I love this quote! I have found this quote to be true most of the time. Sometimes though, you must be willing to alter your destination. The difficult part has always been true for me as I'm sure it has most people. Yet, we take on the difficult part anyways because we want this career no matter what it takes. At least, that is how I looked at it. I stopped thinking and just did it. Went to school to become a M.A. So exciting, inspiring, a little scary. At the end of this, I hoped to be able to provide a better life for my children. I really wanted to become an RN. As you all probably know, especially you RN's, it's ALOT of school, as I was told by a counselor, you can't even take a part time job if you go for your nursing degree.
Well, for this single mom of 3 under 13 years old, that wasn't going to be possible. Just going to school to become a certified M.A. was barely feasible. I worked at a daycare from 6-2, picked my kids up from school, made and fed them dinner, then off I would go until the last class was over at 11:00 p.m. I did my homework during naptime at the daycare and all few spare moments in between. I did this for 10 months over and over again. My studies paid off. My GPA was 3.9. I also had a good understanding of the disease process. I was also oh so determined! That makes all the difference in the world. I KNEW I wanted to be a advocate for patient's. Learn everything. I wanted to make a difference and I knew I could. Not to mention the fact that my children witnessed me going back to school and working so hard at it, showed them that they too could do anything they wanted to. If mom could do it , they could.
Long story short, I aced my certification exam with a 96. My externship was in the specialty of my dreams at that time....pediatrics. Small, busy office, with a female doctor that was quick to tell any of her patient's parent's what was on her mind. Then there was my very first mentor, not certified, but, M.A. all the way. Old school, new all about pediatrics. Taught me all she knew. I jotted down notes after notes. Not just there, everywhere I went. So for all of you who are SERIOUS about being any part of the medical field....TAKE NOTES!!! I trust that most people have an awesome memory, but, I don't care how smart you are, you need to take notes in medicine.
3 REASONS WHY TO TAKE NOTES:
1. There are so many different injections to give in any office, you need to be sure you are getting the right medicine, right dose, right place, and of course when the patient is actually with you, right patient!! Tell them to give you their name and birthday before you put that needle in them. Bringing the wrong patient back happens to everyone. The patients will think they hear their name and get up or you may have one patient with the same name as another. Plus some medications need to be mixed, this should also be in the notes!
2. EMR systems: The lovely EMR systems, they are all DIFFERENT!! One EMR system doesn't fit all. I have experience with 7 different EMR systems and took notes on every single one of them because that is how different they are. There is absolutely no way you will be able to remember all of the steps. I mean, give your brain a break, your just starting out, pace yourself, the ride hasn't even started yet!
3. Physicians: Every physician is different, they may do the same procedures as the next in the office, however, I promise you, they will do something if not everything different. And if you don't do it their way.....I feel really sorry for you because you should've taken notes!!! I've seen some newbies get chewed a raw steak thrown to a dog because they didn't have the finestrated drape out, or have the patient shaved, or have the 25 gauge needle, even though the rest of the docs don't use finestrated drapes, the patients are told to shave the night before, and the 27 gauge is typically used. Mark my words. And not only will you get a nice chewing, you will be in a meeting with the office manager trying to tell you what you should do different next time because you will not change how the dr does things. So always ask the dr or another m.a. that is familiar with them, how they like things. Have the m.a. set the materials out for you and take a picture if you are just dead set on not taking notes. And another reason regarding doctors....most of them will tell you what they need without a problem, but, don't expect them to keep telling you over and over. There is no time when you are in clinic to continue asking people the same things over and over. Write it down, take it with you, learn it, own it. It is just as simple as reading directions, if you take good notes. You will find everything going smoother for you.
Well, you have been warned. Plus, it looks like you really want to learn when you are taking notes.
