Medical assistants and LPNs

Nurses LPN/LVN

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HI all,

I have just finished a medical assisting program and im now looking for a job. I have noticed alot of job openings for lpn but nothing for medical assistants. I was wondering first of all what is the difference? I can pretty much do everything an lpn can do. I was wondering if I applied to lpn positions would I be a candidate for lpn positions or would I be wasting my time? Please somebody answer my question I would greatly appreciate the advice.

Specializes in LTC, sub-acute, MDS.
MA's are filling the gap for the RN shortfall.

I am not saying that one is better than the other I am simply stating that CMA's with a physician that trains them can do MORE than and LPN in some states, specifically Alaska. I have administered narcotics IV, per a doctors order and according to the state nursing board here a LPN can't do that. And we can administer medications as well as dispense them under the physicians order in Alaska. It does vary from state to state, but here we are allowed to by law.:twocents:

Yes, seems like this is the plan to replace LICENSED Nurses with UNlicensed personnel; they are much cheaper labor, allowed in many states to perform more tasks than LPN's, have less education, and are conveniently not governed by the nursing boards. It's a much cheaper way to care for sick Americans, who are paying through the nose for health care, and better helps the hospitals meet their bottom line! Too bad for all the experienced LPN's who are losing their jobs due to the limitations placed on them by the nursing profession. :banghead:

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MA training is not what it used to be. How long did you spend on pharmacology. 10 weeks of 8-5 M-f of dosage calculation, drug composition and chemistry, drug interaction, drug classification. I have been in the medical profession for the last 7 years, 5 as a military medic doing more than an RN civilian would ever do, and now as an MA for the last three. If you don't want a Nationally Certified Medical Assistant pushing your iv meds after they have been properly trained then don't come to Alaska.

Perhaps your medics background is also a reason that you feel comfortable and your employer feels comfortable in using you to the extent you profess.

Most medics I know go on as EMTs when they retire, not an office job.

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Specializes in LTC, Urgent Care.

Please do not take this in the wrong context. I am just stating what has been my very limited experience thus far.. I was hired at the beginning of this month to work in a brand new urgent care setting. My background is in LTC for the 3 years that I've been an LPN. The MA that is training me has an attitude, even after explaining that LTC facilities don't generally do doctor office type things. "I can't believe that you don't know how to do EKG's, vision tests, rapid strep tests, give immunizations, how to work the computer system etc. etc.!". She is also miffed that I make more money than her and I don't have the "skills" that she does. Maybe it's just this girl as a whole has an attitude problem. I dunno. My point is that it shouldn't have to come down to titles or an "I'm better than you because I have more education than you" kinda thing. We're there for the patients, aren't we? Just my :twocents:

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Specializes in Mother-Baby, Rehab, Hospice, Memory Care.

just out of curiosity i went to several of alaska's hospital employment websites and searched for jobs. i did not see any jobs listed for lpns that stated a cma can substitute for. they all say about the same thing, "must have a license to practice nursing". while there was not a huge amount of lpn jobs listed, but there were even less cma jobs listed.

i have no doubt that the poster has had extensive training and experience from the military as a medic, but i think the consensus on this board is that in every other place in the us, cma training is much different than lpn training and that in most cases a cma cannot substitute for lpn. anyone else from alaska have any perspective on this? i also have serious doubts that alaska hospitals are letting this practice happen.

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Specializes in Community Health, Med-Surg, Home Health.

People's skills, talents and knowledge are at it's best in the area that they practice the MOST, not just title and education alone. I have faced the same thing with RNs that are not familiar with our system of things in the clinic, and I, as an LPN have trained/oriented them. I do not treat them like idiots, I treat them like the nurses that they are. Some people have nothing better to do but to rub salt in a wound because of their personal insecurities. It sounds to me that this CMA was insulted that she is training a nurse, who is getting paid more than she is but she is not paying attention to the reality of the situation...you are more accountable than she would be.

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This is really something that may depend on the state. Here in Oregon, there are not very many LPN programs, and subsequently, not very many opennings for LPNs. Many times CMAs are offered many positions that LPNs would have had in the past. CMAs here work in clinics, offices, hospitals, and resident homes. They administer drugs (including IV narcotics ordered by a physician), draw blood, give injections, take vitals, and perform general patient care. They also perform administrative duties around the office. In nearly all institution in Oregon, employers require medical assistants to be certified (given the credential CMA by the AAMA), and they ARE insured by the physician they work under. Their wages are also quite competitive: LPNs make about $20-$24/hour and CMAs make about $17-$20/hour.

I'm not saying one career is better that the other, but I've noticed some negative feelings here about CMAs. LPNs and CMAs have different roles, but many of their tasks and abilities (at least here in OR) overlap. To the original poster, if a job description is specifying an LPN, then you are probably wasting your time, but you could always contact the employer and ask whether your skills would be appropriate. It couldn't hurt.

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This is really something that may depend on the state. Here in Oregon, there are not very many LPN programs, and subsequently, not very many opennings for LPNs. Many times CMAs are offered many positions that LPNs would have had in the past. CMAs here work in clinics, offices, hospitals, and resident homes. They administer drugs (including IV narcotics ordered by a physician), draw blood, give injections, take vitals, and perform general patient care. They also perform administrative duties around the office. In nearly all institution in Oregon, employers require medical assistants to be certified (given the credential CMA by the AAMA), and they ARE insured by the physician they work under. Their wages are also quite competitive: LPNs make about $20-$24/hour and CMAs make about $17-$20/hour.

