Medical Assistants

Description

Perform administrative and certain clinical duties under the direction of a physician. Administrative duties may include scheduling appointments, maintaining medical records, billing, and coding information for insurance purposes. Clinical duties may include taking and recording vital signs and medical histories, preparing patients for examination, drawing blood, and administering medications as directed by physician.

Tasks

Record patients' medical history, vital statistics, or information such as test results in medical records.
Prepare treatment rooms for patient examinations, keeping the rooms neat and clean.
Interview patients to obtain medical information and measure their vital signs, weight, and height.
Authorize drug refills and provide prescription information to pharmacies.
Clean and sterilize instruments and dispose of contaminated supplies.
Prepare and administer medications as directed by a physician.
Show patients to examination rooms and prepare them for the physician.
Explain treatment procedures, medications, diets, or physicians' instructions to patients.
Help physicians examine and treat patients, handing them instruments or materials or performing such tasks as giving injections or removing sutures.
Collect blood, tissue, or other laboratory specimens, log the specimens, and prepare them for testing.
Perform routine laboratory tests and sample analyses.
Contact medical facilities or departments to schedule patients for tests or admission.
Operate x-ray, electrocardiogram (EKG), or other equipment to administer routine diagnostic tests.
Change dressings on wounds.
Set up medical laboratory equipment.
Perform general office duties, such as answering telephones, taking dictation, or completing insurance forms.
Greet and log in patients arriving at office or clinic.
Schedule appointments for patients.
Inventory and order medical, lab, or office supplies or equipment.
Keep financial records or perform other bookkeeping duties, such as handling credit or collections or mailing monthly statements to patients.

Knowledge

Customer and Personal Service: Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Clerical: Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.
English Language: Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
Medicine and Dentistry: Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
Psychology: Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
Computers and Electronics: Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

Skills

Active Listening: Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Speaking: Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Social Perceptiveness: Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Reading Comprehension: Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
Monitoring: Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Critical Thinking: Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

Abilities

Oral Comprehension: The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Oral Expression: The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Written Comprehension: The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
Problem Sensitivity: The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
Speech Clarity: The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
Written Expression: The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
Near Vision: The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
Speech Recognition: The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.

Work Activities

Assisting and Caring for Others: Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients.
Monitor Processes, Materials, or Surroundings: Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events: Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
Documenting/Recording Information: Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
Getting Information: Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
Performing for or Working Directly with the Public: Performing for people or dealing directly with the public. This includes serving customers in restaurants and stores, and receiving clients or guests.
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge: Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships: Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.

Work Context

Telephone: How often do you have telephone conversations in this job?
Contact With Others: How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it?
Indoors, Environmentally Controlled: How often does this job require working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions?
Face-to-Face Discussions: How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job?
Wear Common Protective or Safety Equipment such as Safety Shoes, Glasses, Gloves, Hearing Protection, Hard Hats, or Life Jackets: How much does this job require wearing common protective or safety equipment such as safety shoes, glasses, gloves, hard hats or life jackets?
Exposed to Disease or Infections: How often does this job require exposure to disease/infections?
Work With Work Group or Team: How important is it to work with others in a group or team in this job?
Frequency of Decision Making: How frequently is the worker required to make decisions that affect other people, the financial resources, and/or the image and reputation of the organization?
Physical Proximity: To what extent does this job require the worker to perform job tasks in close physical proximity to other people?
Deal With External Customers: How important is it to work with external customers or the public in this job?

Interests

Social: Social occupations frequently involve working with, communicating with, and teaching people. These occupations often involve helping or providing service to others.
Conventional: Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.
Realistic: Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.
Investigative: Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally.
Enterprising: Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.
Artistic: Artistic occupations frequently involve working with forms, designs and patterns. They often require self-expression and the work can be done without following a clear set of rules.

Work Style

Attention to Detail: Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
Self Control: Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.
Stress Tolerance: Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high stress situations.
Dependability: Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
Integrity: Job requires being honest and ethical.
Concern for Others: Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job.
Cooperation: Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
Adaptability/Flexibility: Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
Independence: Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.
Initiative: Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.

Work Values

Relationships: Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment. Corresponding needs are Co-workers, Moral Values and Social Service.
Support: Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees. Corresponding needs are Company Policies, Supervision: Human Relations and Supervision: Technical.
Achievement: Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement.
Working Conditions: Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions.
Recognition: Occupations that satisfy this work value offer advancement, potential for leadership, and are often considered prestigious. Corresponding needs are Advancement, Authority, Recognition and Social Status.
Independence: Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy.

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National Wages and Employment Info

Median Wages (2008):: $14.12 hourly, $29,370 annual.

Employment (2008):: 553,140 employees