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Tag Archives: Assistant

Assistant at surgery documentation

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Can anyone point me to documentation that support the following statements? They are from an AAPC article years ago but have recently come up in our practice. I’ve included the link to the original article below. Any guidance would be GREATLY appreciated!!

Documentation required in the medical record:

1. A statement that no qualified resident was available to perform the service, or

2. A statement indicating that exceptional medical circumstances exist, or

3. A statement indicating the primary surgeon has an across-the-board policy of never involving residents in the preoperative, operative, or postoperative care of his/her patients.

https://www.aapc.com/blog/23393-assistant-at-surgery/

Kirsten White, CPC

Medical Billing and Coding Forum

assistant surgeon issue

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I have a primary surgeon that is using another surgeon as an assistant, but all he is using for his documentation for this is the following:

"Again, Dr. >____ assisted with patient positioning, prepping and draping, retraction, closing and dressing application. It was necessary to have him there as an assistant."

There is no mention of the assisting surgeon in the procedure description, just that note at the end. Is this enough to justify having him as an assistant?

Please advise. Thanks!

Deb Larsen, CPC

Medical Billing and Coding Forum

assistant surgeon

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I have a primary surgeon that is using another surgeon as an assistant, but all he is using for his documentation for this is the following:

"Again, Dr. >____ assisted with patient positioning, prepping and draping, retraction, closing and dressing application. It was necessary to have him there as an assistant."

There is no mention of the assisting surgeon in the procedure description, just that note at the end. Is this enough to justify having him as an assistant?

Please advise. Thanks!

Deb Larsen, CPC

Medical Billing and Coding Forum

Health Care Staffing Agencies Help Promote Medical Assistant Professions

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Whether you’re a well-experienced health care expert, or only starting a new job, staffing agencies might be a feasible answer to searching the career that you have always dreamt of. Staffing agencies are able to offer dependable resolutions for not only managers but also job hunters who are looking forward to joining the medical assisting area. Managers can find a wealth of seasoned candidates,while applicants can benefit by finding placement in well-respected facilities.

 

Health Care Staffing Agency Benefits

 

There are other excellent benefits associated with a staffing agency affiliation. Often, professionals in the field and medical assisting program graduates can find permanent, temporary, short-term and long-term positions in private or public organizations. These venues include, but are not limited to, health care centers, home healthcare agencies, nursing homes and more. Both domestic and international candidates may also benefit by the placement services of a competitive staffing agency.

 

Medical jobs for qualified medical assistants may include such benefits as short-term disability insurance, professional or paid housing allowances, 401(k) retirement savings plan, travel allowances, health care and dental insurance, and in some instances a continuing education program. However, benefits will vary from employer to employer. For the individual, finding a job or career is quite often the result of an individual’s own hard work, personal experience, work attitude and local labor market conditions.

 

Health Care Staffing Agencies Provide Needed Employment Solutions

 

To deliver needed industry recruitment solutions, staffing agencies maintain a staff of skilled professionals adept in recruiting procedures, which include sourcing candidates, and initial employee assessment and interviewing. They are skilled in knowing and matching a candidate’s qualifications with the requirements of a job position.

 

As a direct result of having an outside agency source out candidates, employers can save time and money by eliminating monotonous and expensive recruiting efforts. This can help a medical facility reduce bottom line expenditures.

 

Through staffing agencies, Certified Medical Assistants can leverage their experience and skills by working in engaging and challenging environments alongside skilled and knowledgeable experts from other medical disciplines.

 

Thus, it makes perfect sense to partner with a reputable health care staffing agency that can provide a ready pool of qualified and industry-ready applicants who can hit the ground running on day one of employment.

 

Colin McLean writes about medical assistant training for Everest College. Find out how an education from Everest College can help jump-start your career in the health care industry.

What Are the Requirements to Be a Medical Assistant?

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Have you always thought about spending your life helping other people? Do you want to work in the medical field but not become a doctor, nurse or surgeon? Well if your answer is yes then you can become a medical assistant. If you’re wondering about the requirements and whether or not you qualify to be on, then sit back and read on because if this article gets you going, then you are on the right track to getting your career.

First, there are the basic requirements such as the age limit of 18 and the test results from either COMPASS or ASSET, GED or even a high school diploma. Aside from that, you would need a clean worldwide crime record along with good health both mentally and physically. Upon registering for an internship or the training program, you must meet the vaccination and program specified health requirements in compliance with the Centers for Disease Control guidelines. A list of vaccination and health guidelines would be provided when you sign up.

