Clinical Medical Assistant

This course will begin with an introduction of the levels of organization and general plan of the body. This will include an overview of basic chemistry, body temperature and metabolism, fluid-electrolyte and acid-base balance, cells, tissues, and membranes. This course will also present the student with and introduction to Microbiology and human disease.

This course will review Integumentary, Skeletal, Muscular, Nervous, Male and Female Reproductive, and Endocrines body systems and topics focusing on abnormal structure and function, and related diseases and disorders.

This course presents to the student information in the behavioral skills necessary to effectively present himself/herself to potential employers with confidence and professionalism. The student will also have acquired skills which enable him/her to maintain a position. The student will be presented with the skills and tasks of preparing personal resumes, letters of application, thank you letters, and employment applications. Interviewing and job search techniques are also studied.

The Clinical Medical Assistant externship is a capstone course that is taken in the last quarter of the student’s training. The student will complete 160 hours at an externship site with the goal of applying classroom skills to a real-world environment. The externship is designed to integrate the classroom training and transform it into hands-on application, creating on-the-job experiences.

This course is designed to introduce the student to the clinical laboratory including urinalysis, phlebotomy, hematology, chemistry, serology, and medical microbiology. Focus will be placed on specimen collection, handling, testing, and selected examinations. The student must achieve a minimum of a “C” grade or repeat the course.

This course is designed to expand the student’s abilities in written communications. Principles of composition are developed through writing and revising various types of communications. Emphasis is placed on construction and composition, including word usage, grammar, and sentence analysis.

This course is designed to introduce the student to additional clinical skills including administration of medications, assisting with minor office surgery, cardiopulmonary and emergency procedures, and selected examinations. The student must achieve a minimum of a “C” grade or repeat the course.

This course is designed to focus on the fundamentals of effective oral communication and the application of the fundamental principles of public speaking. The textbook lectures, speaking assignments, and all written work will acquaint the student with the basic theory and practice of public speaking.

This course will cover the current issues affecting our lives today. World, National, and local news including areas of economics, political science, government, pop culture and sports will be discussed. This will be presented with an emphasis placed on how it impacts today’s society.

This course is an introduction to electronic health record information management, including patient and health care data, data collection, processing, quality, storage, access, retention, and release of patient information and health care statistics.

This course is designed to provide the student with the theories and techniques involving the clinical aspects of the medical assisting profession. The student is introduced to the areas of medical asepsis and OSHA standards, vital signs, assisting with general and selected physical examinations, proper medical records completion, and selected procedures. The student must achieve a minimum of a “C” grade or repeat the course.

This course is an introductory course designed to teach students fundamental computer concepts. Students will learn basic computer operations, computer terminology, and basic concepts. Students will receive an overview of various software applications including word processing, spreadsheet, and presentation applications.

This introductory course provides an overview of law and ethics for allied health professionals and legal professionals functioning in a wide variety of settings. This course provides an introduction to the legal foundations of health care in America. It is the responsibility of the American government to promote and protect the health and welfare of the public while respecting the interests, and upholding the rights, of the individual. The content of this course addresses how the law balances these collective and individual rights. The material covers a broad range of legal issues/topics in health care, including but not limited to: the American legal system, standards of care, scope of practice, physician patient relationships, standards of professional conduct, public duties, documentation, employment laws and practices, pertinent federal/state statutes, ethical codes, and bioethical issues. The content will provide an understanding of ethical and legal obligations to self, patients, and employer. Emphasis will be placed on applicable federal law, as well as limited state laws and regulations of the healthcare and legal professions.

This course is designed to teach the practical application of skills necessary to analyze a problem, determine the solutions and options available, and weigh the pros and cons of each to reach a workable solution.

The purpose of this course is to prepare the student to assume the professional role in medical office procedures. Emphasis is placed on the development of communication and interaction skills as they apply to screening telephone calls, scheduling appointments, and interviewing techniques with special emphasis placed on adherence to appropriate medical law and medical ethics.

This capstone course will encompass many of the major topics covered within the program with a particular emphasis on certification preparation. This capstone course reviews the principles of Test Taking Strategies, Learning Styles, Communication Strategies, Medical Office Management, Compliance Standards, Anatomy and Physiology, Medical Terminology, Diagnostic Testing and Procedures, and Pharmacology Basics.

This course gives the student a basic understanding of the coding system used to convert written diagnoses and procedures on a medical record to numbers which are then used for insurance billing and for statistical purposes. Instruction will be given for the different types of insurance forms utilized by the medical profession.

This course is designed to provide the administrative and clinical medical assistant student with an introduction to the world of pharmacology. This will include areas such as prescription reading, interpretation of medication orders, drug classifications, and controlled substances. Emphasis will be placed on commonly prescribed medications and their effects on the respective body systems.

This course is designed to meet the needs of the clinical medical assisting student. The course will begin with an overview of basic pharmaceutics and factors affecting drug action. Proper storage, handling, preparation, and administration of medications will be reviewed. The student will then progress on to calculating dosages of medications for administration in a clinical setting. Emphasis will be placed on accuracy and competency in dosage calculations.

Students will explore basic psychological principles and will learn terminology and concepts that psychologists use to explain behavior and mental processes. This course applies the study of psychology to real life situations such as work, school, relationships, and personal well-being.

This course is designed to introduce students to basic research principles and the relationship to effective and valid writing skills. Emphasis will be placed upon a fundamental understanding of MLA and APA writing formats.

This course is designed to present to the student the various skills and techniques that can be employed to achieve academic, interpersonal and professional success. At the completion of the course, the student will have been introduced to study and test-taking techniques, interpersonal skills, stress management, time management, and motivation.

This course presents the student with a logical, step-by-step method for building a medical vocabulary. It is designed to introduce and provide an understanding of medical root words, secondary word parts, and abbreviations, related to directional terms, body structure, and Integumentary, Respiratory, Urinary, Male Reproductive, and Female Reproductive and obstetrics and neonatology body systems and topics. This will allow the student to recognize, spell, pronounce, define, and build medical terms.

This course is a continuation of Medical Terminology I. The student will continue to be introduced to more medical word parts and abbreviations as they relate to Cardiovascular, Digestive, Eye, and Ear, Musculoskeletal, Nervous, and Endocrine body systems and topics. This will allow the student to build an extensive medical vocabulary, which is essential to anyone planning to enter the health care profession.