened by us. No need to be. It is all about the PT.

I'm a little confused...

so, is it wrong for a nurse to delegate something to a CMA? I thought the RN was higher up on the hierarchy than the CMA. I am not a nurse, so I don't know.

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this is incorrect....a cma and a lvn/pn are no where near the same level of education.....you may do more front office or clerical duties but lvn's have more in depth knowledge of patho, medications and clinical procedures...i have been both a medical assistant and a lvn....nevertheless, until you become a nurse and understand the duties and responsibilities of both jobs you will not be able to have the full understanding of what i am saying....

that is going to depend a great deal on where you live/practice.

in my area it's not unusual to find cmas who have an aas degree...more education than an lpn and if my local community college is any indication, they take all the same pre-reqs as nursing majors and get more clinical hours than the same school's lpn program.

in wa cmas are registered as health care assistants, their scope of practice for a cma fall under 7 (a-g) catagories, each with their own education requirement.

http://www.doh.wa.gov/hsqa/professions/health_care/forms.htm

a-f

http://www.doh.wa.gov/hsqa/professions/health_care/documents/684018.pdf

g (dialysis tech)

http://www.doh.wa.gov/hsqa/professions/health_care/documents/684026.pdf

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Specializes in Oncology.
I am a CMA. I do not want to be a Nurse. I wanted to be a CMA so I am. With that said... I am seeing more and more that Nurses are feeling threatened by us. Because they dont understand what we are or what we do. We are made for the Physicians. We are to work with the Doctor. I don't know why they came up with the new positions. I hear because of all the crap that they have to hear from nurses. I have worked in places were the nurses tell the Doctors what they can and what they can't do. They belong to Nurses Unions Some of them not all of them. They demand a lot more money. We work with the Doctor become his right arm. Plus we do all the billing, coding, the Admin. stuff, the Blood Draws, we have such a wide variety of training. We are just like a LPN but we do MORE. No we do not have the NURSE after our name but we do not need it. A lot of places are going with the CMA I know it is because of the pay. We get paid a lot less then the nurse. There always has been a shortage of nurses. So they came up with us. I have met a few nurses that dont even draw blood or even know what a ICD-9 code is. And that is ok. We as CMA's Know it. Yes we can do perscriptions, write orders, and even put in an IV line if we are under the Physician They train us they're way. That is the difference between a CMA and a regular MA. We are not under the Nurses Like PCT's , LPN's, CNA's are They alaways try to tell us what to do. But you are not our boss. You are regulated I think by the Nurses Association or something like that. We are Regulated by the AMA Just like the Doctor's are. The Physicians created us. I am sorry that we all cannot work together. Nurses are threatened by us. No need to be. It is all about the PT.

I just have to say why even post this not what this thread is about she was just asking if a CMA can pose as a nurse. Answer is no end of sorry seems you are the one feeling threatened to come up with this large post... That is all I have to say

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Yes it is illegal for medical assistants to call themselves nurses because they are NOT nurses. But when they start trying to dispense medical advice,bad or otherwise they're also guilty of practicing medicine which can bring them a whole lot of trouble.

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Specializes in US Army.

All I'm going to say in ref. to the CMA posting is that a little knowledge is a dangerous thing.

Generally speaking, CMA/MAs have an incomplete comprehension of pathophysiology, pharmacology, anatomy and physiology, and therefore tend to underestimate their own ignorance simply because they do not know.

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Specializes in Oncology; medical specialty website.
I am a CMA. I do not want to be a Nurse. I wanted to be a CMA so I am. With that said... I am seeing more and more that Nurses are feeling threatened by us. Because they dont understand what we are or what we do. We are made for the Physicians. We are to work with the Doctor. I don't know why they came up with the new positions. I hear because of all the crap that they have to hear from nurses. I have worked in places were the nurses tell the Doctors what they can and what they can't do. They belong to Nurses Unions Some of them not all of them. They demand a lot more money. We work with the Doctor become his right arm. Plus we do all the billing, coding, the Admin. stuff, the Blood Draws, we have such a wide variety of training. We are just like a LPN but we do MORE. No we do not have the NURSE after our name but we do not need it. A lot of places are going with the CMA I know it is because of the pay. We get paid a lot less then the nurse. There always has been a shortage of nurses. So they came up with us. I have met a few nurses that dont even draw blood or even know what a ICD-9 code is. And that is ok. We as CMA's Know it. Yes we can do perscriptions, write orders, and even put in an IV line if we are under the Physician They train us they're way. That is the difference between a CMA and a regular MA. We are not under the Nurses Like PCT's , LPN's, CNA's are They alaways try to tell us what to do. But you are not our boss. You are regulated I think by the Nurses Association or something like that. We are Regulated by the AMA Just like the Doctor's are. The Physicians created us. I am sorry that we all cannot work together. Nurses are threatened by us. No need to be. It is all about the PT.

This post speaks for itself.

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