I'm not saying one career is better that the other, but I've noticed some negative feelings here about CMAs. LPNs and CMAs have different roles, but many of their tasks and abilities (at least here in OR) overlap. To the original poster, if a job description is specifying an LPN, then you are probably wasting your time, but you could always contact the employer and ask whether your skills would be appropriate. It couldn't hurt.

CMA's in Oregon are not utilized in a nursing role in the hospital system. They may be doing more things in private offices, but in a hospital they are used as techs, phlebotomists, unit secretary positions, patient registration staff or nursing assistants. They are not giving medications or performing assessments, plans of care or patient teaching. A licensed nurse is needed for that. In a nursing home setting they are working under the supervision of a nurse if they are utilized in the med tech role. This is not meant to be insulting. A medical assistant at their highest level,( certified with an associates degree), is still a very different animal than an LPN. There are many people on this board who were CMA's and went on to become LPN's and they have expressed their surprise at how wide the educational gap really is. I took the pharm/med course for medical assistants prior to starting my RN program because I thought it might be helpful. I exhausted every bit of my MA class knowledge within the first week of nursing school. No joke. Again, not trying to be rude or disdainful, but there is a very real difference in the educational preparation between LPN vs CMA. Doesn't mean one is better than the other, just different.

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Specializes in ICU, PICC Nurse, Nursing Supervisor.

ok well if the cma's are working in the hospital then who are they working under. no rn in their right mind would allow a ma to work in a hospital setting doing nursing work and accept responsibility for them. if they have a hospitalist then they change doctors every day or so and is way to busy to give the supervision that this situation requires ... will someone please explain this to me.

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Specializes in ICU, PICC Nurse, Nursing Supervisor.

found this interesting . it came off the alaska board of nursing site....

http://www.dced.state.ak.us/occ/pub/nursingfaqs_delegation.pdf

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Specializes in Community Health, Med-Surg, Home Health.

I don't think that anyone posted negative feelings about CMAs. I consistently saw the prevailing statements that they are not licensed under the BON and not regulated.

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Specializes in Community Health, Med-Surg, Home Health.
CMA's in Oregon are not utilized in a nursing role in the hospital system. They may be doing more things in private offices, but in a hospital they are used as techs, phlebotomists, unit secretary positions, patient registration staff or nursing assistants. They are not giving medications or performing assessments, plans of care or patient teaching. A licensed nurse is needed for that. In a nursing home setting they are working under the supervision of a nurse if they are utilized in the med tech role. This is not meant to be insulting. A medical assistant at their highest level,( certified with an associates degree), is still a very different animal than an LPN. There are many people on this board who were CMA's and went on to become LPN's and they have expressed their surprise at how wide the educational gap really is. I took the pharm/med course for medical assistants prior to starting my RN program because I thought it might be helpful. I exhausted every bit of my MA class knowledge within the first week of nursing school. No joke. Again, not trying to be rude or disdainful, but there is a very real difference in the educational preparation between LPN vs CMA. Doesn't mean one is better than the other, just different.

I can attest to that. With the CNA, Phlebotomy and Medical Assisting courses I took, and the experience I had-taking the LPN course was just as you said...a different animal altogether. I am also betting to say that it is the same for the LPN and RN programs. I remember exhausting all that I knew within the hour of each lecture. I remember seeing the syllabus and saying "Oh, vital signs-I know that"...only to start hearing about regular, irregular (still sounded familiar), then, the regular-irregular, then auscultation of the lungs, widening pulse pressure, PERLA, etc...and realized that I really didn't know as much as I thought. "Oh, I KNOW skin intergrity"...yeah, sure. I am not saying that a person is not capable to perform the task, and do it very well. But, I can't say that I could have taken an MA course and then challenged NCLEX-PN...no way. Maybe someone else could, but I can attest that I could not.

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CMA's in Oregon are not utilized in a nursing role in the hospital system. They may be doing more things in private offices, but in a hospital they are used as techs, phlebotomists, unit secretary positions, patient registration staff or nursing assistants. They are not giving medications or performing assessments, plans of care or patient teaching. A licensed nurse is needed for that. In a nursing home setting they are working under the supervision of a nurse if they are utilized in the med tech role. This is not meant to be insulting. A medical assistant at their highest level,( certified with an associates degree), is still a very different animal than an LPN. There are many people on this board who were CMA's and went on to become LPN's and they have expressed their surprise at how wide the educational gap really is. I took the pharm/med course for medical assistants prior to starting my RN program because I thought it might be helpful. I exhausted every bit of my MA class knowledge within the first week of nursing school. No joke. Again, not trying to be rude or disdainful, but there is a very real difference in the educational preparation between LPN vs CMA. Doesn't mean one is better than the other, just different.

I never said that CMAs "give assessments, plans of care, or patient teaching." That is a nurse's role. I clearly stated that that the role of a nurse (specifically LPN) and CMA are different. But it seemed that the general feeling here was that CMAs (which DO have a national certification body (the AAMA), to address someone else's comment) are basically unqualified and/or uneducated. That is just not the case. Are CMAs nurses? Absolutely not. But they professionals in the healthcare field, and ought to be treated as so. Like I said, it really depends on the state and the school you attend. The MA program at my school is 4 terms of full-time study, with clinicals during 3 of the terms. MAs are trained to do quite a lot.

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