Medical Office Specialist

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

The Medical Office Specialist Training Program is an 11-week program of full time instruction with a total of 309 clock hours designed to provide students with the necessary skills to obtain entry level employment in a Medical Facility. Students are cross trained in both the clinical and administrative duties that are required to work effectively and productively in a medical setting.

Students will receive didactic, theoretical and factual information via classroom lecture, demonstration of clinical skills, perform research, classroom presentations, develop a variety of patient teaching plans and a thorough understanding of pharmacology and medication administration.

Units of study include, but are not limited to; computer skill training, vital signs, ECG’s, laboratory testing, blood draws, injections, Pharmacology, Anatomy and Physiology, coding, appointment scheduling, CPR and First Aid, Psychology and Medical Record Management – both paper and electronic.

This program adheres to the National Health career Association Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (CCMA) and Certified Medical Administrative Assistant standards. Successful students will be eligible to sit for both the CCMA and the CMAA certification examinations. This program is approved by the Arizona State Board for Private Postsecondary Education. Regional Center for Border Health, Inc. College of Health Careers holds an institutional accreditation by the Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools. 

ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS

All interested participants must submit a completed admission application. Participants must have the following:

• High School Diploma or GED
• An 8th-grade reading/comprehension ability
• Score 8.0 on the Test for Adult Basic Education (TABE)
• 18 years of age or older
• Ability to pay or qualify for sponsorship from area employment partners/governmental agencies.
• Ability to fully participate in the classroom, laboratory, or clinical setting program activities.
• Students will test for the National HealthCareer Association Clinical Medical Assistant and Medical Administrative Assistant Certification.

GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS

To graduate from the Medical Office Specialist Training Program the student must:

• Pass all required programs of study and internship
• Pass CPR certification
• File a completed application for graduation
• Clear any indebtedness to the training center

REQUIRED CLASSROOM HOURS

A total of 309 clock hours which includes 139 lecture, 50 Laboratory, and 120 externship hours.

Orientation

Clock Hours: 0 lecture hours, 0 Lab hours.
Students will be provided an overall orientation of Regional Center for Border Health, Inc., and complete required student file forms. During this orientation, students will be provided a short Medical Terminology course with an evaluation at the end of the course to measure understanding. Students will be taught how to break down medical terms using prefixes, root words and suffixes to promote a basic understanding of the terminology used in the medical field.

Prerequisites: TABE Test with 8th grade Reading, Language and Math Comprehension. 

Introduction to Medical Assisting

Clock Hours: 8 Lecture hours, 9 Lab hours
The Introduction to Medical Assisting explains the importance of developing professional behavior as related to the Allied Health Care profession. Learning styles will be discussed to explore the student personal learning style. Medical Pioneers in History, effective Therapeutic Communication, Law and Ethics concepts are reviewed as it applies to the practice of Medicine.

Prerequisites: CHC Orientation Pre-Test and Completion of all student file documents. 

Fundamentals of Ambulatory Care Administration

Clock Hours: 12 Lecture, 0 Lab Hours
Students will recognize how technology has improved the efficiency of the Ambulatory Care setting. With practice students will develop effective written communication skills, be able to recognize the unique qualities of the EMR -vs- EHR and compare these medical records to the paper based medical record. Students will practice effective, professional telephone techniques and effective telephone message processing. Scheduling patients for various appointments and development of a schedule matrix will be practiced.

Prerequisites: Introduction to Medical Assisting. 

Coding and Medical Billing

Clock Hours: 8 Lecture / 3 Lab
The student will be able to identify and utilize the ICD-10 Coding Manual to determine the appropriate code for a specific disease. Students will understand the process of looking up the appropriate code using the tabular, alphabetic indexes and how the modifiers to codes are applied. Students will utilize V and E codes appropriately to demonstrate an understanding of procedures and environmental factors described in the coding manual.

The student will be able to understand the coding conventions, guidelines, and layout of the CPT Coding Manual. Students will be able to demonstrate appropriate procedure coding, based upon information provided by the medical records.

Students will be able to utilize the CMS-1500 form, code both ICD-10 and CPT codes in the appropriate locations on the form. Students will understand the difference between "clean, dirty and rejected" claims. Utilizing knowledge gained in section, students will understand accounts receivable as this is applied to patient accounts and how to track unpaid claims.

Prerequisites: Fundamentals of Ambulatory Care Administration. 

Advanced Ambulatory Care and Administration

Clock Hours: 10 Lecture hours, 4 Lab hours
In this course students are exposed to banking services and how the patient accounts are managed.  Billing of 3rd party payors is discussed, and banking procedures are practiced.  Human Resources Management is discussed including interviewing skills, employee personnel file management and demonstrating sensitivity towards diverse employee cultures.  Additionally, students will learn how the medical practice marketed to the consumer, how to develop a marketing plan and how to effectively monitor this plan.

Prerequisites: Fundamentals of Ambulatory Care Administration. 

Fundamentals of Clinical Medical Assisting

Clock Hours: 32 Lecture / 12 Lab
The student will gain an understanding of how the chain of infection works, how breaking the chain of infection can limit diseases from being transmitted to others and demonstrate effective infection control practices.

