Medical Office Assistant Salary
Before focusing on what a medical office assistant can expect to earn in terms of salary, let’s take a look at what a medical office assistant actually does. A medical assistant provides health care and also assists medical doctors and health professionals by performing administrative and clinical tasks.
Medical office assistant are important because they support doctors. They perform routine tasks like administering medications/injections, recording patient’s vital signs, readying medical instruments and supplies as well as collecting bodily fluids for lab testing.
Doctors and nurses are not the only important people in a medical office or hospital, a good underlying support of efficient medical office assistants is crucial.
Average Medical Assistant Office Salary
A Medical office assistant is one of the fastest growing career fields in the United States, according to the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics. Since duties are specific to each employer and can vary, the wages also tend to vary. Several factors that influence a medical office assistant salary is work experience, location and medical industry sa
laries.
The average medical assistant salary in the United States in general is $29,704. However, let’s take a look at averages as they pertain to specific work environments. The average medical office assistant salary is $30,670 in a hospital. While those who work in dentist’s office make around $34,790, outpatient centres $30,130 and physician’s office $29,960. According to the BLS (U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics), 62% of medical office assistants work in Physician’s offices. How much a medical office assistant makes clearly depends on where he or she works!
Education Needed To Become a Medical Office Assistant
To become a professional medical office assistant you can choose a one year course which some schools offer or pursue a two year associate’s degree from accredited schools. The coursework includes maths and science, first aid, medical billing, medical terminology etc.
After completing the course you can sign up for the certification exam to become a certified medical office assistant. The American Association of Medical Assistants offers the course thrice a year. The certification has to be renewed every five years. Though some employers will not require certification a certified Medical office assistant has more job options then an uncertified one.
Job Growth Outlook for Medical Office Assistants
In 2008, there were 483,600 medical assistants working. Medial office assistants are among the fastest growing occupations over the 2008-18 decade. Job prospects look promising for those who have formal training and certification. Medical office assistant employment is expected to grow 34 % from 2008-2018. It is expected in 2018, that there will be 647,500 working medical office assistants.
There will be a growing demand for healthcare workers as the healthcare sector grows because of technological advances in medicine and population growth. Conditions like Diabetes, Obesity are on the high thereby creating an increased demand for healthcare services. Doctors will prefer to care more for patients leaving the medical assistants to do the support work. There is a growing need for medical office assitants who can perform both administrative and clinical duties.
There is a great career for you as a medical office assistant. It’s better to have a formal education and certification. Some states allow medical assistants to perform advanced procedures like taking x-rays, giving injections after passing a course or test. Depending on which state you live in, it’s better to find out the regulations and requirements for becoming a medical office assistant.
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