In addition to that, you would need to make sure that you have got a stable insurance plan that covers both injury and sickness as it is required for participation in the clinical externship portion of the program. You would also need a complete evaluation of the current year stating that you are in good condition to lift a minimum of 50 pounds and to reach overhead and to stand and walk for long periods of time. it would be unadvisable to take on such a position if you are pregnant, have got joint problems or suffer from diseases like arthritis and such.

Furthermore, another vital requirement to hold such a position would be to posses the passion and liking for this field. This is so because the passion is what drives you to wake up every day and head on to work with a smile. If you’re going to spend the rest of your working life with this career, it is best that you actually enjoy it rather than dread it. So make sure you have the interest in this job as it would be the booster to your enthusiasm and make you do you very best. Also, it will keep you dedicated to your job, giving yourself that moral support to do well and keep striving to do better to go far in your career.

Moreover, another important requirement would be the liking to help others and the ability to be social even if you’ve had a bad day. Remember, your personal life cannot interfere with the way you perform your job. So make sure that you can keep a smile on your face even on the worse of all days because this jobs requires you to meet and greet a lot of patients. When it comes to attitude, you would need to be polite and patient. At time you may find that your employer and the patients at your workplace might be a little snappy, grumpy or slow in processing information, but it is your job to keep smiling and stretch the limits to your patience.

In conclusion, you can take on the duties of a medical assistant if you’ve been classified as friendly and enthusiastic. Always bear in mind that the best service is a service with a smile. So keep smiling and take care of the patients well, and you would see that you can actually go far with this career just the same way another person would with an ambition of a doctor, lawyer or engineer.

For more information about medical assistant training and medical assistant schools, visit MedicalAssistantOpportunities.com.

How to Prepare For Your Medical Assistant Exam

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Books, notes, past year questions and revision texts are scattered all over the place. This can only mean one thing; exams are around the corner and the jitters are creeping up faster than you expected. Medicine has never been an easy course, and even though this isn’t the whole big doctor or surgeon thing, preparing for a medical assistant exam is just as nerve wrecking. So, what do you do? Well, the smart thing to do would be to calm down and keep yourself down to earth while preparing for your exam.

You should start off by making sure that you are calm and free from butterflies in your stomach. Do some light exercise and deep breathing, then clear your mind and get a hold of your emotions. In order to study effectively, you need to rid of any negative pre-examination emotion such as anxiety and worry. If you still find yourself extremely anxious, then try going for a long walk or take a drive around the neighborhood. This should help put you at east for awhile.

Next, don’t study hard, study smart. Instead of reading straight out of your textbook for hours and hours trying to digest the information, try briefly going through it once then make your own notes and mind maps to help. During classes, pay attention to the lecturer instead of jotting down notes and doodles on the sidelines. Then, as soon as you get back, review what you’ve gone through in class and start making notes. This way, when it gets closer to your exam, instead of lugging around the huge textbooks and revision books, you could just use your notes. If it helps, make them into flashcards and carry them around in your pockets or bag. With this, you could always go through your notes while waiting for the bus or in a queue.

Read, revise, redo. The best way to make sure that you’re well prepared to gain your medical assistant certificate would be to go repeatedly go over your work, dividing your time between subjects or chapters. Once you’re done with each section, try doing a couple of questions as it would help strengthen your memory and show you how much you actually know. If you don’t have enough questions with you, use the internet and look it up on your search engine.

Aside from all that has been mentioned, in order to make sure that your mind is in perfect functioning order, you would need to keep your physical self in good condition too. Get sufficient rest and don’t ignore those eye bags. If you’re the kind of person who has adjusted to late nights and simply can’t change, make sure you get a continuous 6-8 hours of sleep a day and avoid burning the midnight oil the day before your examination. Also, drink plenty of water and eat your greens. You don’t want to be catching the flu anytime near your exam day.

In a nutshell, effective studying is easy as long as you put your mind to it. So kick off those jitters and hit the books because you’re going to be the one to ace the upcoming exam!

For more information about medical assistant duties and certified medical assistant exam, visit MedicalAssistantOpportunities.com.

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How to Earn a Medical Assistant Certification With Ease

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If the thought of pursuing a career in the medical field has crossed your mind but you simply do not have the interest to become a doctor, nurse or surgeon, don’t let the idea go because there are other options. Instead of looking for other fields of interest and coming up empty, you should put your foot down, hit the books and let your family and friends know that you’re going to become a medical assistant.