Students will learn and demonstrate appropriate aseptic techniques. Students will learn what assessments will be expected of the Medical Office Specialist in the clinical area, how to communicate clinically with patients and what physicians may expect regarding the Medical Office Specialist's assessment. Students will learn appropriate medical record documentation, learn how to assess and educate the patient regarding the patient's disease processes and treatments.

Students will demonstrate knowledge of appropriate nutrition for patients in the complete life cycle, obtain and assess vital signs and assist the physician with the primary physical examination. Students will be expected to demonstrate proper handwashing, develop special diet menu plans and develop patient educational handouts.

Prerequisites: Coding and Medical Billing. 

Assisting with Medications

Clock Hours: 14 Lecture / 12 Lab 
The student will learn about governmental agencies that regulate drugs in the United States, will learn about the regulations regulating prescribing medications in the medical practice. Students will learn about drug calculations, measurement systems, patient rights regarding medications, recognize the parts of drug labels and understand the different classifications of medications and their indications. Students will learn and demonstrate different parenteral forms of medication administration including intradermal, subcutaneous and intramuscular injections. Students will create and present to the class medication information facts including the class of medication, the indications, contraindications and potential side effects of the medication presented.

Prerequisites: Fundamentals of Clinical Medical Assisting. 

Assisting with Medical Specialties

Course Hours: 31 Lecture / 8 Lab 
The student will learn how all 11 body systems work, how the body systems interact with other systems and how diseases affect these systems. The student will understand how to interact with the different patient populations from infants to geriatric patients. Students will understand & demonstrate appropriate physical and mental health assessment skills. Students will learn and demonstrate effective emergency preparedness, successfully demonstrate Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation techniques and become certified in CPR. The student will develop and present patient educational programs for different age groups.

Prerequisites: Assisting with Medications. 

Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation and First Aid

Clock Hours: 3 Lecture / 3 Lab
Students will learn Cardio-Pulmonary resuscitation techiniques.  Students will be able to recognize the emergency when this CPR may be necessary to be initiated.  Students will demonstrate CPR techiques on the adult mannequin and child mannequin.  Students that successfully test and demonstrate these techniques will be certified at the end of this course.  

Assisting with Clinical Lab Procedures

Clock Hours: 9 Lecture / 16 Lab
Students will learn about different types of diagnostic procedures including demonstrating appropriate application of ECG leads, recognizing abnormal ECG rhythm strips and calculating the heart rate per minute.  Students will learn about radiologic imaging and how to position the body to obtain the study ordered by the physician.  Students will learn about radiologic imaging and how to position the body to obtain the study ordered by the physician.  Students will learn about the different areas of medical laboratory, how to handle/transport laboratory specimens and how to perform phlebotomy.  Students will demonstrate appropriate phlebotomy techniques, know the names of the venipuncture sites and utilize a variety of equipment to obtain blood samples.  Students will learn about laboratory microbiology and identify a variety of microscopic structures using the microscope.

Prerequisites: Assisting with Medical Specialties. 

Job Seeking

Course Hours: 4 Lecture
Students will learn about an effective job search, different job search techniques, and create an effective resume. Students will present a "self-marketing" plan to the class and review classmates' resumes. Students will attend Goodwill Industries Job Services for resume assistance.

Prerequisites: All prior courses. 

Clinical Externship

Clock Hours: 120 Externship hours minimum
Students will attend affiliated clinical sites and perform the duties of a Medical Assistant under the supervision of a Medical Assistant Preceptor. Students will be expected to be at the clinical site all days of the week the clinical site is open for business. Students will be evaluated by the preceptor for clinical and administrative skill knowledge and performance. Students will be expected to keep the clinical site preceptor and training site informed of any irregularities that arise.

Prerequisites: Successfully completing all previous courses and minimum of 75% score on all exams including the final examination. Successfully completing all the laboratory competency demonstration. Successfully completing externship hourly requirements. 

Medical Office Specialist Program Costs:

Tuition: $4,990.00
Registration: $50.00 
Uniforms: $80.00
Books: $315.00 
Supplies/Materials: $60.00
Certification Exam: $285.00 
Total Cost: $5,780.00 

On-Campus room & board: Not Offered

Medical Office Specialist Financing (Student Loan FASFA):

Federal Loan: $ 3,262.00 (max) or $1,889.00 (min)
Private Loan: $ 0.00
Corporate Sponsor: $ 0.00
Institution Financing: $ 0.00
Total Program Cost: $ 5780.00

Medical Office Specialist Job Placement:

Timeframe: July 1, 2020 – June 30, 2021
Job Placement Rate: 77%

Medical Office Specialist Retention Rate:
Timeframe: July 1, 2020 – June 30, 2021 
Retention Rate: 93%

Medical Office Specialist Summary Report:

Regional Center for Border Health, Inc. does not guarantee a graduate employment.

Gainful Employment Disclosure

Medical Office Specialist, Gainful Employment Disclosure

The Medical Office Specialist Training Program is an 11-week program of full time instruction with a total of 309 clock hours designed to provide students with the necessary skills to obtain entry level employment in a Medical Facility.  Students are cross trained  in both the clinical and administrative duties that are required to work effectively and productively in a medical setting.