What to expect as a Medical Assistant?

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I'm in my second semester of nursing school and tomorrow I have an interview for a Medical Assistant position at a local clinic. I am excited but also nervous as I have never worked in healthcare. My only experience is clinicals.

Can anyone give me a description of what all I will be doing in a clinic setting?

I'm going to review my fundamental skills prior to starting, as I have been focused solely on pharmacology and patho lately.

I just want an idea of what to expect. Thank you in advance!

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I've worked as a Medical Assistant for a little over a year and I've been in more than one job.

In my first job, I answered phones, scheduled patients, verified insurance, collected copayments, input patient demographics in the EHR. I also performed clinical duties. I roomed patients, obtained vital signs, performed some procedures, like injections. Now I was the only MA there, so you may or may not be doing both front and back office.

At my current job (started last week), I room patients, obtain vital signs, get the chief complaint, and write out the RX. Obviously I don't sign it, but it helps the doctor if we fill it out. I will also be assisting with non-invasive procedures and packing meds. I do some administrative work, like printing intakes for the following day, some filing.

It varies from job to job but most likely you'll be taking patient history, obtaining vitals, and performing non-invasive procedures. You might also be on the phones and working with an EHR. If the place you work at is really behind the times, you'll be working with paper charts.

At the interview, be prepared for the basic questions: "Tell me about yourself," "How would you handle an irrate patient'" "Describe a typical day at work for you," "How many patients do you see in a day," "why do you want to be a MA." I know you said you've never worked in healthcare, so you probably won't be asked how many patients you see in a day.

Good luck with your interview! Working in healthcare can be a great experience. I'm happy to answer questions.

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Thank you for answering! I will only be working part time so I'm not sure what all they will want me to do. I'm pretty nervous since I have never worked in the healthcare setting. I have only ever given two SubQ injections. I'm hoping they will give me good training before I am on my own.

If you don't mind, could you give me a good answer for "handling an irrate patient"? I would think to just try to calm the patient down and if that didn't work call for assistance..?

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Thank you for answering! I will only be working part time so I'm not sure what all they will want me to do. I'm pretty nervous since I have never worked in the healthcare setting. I have only ever given two SubQ injections. I'm hoping they will give me good training before I am on my own.

If you don't mind, could you give me a good answer for "handling an irrate patient"? I would think to just try to calm the patient down and if that didn't work call for assistance..?

No problem! I also suggest bringing a note pad when you start working. It can be a small one so it can fit in your scrub pocket. Take notes as you are being trained, so you know what to do. They might have you shadow someone who already works there. That's what I did last week. If that is the case, you'll most likely watch someone do something the first time and then they'll observe you do it the next time. But don't be afraid to ask questions and never assume. I'd rather ask a bunch of questions than do something I'm not sure of which would lead to mistakes and getting in trouble.

That is a good answer. Going off of that you could:

1. Ask the patient to explain the issue

2. Repeat what the patient said to make sure you understand them (and let them know what they have to say is important to you)

3. If it is an issue you can resolve, tell them you will do everything possible to make their situation better (calming them down like you said)

4. If it is an issue that you cannot resolve, get someone who can (call for assistance like you said)

i think you will do fine on the interview. Do let us know how it goes! :)

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The interview went well and I got the job! Tomorrow will be my first day training at the clinic and I'm pretty nervous! It's been a while since I have been at clinical and have had to practice skills. She will be watching me take vitals (just practicing on staff I assume) and practicing injections on a sponge (which I'll admit I definitely need practice with, I've only given one subQ injection).

I'm nervous also because technically I am not a medical assistant, just a 2nd semester nursing student. I feel like I will be expected to know things and be perfect with my skills, when honestly I need some practice. I guess all I can do is review tonight, and try my best tomorrow.

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Congratulations on the job! I know you are feeling a mix of nerves and excitement, which is totally normal and expected.

They probably wont expect you to know everything, and if they do they have unrealistic expectations. Reviewing tonight wouldn't hurt. It will help you feel more confident in your skills and responses.

You are lucky you get to practice on staff and sponges. My training was shadowing on my first day. So I went pretty much straight to actual patients. Will you be doing IM and ID injections as well? I haven't done an ID in over a year. So ID injections are something I need to practice as well.

So is your position Medical Assistant even though you are in nursing school?

Good luck tomorrow! I am sure you will be great!

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Yes, my position is MA. They call it "orientation" which is basically my first month working there, I will be working with another nurse to help teach me everything.

I know I will be doing IM injections but not sure about ID.

This is a clinic that sees a little bit of everything, adults and children.

I know they don't expect me to know everything, but I really want to impress them. I also get nervous on first days, I used to be a nervous wreck at clinicals.

Hopefully, everything will go well and I will learn a lot.

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Ok. So you will be training and working at the same time. How long until you are on your own? After the first month?

I, too get nervous on the first day. My boss actually saw it as a positive because it showed I didn't want to mess up and really cared about doing the job right. I asked the other MAs a lot of questions because I didn't want to make mistakes on the first day. I think these are all positive qualities and I'm sure you will do a great job.

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I start my ma externship in a week and I am a nervous wreck!! Ahh !

How has the new job gone so far for you?

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