Just wondering about this. Required licensure would raise the status of the medical assistants in my opinion and also include a specific scope of practice. It would also probably raise our pay level which might actually get more nurses (LPNs primarily) back into office nursing since the docs would have to pay the MAs more. We all know the primary reason docs hire MAs is because they can get away with paying us so little.
I thought that you had to have a license to practice as an MA. I am nationally licensed and worked very hard to get and maintain it.
Nope, there is no "license" for MAs. Just voluntary certification. That's another problem, there are so many different agencies offering "certification". Some of them don't even require formal schooling.
I'm certified (CMA) through the AAMA, as far as I know they're the only certification that you absolutely HAVE to have a formal education and it has to be approved by either the ABHES or CAAHEP. RMA is through the AMT (American Medical Technologists), they have a clause where you can sit for their exam if you've been in the workforce as a MA for five years. CMA and RMA are the most widely accepted certifications. There are many others out there however, with negligible requirements. Some don't even require an exam...another reason I'd like to see some kind of required standard
You're nationally licensed as an MA? There's no such license that I've heard of in the united states. Are you thinking of a certification or registration? Big diff.
Lorraine, 1st I'd like to clarify--where i live it is illegal for MAs of any capacity to give injections of any kind. State law--not policy. Does it happen? Yeah--but it's illegal. So for someone to say "I think I should have a license because of my duties such as giving injections" makes no sense to me.
I'd personally be pissed if it required licensure. Like I said, and PPs said--MA is an entry level position. It is what many MAs are looking for--an entry way into the medical field, something they can do after going to a vo/tech for a few months or being trained on the job. That's what I wanted and needed. Sure--the pay wasn't amazing, but I got experience that I still draw upon today as an RN.
By requiring licensure, you'd be taking away a job opportunity from a lot of people. I presonally wouldn't have been able to do it. And most of the students I went to school with (and later, taught) were in the same boat as I was. Whether or not they were looking to advance in the future, what they were seeking from a MA job was what you said--an opportunity to perform technical tasks under the supervision of a doctor.
If you want a license, more money, be legally covered to give injections, then really--why not get your LPN? You could stay in a doctors office if you'd like. I understand that you don't want to--but why? You can't eat your cake and have it too. ::shrug::
Kelly
I'm in PA and I'm legally allowed to give injections here. I seriously considered LPN school here. Unfortunately, the nearest school was 45 minutes away and even farther for clinicals. I had two kids still in school at the time and couldn't imagine having to leave here in the winter at God knows what hour to get to a 7:00 a.m. clinical in East Jabip (sp?...lol).
Also, there are little to no jobs here for LPNs outside the LTC facilities. The hospitals are pretty much PCTs and RNs and the doc's offices
all hire MAs. I knew I didn't want LTC, every facility I worked in as a CNA was short-staffed and an accident waiting to happen.
LorraineCNA
113 Posts
Nope, there is no "license" for MAs. Just voluntary certification. That's another problem, there are so many different agencies offering "certification". Some of them don't even require formal schooling.
I'm certified (CMA) through the AAMA, as far as I know they're the only certification that you absolutely HAVE to have a formal education and it has to be approved by either the ABHES or CAAHEP. RMA is through the AMT (American Medical Technologists), they have a clause where you can sit for their exam if you've been in the workforce as a MA for five years. CMA and RMA are the most widely accepted certifications. There are many others out there however, with negligible requirements. Some don't even require an exam...another reason I'd like to see some kind of required standard
in place.
Lorraine
CMA, CNA