Back to peds....so I learned all the little guys different injections, vaccines, and learned about the all-important CONSENT FORMS. I even gave one little guy 4 vaccines at one time. I learned how to do physicals. To call multiple patients back and interview using SOAP notes. My notebook was loaded thanks to my mentor. At that time, she had been with that doctor for 10 years. That's when being a medical assistant was alot more of a stable job. Now you are 100% replaceable. Remember that! I've seen managers go out of their way, lie, and cheat to get rid of M.A.'s We are so expendable that if the office manager just personally doesn't like us, we are gone. If the snooty RN doesn't like you, You will get the brunt of anything and everything that goes wrong. It doesn't matter who it went wrong because of or why. If you do not have a good reputation or solid foundation where you are, work on it quickly. Don't go in wanting to be friends, it's a work environment. You must show you are serious about your position no matter how expendable you are. Show your coworkers you mean business; you will build a good reputation. If you cause drama or include yourself in drama that is going on, it will tear down all the good you have done and will do. Every workplace has a click. If you were last in with that click, and drama is surrounding you, that will end up being your ex-employer. So, keep it professional, you know or should know what a good friend is. Watch the people around you and how they act with everyone or react to things. Get a feel of your environment before you try to be close with anyone. The office is always too busy to play around anyways, so always best to stay professional. Don't share anything too personal, it can be used against you later.
By too personal I mean, how many sexual partners you have, if your electricity has been cut off, boyfriend in jail.... yes...people have gladly shared that information with coworkers in office's I've worked in. People are people, they will talk about you and what you said. That's just too personal, leave it a home.
So, getting back to my personal journey, I would like to say getting your foot in the door as a new inexperienced M.A. is super hard, but I did it! No help from my school getting my first job. My extern site had no openings, so I volunteered at a local charity clinic so not to lose my skills, but to gain experience, to network. Not many people volunteer, so if you find yourself unable to get a job after graduation, volunteer. No, it does not pay, but it opens doors. It also shows doctor's how serious you are about learning. Every employer that had seen that on my resume commented on the volunteer work.
I received my certification card in the mail. I still have the plaque in my hutch and I'm still proud of it. I had my first resume written and ready to go. Of course I tried all peds offices. Literally went door to door giving my resume to front offices. I would follow up with a phone call after 2 days. I got several interviews. My first interview was with an internal medicine practice. It was for a check out position in the front. For my interviews, I always dress business casual. I have always felt this look for an interview exudes dignity and self-respect, and ready to take care of business. I always engage in active listening with the interviewers, I do my best to show I am confident more so than I really am. I do try to show the relaxed side of my personality, smile, laugh, of course always ask questions. Why is the position open? What is the M.A. 's hours here? Is overtime available? Will I be training with someone? *THIS PART IS IMPORTANT*
A great office manager once told me, your" employees are only going to be as good as the office manager." It was a light bulb that turned on in my head! Everything instantly made sense! I pondered and reflected on that statement for a minute. I realized just about everyone in the office was sharing the same attitude and "teamwork" as the manager displayed. Most had "this is not my job attitude".
Which has always rubbed me wrong. Anyhow, you should be in training for EMR and working on clinical training, writing notes.
Also blood borne pathogens and HIPAA compliance are the extra classics to do.
In my experience, with my schools EMR system training, it touched lightly on all of it. But, to be fair at that time the majority of offices around were transitioning from paper charts to EMR. Everyone had to learn these systems as they went.
As of today, you will be working via EMR and internet 90% of your time in office. Every system is different in what type if features it may have, again, take notes.
My interview landed me a job with a popular company with locations throughout the state. All benefits, PTO. I started in front office check out. Trained first on the incoming calls, then routing messages via EMR, then trained to check patients out and schedule upcoming appointments, plus imaging. Any payments not taken at check-in had to be taken at checkout. The people I worked with up at the front office were very nice, welcoming. My experience training there was smooth. After 2 months, my office manager approached me with a back-office position with a temperamental doctor. They could not find a fit for him so she wanted to see if he would do better with my "calming" personality. He was a very high-strung older doctor. Had moved around quite qbit with his patients of 20 yrs + following his every move. My training with him was for 1-2 days . Not even close to enough. He would see 32 pts from 7-3 then off he would go. I would have so much work left to do, some days I would stay until 7:00pm.
Still overwhelmed with determination, I sat in my chair everyday , learning an abundance of procedures, protocols, new injections. My notebook never left my side. It was all pure routine now. Walk in, nobody speaks, we are all looking at our computer's trying to get a few calls done before clinic. All 4 of us drop a few "F" bombs while looking at our computer screen before clinic. I was the first to start the day at 7. The back office ladies warmed up to me. I realized it wasn't that they didn't like me. They didn't have time to like me. At this Internal Medicine Clinic I met a wonderful fellow M.A. ,a true friend who was unfriendly to me at first, then was my mentor, and eventually a true friend. She just like me was sucked up in the whirlwind and drama of office politics. TBC...
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