Extend Your Career Horizons regarding Physician and Medical Assistants: Health Care Professions that May Only Sound Similar at First
Comments: 0 - Date: August 2nd, 2011 - Categories: Health Center, School of Medicine, Teaching + Training
Even though they have similar titles, physician assistant positions and medical assistant roles don’t have a lot similar. What follows is a closer look at each job,including differences between schooling, nature of the work, and earnings.
Try not to mix them up. Although they may sound an awful lot alike, physician assistant jobs and medical assistant jobs are actually rather dissimilar. They each necessitate different training, includes various job functions and result in different salaries. They do have a few things shared, though: both careers include prevalent patient interaction–meaning both jobs need ethics, good communication skills and compassion.
Education is the first point of difference between physician assistants and medical assistants, as far as program prerequisites, duration of program and coursework. While admission to a medical assistant college is not dependent on any preexistent degrees, in order to be admitted to an recognized physician assistant program, a Bachelors degree is essential. Once enrolled, medical assistant programs could take as long as one to two years and result in a certificate or an Associates degree; physician assistant schools however, have two year programs that grant Masters degrees. Lastly, the bulk of training for medical assistants consists of lab techniques, clinical procedures and first aid while physician assistant training is more focused on rigorous science coursework such as biochemistry and pharmacology. Additionally, physician assistant students quite frequently are required to serve in a specific area of medicine for a brief period of time called a rotation.
A day in the life of a physician assistant and medical assistant involves working with patients, but apart from this patient care aspect, the rest of the day-to-day functions are very different. While medical assistants spend their days performing routine administrative and clinical tasks such as arranging for patient laboratory services or preparing patients for examinations, physician assistants are busy practicing medicine under the supervision of a doctor. This might even include diagnosing patients and prescribing certain medications.
Another difference between physician assistants and medical assistants is their pay. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median wage for a medical assistant is $28,300. Typical physician assistant salary, on the other hand, is $81,230 per year. This figure changes though depending on factors such as geo location, specialisation, and professional experience.