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The Important Role A Medical Administrative Assistant Plays In The Health-care Sector
The Bureau of Labor predicts that there will be a dramatic increase in the number of professionally trained people needed within the health-care sector in the near future. There are several reasons for this. The average age of the population is rapidly increasing and there are now more seniors than there ever has been. Naturally, this has meant that more medical care is needed for this growing sector of the population. The medical industry has also undergone a tremendous shift with regards to the use of technology. Administrative Assistants now play an essential role in the health-care industry where their office management skills are more needed than ever.
Medical Administrative Assistants are employed in hospitals, doctor’s offices, long term care facilities, insurance companies and clinics. Their primary responsibilities include tasks such as helping with insurance claims and Medicare, transcription of medical records and reports, accounting and billing, appointment setting. They are also trained as an office manager or receptionist.
Most training courses for this position take around ten months of full time study although this time frame may vary slightly from campus to campus. While studying, students will receive training in basic medical skills such as taking a patient’s vital signs and emergency first-aid; however the focus of the training revolves around office administrative skills. Specific courses that are often offered include Basic Accounting, Medical Terminology, Computer Applications, Typing, Medical Transcription, Office Management, Medical Billing, Medical Insurance and Medicare. Some colleges also require students to take other basic educational courses such as English studies, foreign language courses, Social Science and History and other liberal arts courses.
While the Medical Administrative Assistant is mainly responsible for front office operations, they also need to enjoy working with people and learn how to relate to people who are sick or injured with empathy and understanding. Their role is pivotal in maintaining a positive atmosphere in waiting rooms and receptions and in also ensuring that the day to day running of the office itself is streamlined and highly organized. An efficient and helpful administrative assistant is often the mainstay of a clinic or doctor’s office.