Regarding Medical Assistants

[Pixilated]

I tend to forget to report my tonsillectomy.

In my defence, I was four or five years old at the time. And I have a looong medical history to give....

Your post actually reminded me that I've had my tonsils removed! I never remember it when filling out 'past medical history' forms ... oh well, I think by now it's somewhat less than relevant.

[NorthernZel]

Re: medical history, it reminds me about the time when the OB/GYN chewed me out for not writing down the exact date of the time I had a hernia operation.

The hell? I was TWO YEARS OLD then, so over 30 years ago? You're lucky that I even managed to remember the year!

(Luckily, in the meantime, the hospitals have developed an electronic journal where all medical history is in there, so now they can just look it up in the computer instead.)

[Sleepwalker]

Eh, it's one of those degrees that tends to be offered by heavily advertised diploma mills. Make of that what you will.

[Amina516]

Just a quick question...Is a Medical Assistant the same as a CNA?

No its not. CNA (Certified nursing assistants) are certified (not licensed) by state. They take a course in basic patient care (usually 1-3 months long in my area), specifically made to be part of the nursing team, usually with bedside care. I have never seen an MA in a hospital setting. MAs are medical assistants, more geared for office settings. They often work under the doctors in offices and do paperwork and some care: injections, history taking, vital signsCertification is not necessary to work as a MA, and nursing aides exist without being certified. Some MA and NA jobs are trained on the job, but neither can sit for a certificaton or credentialing without school. But school isnt necessary to work in these position. . Etc. Confused yet? Lol.

The thing that gets me is these schools who sell these 2 year MA programs . They go to school for that amount of time only to graduate to make barely above minimum wage. These schools are allowed to peddle bullshit and inflate these people egos, who may not know what theyre signing up for. But youre invested in a 2 year program, taking out loans and being told youre so great and now know everything ... Im not surprised there are as many issues with MAs as there are. Ive never seen a 2 year CNA program, and in my area, they make $3-4 more dollars an hour than MAs.

[Andara Bledin]

My ex-mother-in-law was an MA.

She was ok for the basic stuff. But she also believed that lice sprung up spontaneously from being filthy... >_>

^-.-^