How do you get your medical assistant certification -A medical assistant has become a popular job in the ever-growing medical industry in recent times. With the rise in medical technology and facilities, the demand for medical assistance has increased exponentially. Another reason behind the popularity of this profession is that it demands substantially less training than other medical jobs.  For more details in depth, you may look for online medical school.

Hence, if you are wondering, how do you get your medical assistant certification, why is it important, and what are the benefits that you will get as a certified assistant. Here is an in-depth analysis of the medical assistant certification.

How do you get your medical assistant certification – Details

Although it is possible to land a position as a medical assistant without any certification, it is still recommended to get certified. The reason behind it is simple, as a certified medical assistant, you get so many benefits and perks that you would not get otherwise. Some of these also include better career growth, better pay, and even sometimes people with certification are preferred more than ones without. You may also visit how to become a medical assistant online for further details.

Importance of certification – Points to know

Regarding the Bureau of Labour Statistics (BLS), within the medical sector, the requirement of medical assistants is going to strikingly increase to more than 23 percent in the coming years. With this hike, the medical institutions are going to look particularly for certified medical assistants even more. Hence the importance of certification is also rising day by day in our daily work holds. 

Hence, if you are now asking questions about how do you get your medical assistant certification and how certification is essential for your career, here’s a list of the most viable answers. 

• Higher employability status: It should not come as a surprise that employers will go for applicants who are certified. Especially in today’s competitive job environment, you need to make sure you stand out and maintain an edge. 

• Certified proof of your knowledge: When you have a certification from any of the prevalent institutions, that adds up to your credibility. It shows that you have the knowledge and skill-set needed to assist at a medical institution.

• Help get a better salary: There is a massive difference in compensation offered to certified and non-certified assistance. The reason is simple. There are less skilled, certified medical assistants than non-certified ones. 

• Better service to the employer: To get a medical assistant certification, one must study and attain skills and knowledge about assisting their employer. They can help administer rules and regulations, reduce chances of malpractice or lawsuits, and help maintain a well-oiled workplace are the some basics for How do you get your medical assistant certification. 

• Preferred by managed care providers: The medical industry now mostly depends on managed care providers (MCP) for medical care. These providers only consider certified medical assistance for hiring. 

So now, you must have a pretty good idea about why certification is vital and How do you get your medical assistant certification for anyone looking for a career in medical assistance. Now to answer your question, how do you become a medical assistant, we will go to the next point.  

Details of the certification

In this section, you will see a brief look at all the basics of medical assistant certification for How do you get your medical assistant certification. There are about 5 types of medical assistant certification, each with its eligibility criteria, exam content, recertification period, and certification cost: 

• Exam: The exam for every type of certification is different; there are different types of questions asked, a different number of questions, and other criteria.
  • Certification Medical Assistant (CMA): It is a 200 questions paper
  • Registered Medical Assistant (RMA): It is a 210 questions paper
  • National Certification Medical Assistant (NCMA): It is a 150 questions paper
  • Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (CCMA): It is a 200 questions paper
  • Certified Medical Administrative Assistant(CMAA): It is a 100 questions paper

• Recertification: Medical assistance certification needs recertification after a given period, and it varies according to the type of certification.
  • Certification Medical Assistant (CMA): Period of 60 months
  • Registered Medical Assistant (RMA): 3 years
  • National Certification Medical Assistant (NCMA): Period of 1 year
  • Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (CCMA): 2 years
  • Certified Medical Administrative Assistant(CMAA): 2 years

• Cost: Just like all the points mentioned earlier, these certifications have specific price ranges.
  • Certification Medical Assistant (CMA): $125-$250
  • Registered Medical Assistant (RMA): $100-$120
  • National Certification Medical Assistant (NCMA): $90-$135
  • Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (CCMA): $149-$159
  • Certified Medical Administrative Assistant(CMAA): $105-$159

Types of certification– Benefits and their stand

In the above section, you saw the basic overview of all 5 types of certification. However, that is just the tip of the iceberg. These certifications have many different benefits, and the content of the exam is also quite diverse and distinct. 

So here is a look at each of the certifications in detail for how do you get your medical assistant certification.

