Andi33

Thanks for the tip about the website! I have suffered with vertigo most of my adult life and though I haven't been diagnosed with BPV, I'm sure that's my problem. I Have spent many nights (or days) in bed, unable to move my head from one side to the other because the spinning will start again. I'll try this treatment during my next bout. Have you had this while driving? I have and it's scary as hell! Fortunately though, I'm usually safe at home when it comes on! :)

I think you may want to do some research on this topic and find out what CMA's do. Do you know what they do? I'm sure if you do a search of this website, you might become better informed. :)

I think it depends on the doctor. I worked for an orthopedic surgeon (who was like a big kid!), and he was always open to what I had to say whether it was about a diagnosis, treatment plan, or any concerns that I brought to his attention that the patient had. He was very receptive to my ideas and opinions, which I greatly appreciated. He always listened to what I had to say as if it really mattered to him, and if I was way off, he would just tell me. He was great to work for! You need to test the waters to see how he reacts, I'm sure he'll let you know!

Sorry, I had to re-word that! I didn't mean to offend you, and I was confusing your post with some above. I know that CMA's don't have a very good rep (some of the schools are scary!), but there are some good ones out there, especially those in the associates degree program. I'm actually supposed to start the LPN program in the fall, but am having second thoughts simply because I want to work in a clinic instead of a hospital, and already have clinic experience. CMA and LPN are very different jobs with totally different training. It all depends on where you want to work... :)

Please see my edited post...

I think some of the above posters might be confusing Certified Medical Assistant with Certified Med. Aid. There are quite a few misconceptions about CMA's. CMA's (medical assistants) do not work in a hospital setting, but in a clinical setting. The pharm course we take is the same one the LPN's take, so it is as in-depth. We work directly under the supervision of the physician. Yes, we are different than LPN's in that we are trained specifically for a clinical setting, where as LPN's usually work in LTC. We have the same pre-req background, and work independently from LPN's in the clinical setting. Our clinical duties include phlebotomy, injections, lab tests, ECG's, wound care, suture removal and assisting with minor office surgeries. We are also trained in front office skills, so there is the advantage of being cross-trained, which I think, makes us more valuable.The pay, however, is less than what an LPN would make, but this may depend on where you live. More and more clinics are hiring CMA's (not that they are phasing out LPN's), but they can pay CMA's less. It is one of the fastest growing professions according to the Department of Labor website, so you may get more info from there. Good luck with whatever you decide! :)

I hear you! Medical terminology can be a tough course requiring lots of memorization. As you go through each chapter, you will get better at it! I studied everynight after work and kept going over all the terms. You might want to make some flash cards with the root words and what they mean. This class will teach you so much, though not many posters here agree. In some schools it is not a requirement. It was at my school and even though I thought I knew alot of the terms, I was suprised how many there are that I didn't know. But if you are not familiar with medical terms, this will lay the foundation for you. Hang in there! You'll make it! :)

Hi Pricklypear! It was me who you had that conversation with and I think most of the previous posters are correct in their rankings. Although MA's aren't licensed, we take the same pharmacology course as the nursing students and can pass meds (but only under the supervision of the physician). We can also be taught to place I.V.'s, again under the supervision of the physicians. Most MA's work directly under the M.D. (or PA/NP), and in clinic settings, at least what I'm familiar with, nurses and MA's usually work independently of each other. I think that physicians may also teach MA's specific duties (I worked for an orthopedic surgeon who taught me how to cast his pts for all of the different types of fx's), depending on the specialty. Again, anything the MA does is under the direction of the pysician and under his or her license. :)

Pricklypear-Yes, we actually have alot of schooling for our degree, but as for the pay scale being lower for MA's I think is because of the different and more extensive training that nurses do have. Most nurses work in hospitals and have alot more responsibility than MA's have. Like pharmacology...I had to take the same course as did the nursing students which also covered the nursing process in content. I'm glad that I know the material, but I seriously doubt that I will deal with the extensive use of meds in a clinical setting as nurses would in a hospital setting. Nurses have been trained in critical thinking, and to watch for adverse reactions and contraindications. That's pretty involved in that respect and I think that a nurses level of training with meds continues well past the education that I recieved as an MA. But, I do know enough about the subject to watch for any interactions and allergies that the pt has and have always questioned the physician if I had any doubts about a med that was being prescribed. There are questionable schools out there who offer strickly on-line or accelerated programs and are not accredited like the CC I attend. What about clinicals! I think that's why many MA's haven't had a quality education and sadly, some are hired off the street and trained on the job. This is happening to often, and I think that MA's should at least be certified to work in a clinic. Some states are considering licensing for MA's which would definitley weed-out the untrained and protect the patient. :)

