Medical Assistant, Certificate

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Medical Assistant (054)
Certificate of Achievement

This program prepares graduates to be multi-skilled practitioners who are qualified to perform both administrative and clinical skills in the ambulatory healthcare setting. With an emphasis on the back-office skills, this curriculum includes medical assisting courses in medical office operations and management, insurance and coding procedures, medical law and ethics, anatomy and physiology, and clinical skills. The program requires an externship  experience in a selected healthcare environment. A graduate of this program seeks employment as a Medical Receptionist, or a Medical Assistant.

The Medical Assistant Program at Butler County Community College has a program retention rate average of 91% over the past five years.

Successful completion of this program may potentially lead to professional licensure.  Licensure may be global, national, or state-specific.  This program meets requirements for the State of Pennsylvania.  Requirements for other states may vary.

Accreditation

The Medical Assistant program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (www.caahep.org) upon the recommendation of the Medical Assisting Education Review Board (MAERB). Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs, 25400 U.S. Highway 19 North, Clearwater, FL 33763; Phone: 727-210-2350.

Criteria For Admission

Admission to the Medical Assistant (MA) Program is selective. Applications will be made available in January and are due no later than July 12th for the Fall semester start.

The MA Admissions Committee assumes the responsibility to review the data of all applicants and has the right to select the best qualified individuals.

Basic Requirements

• High School diploma from an accredited secondary school program, or successful completion of the GED/HSE exam. High school seniors may apply.
• A cumulative GPA of 2.50 or better is expected. Individuals with less than a 2.50 GPA in high school courses may be considered for admission following completion of 12 or more Pre-Medical Assistant support courses, with a college-level GPA of 2.50 or better.
• Students must complete COMP 210: Productivity Application prior to acceptance or during the first semester of the program.

Beginning with the administration of the January 2001 Certification Examination, individuals with a felony are not eligible to sit for the examination unless the national Certifying Board grants a waiver.

Special Requirements Upon Acceptance*

MA Students are required to:

1. Provide proof of health insurance coverage.
2. Have a satisfactory physical examination including tuberculin skin test, and proof of immunizations.
3. Malpractice liability insurance (paid with tuition).
4. Completion of Basic Life Support (BLS) for Healthcare Providers and American Red Cross Standard First Aid Certification.
5. Assume all responsibilities for transportation to and from clinical facilities to which they are assigned for their MA externship.
6. The externship experience must be supervised and students will not receive remuneration for their externship.

Continued progress in the program is dependent upon the student earning “C” grades or above in all courses. The MA Externship must be passed successfully.

NOTE: Courses listed in the first/third semester will be scheduled for the fall; courses listed in the second/fourth semester will be scheduled for the spring. Students are encouraged to use the curriculum planner to keep track of courses taken and those still needed. In some cases, one or more courses may be taken in a different order than indicated on the planner. However, individual course prerequisites must be observed.

Prerequisites/Corequisites: Some courses require another course to be taken beforehand or at the same time. To check if a course has a prerequisite or corequisite, see the course description.