Now, in order to become the best at this career and to excel, you would need to be certified. With an accredited certification, you would not only land yourself with a good and stable job but you would also be able to do well as you would be well equipped with knowledge of hands on activity and familiar with jargons used at the workplace. Imagine trying to bandage a sprained ankle without knowing the right way to do it. You would lose your job within minutes. It isn’t hard to earn your medical assistant certification; it just takes a little discipline and a whole lot of dedication.

As this course is pretty diverse, it would be best if you take it up voluntarily with an interest in the field rather than being forced into it. This way, you would have the passion to study and the determination to well too. The easiest way to do this would be by taking advantage of our advanced technology and enrolling into an online institute rather than a day to day class on campus. With this, you can study at your own pace and time and have the comfort of studying from your own home. Also, try building up your experiences by taking on any job opportunity that comes your way. If it doesn’t give you the practical experience, you’d gain some soft skills from it.

In conclusion, learning has no end and when it comes to learning to get a certification or degree, don’t study because you have to but study because you want to. Always be enthusiastic and you would see that it can take you far, simply because you would be more dedicated than others.

For more information about medical assistant duties and certified medical assistant exam, visit MedicalAssistantOpportunities.com.

How to Increase a Medical Assistant Salary

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With the recent financial dip, a large amount of medical assistants and other health related professionals are wondering the most crucial steps to take for most advantageous career development. A familiar question that arises when people first begin their salary investigation is, “How can I increase my medical assistant salary?”

First alternative is to amplify your education, by carrying out a new certification program or any other effective Medical Education and training. If you are prepared to move on from the salary of a standard MA, it could be the perfect to follow a prominent Nursing Degree or any other Health Care Education course. If you have just started as a medical assistant, further education will grant an aggressive edge when applying for new jobs or negotiating good salary offers.

In our daily life we see that MAs are engaged in various health care institutes, including private practices clinic, community health clinics and large hospitals. MAs work personally with patients recording medical histories and performing many other fundamental medical responsibilities. No one can deny that medical assistants play a fundamental part in keeping a health office running efficiently and smoothly! Since MAs have a large variety of job options, there will be minor differences in the salary of a MA depending on location and precise responsibilities given to him/her.

As observed, Medical assistant salaries are normally lesser than Physician Assistant Salaries. This is due to the superior level of training and certification required to turn out to be a physician assistant as well as extra sophisticated duties performed on the job. There is no requirement of a license to become a MA, but most MAs choose to take the exam to become a certified MA as it is worthwhile to do so!

Although not a general requirement, carrying out a certification shows the possible employers that the applicant is fully prepared to take the challenge, and this will actually lead you to a higher medical assistant salary. If you want to see the real difference then search the Medical Assistant Salary by Degree and then compare the salary of a MA with certification to the salary of a MA without any certifications. Also keep in mind that medical assistants learn a great deal from first-hand experience at their job. But for a large amount of reasons the starting salary of a MA will normally be lesser than the average MA salary after some years of experience at job!

All in all, we can say that if you want to increase your medical assistance salary then you have to take some extra certification in medical assistance from a renowned institute and gain as much working experience as possible.

To find great Medical Assistant Jobs on internet visit my blog that will help you find jobs with most rewarding Medical Assistant Salary in the country!

How Medical Assistant School Will Give You the Highest Salary

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Salary is a significant part of any career decisions, including a medical career. Obviously, there are many other things out there to consider and money is not everything. However, let’s be real – it is very important.

There are several things that factor into medical assistant wages. The top determining factors for medical assistant pay include medical assistant certification. How much education and how much experience you have are also important. Lastly, the industry and area of specialty are vital. This means are you working in a plastic surgeon’s office or in a public health clinic?

So what you can you do to ensure you get a medical assistant job with the highest medical assisting salary? One of the biggest things you can do is go to medical assistant school.

This phrase is a little deceptive, as there are not really schools made just for this industry. However, there are medical assistant programs that will enable you to become certified. Once you are certified then you will have an easier time finding employment and will be more competitive, according to salary surveys.

The certification process offers invaluable training and experience. Just to get your certificate you must have a certain amount of hands on experience. So all of the certification programs include periods of time where you are actually working in the health field.

In this economy, it is so important to do whatever you can to have a competitive edge in the job market. In order to ensure that you are going to make the most money you can in a certain position, you must do all you can to get the most education and experience to put on your resume.

The first thing you have to do is choose which type of certification you want to go for. Then, check out their requirements for the certification. It is important that you make sure the school you enroll in is accredited by the certification institution. Otherwise, you will waste your time and not get the certificate. It is the certification that is valuable, not just taking the classes.

Be sure to check out my website to learn how to go to medical assistant school and make the highest medical assistant salary.

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