I agree with this. I think we all have a responsiblity to our pts to let them know our name, title, and what we are there for. We are all players on the same team, but with different duties! :)

Thanks for the nice reply pricklypear. I appreciate that! I know there are alot of MA's out there who don't hesitate to use the "nurse" title. They seem to think that they can get away with it without having gone to nursing school, and this gives the rest of the MA's who DO know their scope of practice a bad name. There are actually people out there who WANT to be an MA, myself included! At this point in my life, I prefer to work in a clinical setting because I like the duties that I have. I love being able to work directly with the doctor (I've learned so much), and the doctor will use his discretion as to what I am able to do. I would never perform any duty that I did not feel comfortable with. Yes, there is an AA degree available for MA's. Some of the courses I've taken include Pharm, Pathology, A&P, Med Term, Law and Ethics, Psych, Abnormal Psych, medical transcription, coding and billing, plus our own clinicals. After graduating, we may take our state exam to become certified. We are required to obtain CEU's and must recertify every 5 years. Our scope of practice includes setting up pt's, taking vitals, phlebotomy, injections (no IV), assisting the physician with minor office surgery, sterilizing surgical packs, ECG's, suture and staple removal, wound care, making patient appointments and referrals, scheduling procedures and surgery's, and most anything that has to do with the front office. We are completly trained to work front office and back, so we can basically "do it all". Unfortunatly, I think this is one of the reasons that MA's are being hired in more and more clinics, and I know there are some physicians who do cross the line and allow MA's to perform duties not in their scope of practice. Maybe this is why some MA's think of themselves as "nurses". Where I live, positions for clinics are advertised for CMA, LPN, or RN, which are called "clinical assistants", and all are paid the same (usually what an MA would make). I don't think that this is fair, but like I said before, it all comes down to money. I hope this gives you all some insight as to what an MA does (or is supposed to do)! :)

I have worked in an office as a clinical MA. I am finishing up a two-year program in medical assisting, and I take offense to some of these posts. First of all, there is a huge misconception concerning MA's and the work that they do. We are specifically trained to work under the supervision of a physician. I have NEVER called myself a nurse and am tired of being grouped with some who do. I introduce myself to patients by stating my name and that I am a MA. I have also corrected front office personel to please stop referring to me as a nurse. What this all comes down to is need a to understand the roles that each of us play in the field of medicine. I'm sorry that more and more offices are hiring MA's instead of nurses, and I think that it all comes down to saving money. We ALL work hard for the titles that we earn and have to realize that there are people in all professions who claim to be who they are not. I respect the work that nurses do, and will be starting nursing school in the fall to broaden and enhance the education and skills that I already have. Please remember that not all MA"s act as if they are nurses! We are taught totally different skills and work within the scope of our practice.

I just finished my MA program and we are trained to work specifically in clinical settings. We do vitals, setup pts., assist Doc's with minor sx procedures, phlebotomy, injections, lab tests, EKG's and are also trained for front office. I don't think you would like the cut in pay that you would be taking though, but it wouldn't hurt to look around and see what positions for LPN's in clinics are out there. Seems to depend on what state and area you live in. :)

Sorry Blackcat-I would definitely take the computer course. I have worked in clinics and they almost always have full-time billers and coders either on the premisis, or at the hospital they are affiliated with. If it's a small clinic, usually the office manager will do the billing. If you don't know alot about computers, a Intro to Computers course covers the basics, plus word processing, spreadsheets, etc...Most everything is done today on computers, like appointment schedules and patient medical records.

Are you already an LPN? If not, when you do go to nursing school you will learn clinical skills as opposed to clerical. CMA's (certified medical assistants) learn both administrative and clinical (coding, billing, appointments, management, phlebotomy, injections, lab tests, etc). I'm sure that if you were hired as an LPN in a clinic setting, you would be taught computer skills for whatever computer program the office used. Taking the classes you mentioned aren't required for an LPN, but it would enhance your nursing education. Hope this helps.