1. CMA: Certified Medical Assistant or CMA is certified by the American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA), which is why it is often referred to as CMA (AAMA). 
   • The benefits of CMA include web support for certification status, consultancy from the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME), and access to tools offered by AAMA.
   • The exam has 200 questions with 4 segments of 40 minutes each. The exams cover the general, administrative, and clinical sections. Topics covered under these sections include but are not limited to:
     • Psychology
     • Medical Law, ethics
     • Medical business
     • Medical finances
     • Infection control
     • Nutrition
     • Patient documentation
     • Emergency management and first aid

2. RMA: Registered Medical Assistant or RMA has the American Medical Technologists (AMT) as the certifying body. 
   • RMA certification has an international reputation, you can become eligible for it by work experience also, and it is authorized by the National Commission of Certifying Agencies (NCAA) itself.
   • RMA certification is a 210 questions exam; it needs to be finished within a time limit of 3 hours. For its preparation, you to need to look at topics likes:
     • Anatomy and physiology
     • Medical law and ethics
     • Patient education 
     • Human relations
     • Insurance and financial bookkeeping
     • First aid and response to emergencies
     • Minor surgery
     • Laboratory Procedures
     • Sterilization 
     • Pharmacology

3. NCMA: National Certified Medical Assistant (NCMA) comes under the National Center for Competency Testing (NCCT) for its certification. 
   • One of the cheaper certifications, it has a nationwide reputation and one of the customer services for helping with accreditation. 
   • It is a 3 hours exam with  165 questions that cover topics like:
     • Pharmacology
     • Medical procedure
     • ECG and Diagnostic tests
     • General office
     • Medical office
     • Financial management
     • Law and ethics 

4. CCMA: Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (CCMA) is certified by the National Healthcareer Association (NHA). 
   • Web support for certification, and the results are released just within two days.
   • It is 2 hours and a 50-minutes long exam with 170 questions. These questions are about:
     • Patient care
     • Communication
     • Office administration
     • Medical law and ethics
     • Phlebotomy
     • EKG monitoring

5. CMAA: NHA certifies a certified Medical Administrative Assistant (CMAA), just like CCMA. 
   • It offers the same benefits, just like CCMA.
   • However, the exam is quite different for CCMA as it is a 2 hour and 10 minutes long test with 130 questions. For this test, the questions asked will be about:
     • Scheduling 
     • Patient intake
     • Office logistics
     • Compliance
     • Patient Education 
     • General Office Policies and Procedure
     • Basic  Medical Terminology

How do you get your medical assistant certification – Some Important Tips

Once a student has enrolled themselves in a certification program, they must pay close attention to the occurrences in and out of the class for following the steps as How do you get your medical assistant certification. Only by attending the courses with determination can you have a clear concept. The student must make notes and gather clinical experience to score well in the exams. 

After their post-graduation, the student should carefully evaluate their interests to choose the certification course. You can either select broad options such as NCMA or opt for ones with a more specific goal, such as CPT. 

While attempting the exam, most students tend to mess up the answers with their theoretical analysis of the circumstances. However, one should try to answer the questions more directly. 

Finding the right certification

Although you might have a variety of certification programs to choose from, you should only enroll in a course that is best for you. The cost of the study might be an essential factor. However, it would help if you considered other factors like whether potential employers will recognize your certificate. 

• Preference of the employer

If you have a particular place that you want to work to make sure that you go for the courses that your potential employer recognizes and prefers. 

• State requirements

Individual states might only consider a few certificates valid for the job of a medical assistant. So, before you enroll in a course, ensure that you’ve researched your state regulations particularly and also make sure that you know all the points, how do you get your medical assistant certification. 

• The focus of the certification course

It would help if you also understood that particular certificate courses focus on specific training programs. Based on whether you want a front desk or back end job, select a course that can satisfy your requirements. 

How do you get your medical certification- Summarized steps

How do you get your medical assistant certification? Once you’ve decided that you want to take up medical assistance as a career option, you will have to follow a flow of necessary steps. You must take all the necessary measures to ensure your job as a medical assistant. You may also go for medical assistant classes online for free for your convenience.

1. Get into an accredited program
2. Certification eligibility
3. Application and dates
4. Exams preparation
5. Exam day
6. Recertification awareness

If you’re still wondering how you get your medical assistant certification, here’s a quick run-through of the above discussion. For more acquired knowledge in depth, you may also visit our website page Online schools.