The healthcare space is a fast-paced environment that requires coordination among medical teams, and patients. From doctors and nurses to the people who greet you when you first walk in for an appointment, everyone needs to work together to provide quality care in a timely manner. Medical administration is the glue that holds every department, staff member, and task together. It is crucial to the success of clinics, hospitals, and all kinds of medical centers and is at the heart of excellent patient care. Interested in learning more? Find out what healthcare administration is all about and whether there’s a role for you.
What is Medical Administration?
Medical administration is the overseeing of a healthcare department or facility, and it requires a whole team of professionals to work. From the people who actually run a hospital to the medical administrative assistants, everyone works together to make sure all the pieces are in place to provide excellent patient care that also allows the facility to stay in business.
What Does a Medical Administrative Assistant Do?
As a medical administrative assistant, you are often the first point of contact for patients who visit a practice. You handle front desk tasks, collect patient information, and let them know what to expect from their appointments. You make calls, take messages, schedule appointments, and update calendars. You also know everyone in your practice so if a patient approaches you with questions regarding their care and whom they should see, you can direct them to the right professional. Other tasks you might have include maintaining databases and filing systems, preparing reports, and performing some basic bookkeeping. You’re like the office manager for a medical department!
Common Traits of Medical Administrative Assistants
Medical administrative assistants need strong management and interpersonal skills. You need to be pleasant, well-organized, and detail oriented. And because you may interact with a diverse population, you need to be able to communicate well with people from all walks of life, helping to alleviate patient concerns and accurately deliver information to physicians and other members of the healthcare team. An interest in the medical field and an understanding of basic medical terminology will also help you find success. And you may need specialty knowledge depending on the type of medicine practiced in your healthcare department.
Technology in Medical Administration
The majority of the information you gather and track as a medical administrative assistant will be stored and found in your facility’s preferred electronic health records system. These programs help you maintain patient records quickly and efficiently, so it’s important to familiarize yourself with what records they hold and how to effectively navigate them to find what you need. If you are in a financial administrative position, you’ll work closely with billing and coding software, accounts payable and receivable, and electronic spreadsheets. Because you will be in databases with sensitive patient information, you need to understand the laws about patient privacy and be aware of the risk factors of cybersecurity attacks and how to prevent them.
What do you think? Are you ready for a medical career that is important to the success of healthcare facilities and the patients they serve? Charter Career Academy offers an affordable, online Medical Administrative Assistant program that can prepare you for an entry-level career in the field. Fill out the form to learn more.