SMK1-I wanted to clarify what I was said in my previous post. The CC I attend requires the same med. term, A&P, wellness and nutrition, English Comp, Pharmacology, Math for Meds, and Algebra courses as pre-req's for the LPN program. These are the same pre-req courses taken by the MA's, which means that the credits would transfer to the LPN program. If you want to continue into the RN program, you must take a more advanced A&P and an advanced pharm course, along with pathophysiology. However, MA's must take Pathology and Law and Ethics, which are incorperated into the LPN program. MA's also have their own clincal, then an externship. So yes, you do need to check with your school to see if MA course credits will transfer to LPN. I bet that they will, but if you want to go the next step to RN, you will need more advanced pre-req's. At this point in my education, I have over and above the pre-req's needed to enter the LPN program. It sounds as if this may vary with which college you attend.

I think that's great! I worked as a home health aid for a hospice and it was one of the best jobs I ever had. I would do daily care visits in the patient's home, so I did alot of driving. When I applied for the position, I had no idea if I could do it because it's difficult to deal with death and I didn't know how I would respond. But I found that by listening to the patient and seeing them accept their impending death, I could accept it as well. These people were wonderful! The positive attiudes that they had were incredible. This put me at ease and I was able to be myself (I unleashed my sense of humor), and the patient (and their families) responded well to that. It is depressing work though. These pts. are terminal and you can get quite attached to them. When they do pass, it's hard emotionally, but you know that you did everything you could to make them comfortable during the last months of their lives. It was a wonderful experience for me.

The vet clinic that I worked for for 5 years had 2 licensed vet techs. One had gone to a four year college and the other went for 2 years. At their branch clinic in a nearby city, they did hire an RN who was fed up with human nursing and wanted to work with animals. I really don't think that she was paid what an RN makes, and I think she was paid less than the licensed techs, but she loved the work so didn't mind the pay cut. Normally vet clinics hire only vet techs. Even though the nursing principles are the same, anatomy and physiology are totally different (obviously). But basically, the fundamentals are the same (drug therapy, radiology, surgery, IV therapy, hospitalization, and chemo), just to name a few. It's a very interesting field, especially if you love animals. It's very rewarding. Hope this helped.

I know the credits I recieved for my prereq's for the MA program, such as A&P, medical terminology, wellness and fitness, etc, will satisfy the prereq's for our LPN program, so if you have already completed those courses, they should transfer over to the other program. After that, you will have all nursing courses and clinicals. You should definitely check with your school to be sure.

....and where I live, Medical Assistants who do work in an office setting with clinical duties, do so alongside LPN's and RN's. Most who have clerical duties alone are called Medical Office Assistants. And yes, I do all of the above.

I took it on-line last summer in 8 weeks along with 2 other courses and working full time. On-line was the way to go for me. I saved my reading for Saturday only and took one quiz on two chapters every Sunday. Passed with an A. I kept myself motivated by keeping to a set schedule, and was thankful that I didn't have to drive 60 miles round-trip 4 nights a week to take it on campus!

I know at my school the summer courses are condensed. Each exam can be over up to 10 chapters and that's alot of material to know. But it can be done. You should try taking the courses that you think will be easier for you in the summer semester, and leaving courses (like biology) for fall or winter semesters. Concerning your worry about chem and biology being hard, they will be, and the courses will get harder as you go along! Good luck.

During my employment as an MA (not certified), I had to keep reminding the front office staff to stop referring to me as "the nurse". When I did callbacks, I specifically stated that I was Dr. so-and-so's medical assistant, and I never implied to any patient that I was a nurse. However, another MA I worked with didn't hesitate to use the title of "nurse" when speaking about herself. The only credential she had was CNA. I thought it was pretty deceitful.

Ah, Math for Meds! I'm taking it right now and it's not so bad as long as you memorize the conversions and PRACTICE! I keep doing the review problems over and over, and wer'e also given 2 practice exams to take home. Just make sure that you understand the method your instructor is teaching you (there are several) and don't try to change methods because you think it might be easier another way. It would be way too confusing! Wish me luck. I have my final exam tomorrow!