Allied Health Department

The goal of the Medical Assistant Program is to prepare medical assistants who are competent in the cognitive (knowledge), psychomotor (skills), and affective (behavior) learning domains to enter the profession.

According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics employment of Medical Assistants is projected to grow 15 percent from 2023-2033. Medical Assistant is currently one of the fastest growing professions. As a result, physicians will hire more medical assistants to perform routine administrative and clinical duties, allowing the physicians to see more patients.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2023), reports the median annual Medical Assistant salary is $42,000 or $20.19 per hour. However, salaries can vary widely depending on a variety of factors such as location and type of health care facility.

1. To prepare students to sit for the National Healthcareer Association Certified Clinical Medical (NHA CCMA) examination.
2. To provide medical assistant students an optional phlebotomy course for those interested in sitting for NHA's Certified Phlebotomy Technician (CPT) examination.
3. Qualify for employment in the healthcare field.

Upon completion of the Medical Assistant Certificate of Completion, students will be able to:

1. Apply critical thinking and problem-solving skills in a healthcare setting.
2. Display professionalism and respect for diversity in relation to culture, age, and gender.
3. Perform within the legal and ethical scope of practice in the role of a Medical Assistant.
4. Demonstrate professional and effective forms of communication with patients, families and other healthcare professionals in culturally diverse communities.
5. Demonstrate proficiency in the administrative and clinical competencies that are required in the role of a Medical Assistant.

Requirements Specific to the Medical Assistant Certificate

Physical Demands: The industry standards for a Medical Assistant are to have a full range of motion. This includes handling and lifting patients, stooping or stretching and hand-eye coordination. The job will require a Medical Assistant to stand 8-10 hours a day with occasional sitting.MA students must be able to carry 40-50 pounds.

All students are required to have a complete federal background check done prior to the end of the fall term. Failure to pass the federal background check may result in the student's inability to progress in the medical assistant program.

Note: Students with a history of criminal convictions (whether felony or misdemeanor) relating to crimes such as, but not limited to, physical assault, use of a dangerous weapon, sexual abuse or assault, abuse of children, the elderly or infirm and crimes against property, including robbery, burglary and felony theft, may not be eligible for employment in a healthcare facility as a medical assistant. Students with concerns in this area should consult with the program director.

Computer Skills: The program requires students to have knowledge of basic computer terms and to be able to demonstrate basic computer skills. Throughout the medical assistant program, students are required to learn and use various software programs such as the college's learning management system (LMS) and program learning platforms. In addition, placement at a practicum site further requires students to learn, and safely use, electronic health records and scheduling software. Successful completion of SKC's CAPP104 Computer Literacy for Allied Health is   recommended for individuals who are interested in the medical assisting program but have not yet acquired basic computer skills.

Certification Information: The Salish Kootenai College Medical Assistant Certificate of Completion program prepares students to sit for the National Healthcareer Association's Certified Clinical Medical Assistant examination. Sitting for the CCMA exam is a program requirement. 2017-2023 NHA CCMA exam pass rate is100%. The SKC MA CC program conforms to requirements in Montana. The College has not determined whether the program meets specific certification requirements in other states. Students planning to work as a CCMA in another state should consult that state’s requirements.

Service Learning: Students will complete 30 hours of service learning over the length of the program

Admission Requirements

Program admission occurs fall quarter only.

Completion of a college level math or English course, or an appropriate score on SKC's Math and English Placement Assessment: DVSP081 Academic Literacy or higher, and MATH100 College Algebra or, MATH103Contemporary Math or higher.

Program Fees: In addition to SKC tuition and fees, all students have additional costs to include purchase of required course materials, fees for a federal background check, healthcare certification fees (Bloodborne Pathogens, CPR/First Aid, HIPAA, HIV/AIDS Awareness), credentialing exam prep materials, credentialing exam fees, student liability insurance, personal healthcare coverage, practicum uniform requirements, practicum travel expense, and costs associated with updating required vaccinations for the purpose of providing the required documentation to a practicum site(s).

Competency Sign-Off: students are required to attend scheduled skills labs and pass all competency sign-offs with an 80% or higher.  They are further required to maintain a course average of 70% or higher in order to attend the required course practicum for the purpose of performing live venipuncture and capillary sticks on live individuals.

Practicum:  Medical assistant students must take all courses consecutively starting fall quarter. The only exception is NASD101 History of the Indians in the U.S. which can be completed prior to student beginning the MA program, or completed any quarter while enrolled in the program.

All MA students are required to successfully complete a minimum of 160 combined hours of administrative and clinical practicum prior to program completion.

Vaccination Requirements: healthcare practicum sites require medical assistant students to provide documentation of up-to-date vaccinations as part of their student learner onboarding paperwork. Medical assisting students are required to provide practicum sites with up-to-date documentation of immunizations which may include a seasonal influenza vaccine, two doses of the varicella vaccine or a positive varicella titer, two doses of measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) or a positive titer, three doses of the Hepatitis B vaccination series or a positive or reactive anti-HBs (or HBsAB) test result, an up-to-date Tdap, two negative TB skin tests or a QuantiFERON-TB Gold test and in some cases, documentation of the Covid vaccination series. In some instances, at some practicum sites, students are able to fill out a declination form for the covid vaccination and submit it to the practicum site for their approval. Additional documentation of vaccinations beyond those listed above may be required by a practicum site per that site's facility policies.

Any changes in conviction record and/or pending criminal charges which occur between the initial completion of the criminal background/registered sexual offender check and program completion must be provided in writing to the program director within ten working days from the date of notification. Failure to provide such information within the required time frame may result in immediate dismissal from the program.

Students who are not in compliance with the Student Code of Conduct provided in the SKC Catalog and/or the SKC Medical Assistant Student Handbook may place themselves at risk for dismissal from the Medical Assistant program.