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The Importance of Medical Assistant Certification
The medical field is rapidly expanding and as such there are many new career opportunities opening up. Due in part to the increasing geriatric population, there has been a surge in the amount of positions needing to be filled within the medical profession, especially support medical positions. Support care, such as that provided by medical assistants, is becoming much more focused and recognized as important in providing patients with the quality care they deserve and need.
While there are many openings for medical assistants, those that have received medical assistant certification are the most sought after and are also the most likely to see a fairly quick advancement in their career. Certification is not essential or required by law in order to work as an assistant, however receiving it offers proof to those wishing to employ you that you have reached a certain level of competence in your studies and that you have received a well rounded and comprehensive education in this field. It is estimated that around ninety percent of assistants choose to become certified as many employers are now requiring it.
Certification is also important if you want to be able to perform certain duties while working as an assistant. For example, if you wish to perform more clinical assistant tasks involving patient care and diagnostic procedures such as taking blood, or x-raying patients, you must be certified.
In order to receive certification it is important to carefully choose where you will study. Many colleges and vocational schools are accredited and as such can provide you with certification, however not all are. There are two types of certification you can receive. A Certified Medical Assistant is given certification from the AAMA, whereas a Registered Medical Assistant receives registration from AMT. Either type of certification is recognized and will help you gain access to some of the best job offers available. In order to keep up with your certification, a CMA needs to undertake additional studies and receive a certain amount of new credits every five years.
The salary for a certified assistant can be as high as $40,000 a year. Initially, when first starting out, you will receive less than this however because you are certified you will find that you have many more opportunities for advancement. Certification and experience are the two main criteria that are looked at when deciding on both initial employment and salary increases.