Medical Assistant

Medical Assistants provide a wide range of services to healthcare practitioners and patients. For example, they assist with patient care management, administrative, and clinical procedures, such as physical examinations, phlebotomy, injections, electrocardiograms, and instrument sterilization.

Positions are most often available in hospitals and clinics, physician offices, and outpatient care facilities.

Upon successful completion, students will have demonstrated the ability to:

• Perform administrative tasks using computer software to research and organize data for medical information systems.
• Demonstrate efficiency in maintaining accurate and well-organized patient medical records.
• Effectively use oral and written communication skills as they relate to a medical office environment.
•  Perform within legal & ethical boundaries, including issues of patient confidentiality.
• Recognize the impact of cultural differences in care of patients.
•  Use problem-solving/critical thinking to identify proper clinical procedures/processes, including infection control guidelines (Standard Precautions) as determined by the Center for Disease Control and the Occupational Safety & Health Administration.
•  Prepare and maintain examination and treatment areas.
• Demonstrate the ability to prepare a patient for and assist with routine and specialty examinations and procedures, including obtaining/documenting vital signs and body measurements
•  Demonstrate knowledge of basic pharmacology and medication administration.
• Demonstrate knowledge of laboratory procedures performed in the medical office laboratory, including venipuncture and capillary puncture.
• Recognize and be able to respond to medical office emergencies within the scope of training. •
• Demonstrate ability to maintain medical office equipment and supplies.
• Demonstrate ability to administer medications through way of intramuscular, subcutaneous, and intradermal.
• Understand and demonstrate the proper way to calculate doses of medication.

Medical Assistant Education Plan

First Year
Fall Quarter	ENGL& 101 English Composition I OR WRT 105 Writing in the Workplace - 5 credits HLSV 131 Nursing Assistant Certification OR MA 140 Medical Assisting Intro - 5-9 credits MA 139 MA Medical Terminology* - 5 credits
Winter Quarter	BIOL& 170 Human Biology* - 5 credits BTEC 101 Keyboarding for Business OR BTEC 102 Skillbuilding I - 3 credits MA 130 Medical Math OR MATH& 146 Intro to Stats* - 5 credits
Spring Quarter	BTEC 266 Medical Law & Ethics - 3 credits HR 110 Human Relations in the Workplace - 5 credits PSYC& 100 Psychology OR PSYC& 200 Lifespan Psychology - 5 credits Health and Fitness Distribution - 3 credits

Second Year
Fall Quarter	MA 241 MA Clinical Procedures - 7 credits MA 249 MA Admin Procedures - 8 credits
Winter Quarter	MA 242 Medication Administration - 7 credits MA 246 MA Laboratory Procedures - 10 credits
Spring Quarter	MA 208 MA Electrocardiography - 2 credits MA 243 MA Clinical Procedure II - 6 credits MA 244 MA Externship Seminar - 1 credit MA 245 MA Clinical Externship - 6 credits MA 247 National Board Review - 1 credit

* BIOL& 170 - students may subsitute BIOL& 241

** BTEC 101 offered in the fall

Students interested in fulfilling baccalaureate admissions requirements should seek the guidance of an advisor.

The MA program is affiliated with the American Medical Technologists (AMT), one of four national credentialing organizations that provide written examinations for graduates to become nationally certified. This national certification is now required to work in the state of Washington.

Upon successful completion of the national exam, the MA will be awarded the national credential Registered Medical Assistant (RMA) through AMT. The national RMA credential is equivalent to the national CMA credential, and should be recognized as such by all potential employers. Once nationally certified, graduates will be required to complete continuing education units to renew the national credential per the AMT renewal schedule.

It is the responsibility of the MA graduate to apply to the AMT to take the national boards and to pay all incurred costs with this national written examination.

Centralia College's MA program meets all criteria for graduates to be eligible to work in the state of Washington as a Medical Assistant-Certified (MA-C), once the graduate has passed their national boards. This certification requires renewal every two years.

Once hired, the graduate's employer will obtain from the state an interim MA-C certificate that is good for exactly one calendar year from the date it is issued. The one-year interim period is to allow the new graduate to start work even if they have not passed their national boards yet. However, they must pass their national boards within that one-year interim period; otherwise, the MA-C will be revoked and they will only be allowed to work from that point forward in Washington as a Medical Assistant-Registered (MA-R), which is a lesser credential.