All faculty must have a Current certification through any of the following: AAMA, NHA, or AMT
The Medical Assisting program includes administrative and clinical competencies expected for entry-level positions in a health care setting. Students develop skills in front office administration with an introduction to health insurance and basic billing practices. The back-office portion focuses on direct patient contact and typical clinical and laboratory skills, such as minor clinical procedures, EKG, phlebotomy, injections, and lab screenings. Students also learn to observe Universal Precautions, OSHA regulations, HIPAA requirements, confidentiality, and the legal aspects applicable to any allied health environment. Duties of medical assistants vary from office to office depending on office location, size, and specialty. In small practices, medical assistants are usually "generalists," handling both administrative and clinical duties. They report directly to an office manager, physician, or other health practitioner. Those in large practices tend to specialize in a particular area under the supervision of a department administrator/practice manager.
An externship course is included in this program to provide students with the opportunity to apply their knowledge and skills to real-life situations in a healthcare setting. Students are required to complete the required externship hours and other related learning activities prior to graduation. Students are not paid for work performed at the externship site.
Credentialing Exams Students in their final quarter are eligible to take National Healthcareer Association’s (NHA) Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (CCMA) exam.
The applicant must be seventeen years of age or older at the time he or she starts his or her program of study. Applicants, who otherwise meet the requirements to pursue a selected program of study, will be given the opportunity to take the Wonderlic Scholastic Level Exam (SLE). Applicants to the College who do not achieve a passing score are eligible to immediately retake another version of the SLE. (See below for the SLE minimum score requirement for each program of study.) In the event that the applicant fails to achieve a passing score on the second administration of the SLE, the applicant is eligible to take the SLE a third time using another version; however, a minimum of seven days must elapse after the second testing date before the third SLE may be administered. In addition, this administration and subsequent administrations requires approval by the Campus President. A fourth and final administration of another version of the SLE is permitted only after a minimum of 180 days have elapsed since the date of the third test administration. Applicants who choose to take the entrance test for the fourth and final time are strongly encouraged to pursue remediation in reading and math prior to testing for the fourth and final time to assist in strengthening their critical thinking skills. Once a passing score is earned, the SLE score is valid for three years from the date of administration. Applicants for readmission must achieve the passing score on the SLE required of current applicants for admission to the selected program of study. If the applicant for readmission had previously achieved a passing score on the SLE, that score may be used for readmission, provided the SLE test was administered and passed within three years (36 months) of the date of readmission and still meets the current minimum acceptable SLE score for the applicable program. The SLE minimum entrance requirements for the Medical Assisting program is 11.
The last day to enroll is the Friday before the first day of class.