Tag Archives: Certification

Becoming a Doctor’s Assistant

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Doctor’s Assistants are certified medical professionals who work closely with doctors or surgeons to provide medical care to patients. Their responsibilities include examining patients, diagnosing injuries and illnesses, providing treatment, writing prescriptions, making rounds in hospitals, maintaining patient’s progress record, assisting in surgeries, educating patients and their families on health issues, and performing other assigned tasks in the setting.

Doctor’s Assistants work in various health care settings such as doctor’s offices, hospitals, clinics, emergency medicine facilities, nursing homes, outpatient care centers etc. They mostly work full time. They may work even in weekends, evenings or holidays.

Educational Requirements

To become a Doctor’s Assistant, the aspiring candidates need to earn a four- year bachelor’s degree program in science. Then, the candidates have to complete a two-year education program approved by the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA).

The program includes classroom and laboratory instruction in subjects such as human anatomy, physiology, pathology, pharmacology, clinical medicine, physical diagnosis, and medical ethics. It also includes hundreds of hours of supervised clinical training in several areas, such as family medicine, emergency medicine, pediatrics etc.

However, most of the job aspirants have experience as registered nurses or as EMTs and paramedics before they apply to a physician assistant program.

Licensure and Certification

Since the practice of a Doctor’s Assistant requires to be licensed in all the states of USA, the aspiring candidates must have to pass the Physician Assistant National Certifying Examination (PANCE). These professionals can obtain exam-based certification from the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA).

Skill Set

Apart from clinical knowledge, Doctor’s Assistants possess various traits such as empathy towards patients, attentive to details, compassionate to work, ability to maintain calm and react effectively in emergency situation, physical stamina to work for long duration, ability to establish and maintain cordial relationship with patients and medical staff, record keeping skills, excellent verbal and written communication skills, competent in computer application etc.

Job Outlook and Salary

The job outlook for a Doctor’s Assistant remains excellent in USA. According to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the growth rate for job opportunities in this profession may rise 38% from 2012 to 2022, much higher than the average for all occupations. The average annual salary of a Doctor’s Assistant was $ 90,930 in 2012.

Becoming a Dialysis Nurse

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Dialysis Nurses are specially trained and educated to remove toxins and excess water of patients with kidney disease. They operate a hemodialysis machine that extracts blood from the patient, cleans it and return into the body. Their responsibilities include overseeing the dialysis treatment from start to finish, monitoring patient vital signs, communicating procedure details with patients and concerned doctors, reviewing the patients’ lab work, assessing the effectiveness of procedures, educating patients and the public about kidney problems, providing emotional support to patients and their family members etc.

Dialysis nurses work in varieties of settings, such as hospitals, nursing homes, dialysis centers, transplant facilities, outpatient treatment centers, long-term care facilities, home health care agencies, hospice and palliative care services so on so forth. Since dialysis patients need round-the-clock care, nurses in these settings usually work in rotating shifts, covering all 24 hours. They may also be on phone call.

Educational Requirements

Dialysis Nurses must be a licensed RN (registered nurse) in their state of employment. To qualify for this position, the aspiring candidates must earn a two-year associate or a four-year bachelor’s degree in nursing. Common course includes human anatomy, nephrology, pharmacology, nutrition, microbiology, physiology and psychology. However, the employers often prefer the candidates with clinical experience of caring dialysis patients.

Certification and Licensure

Since the practice of a Dialysis Nurse must be licensed in USA, the aspiring candidates have to complete an approved nursing program and pass the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX-RN). These professionals can obtain exam-based certification from the Nephrology Nursing Certification Commission.

Skill Set

Apart from clinical knowledge, Dialysis Nurses possess various traits, such as strong analytical skills, a good deal of patience, high medical ethics, detail oriented , sympathetic to patients, ability to remain calm under pressure, self-management skills, willingness to work as a part of team, pleasant communications and interpersonal skills , management and organization abilities, computer skills etc.

Job Outlook and Salary

The job outlook for a Dialysis Nurse remains excellent across the USA. According to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the growth rate for job opportunities in this profession may rise 19% during 2012-2022. The average annual salary of a Dialysis Nurse was $65,470 in May 2012.

Becoming a Clinical Research Administrator

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Clinical Research Administrators play a key role in planning, development and conduct of scientific research projects for various health care settings. Their responsibilities include determining a project’s goals, supervising the work performance, providing technical assistance, managing budgets, evaluating staff, maintaining administrative and production policies for various clinical trials. Since they are directly involved with testing and quality control, these professionals may also determine protocols and work procedure in collaboration with department heads on research and development, and other critical aspects of a research project.

Clinical Research Administrator work in variety of environments such as public or private hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, medical research institutes, scientific research and development laboratories, government agencies etc. They work full time.

Educational Requirements

To become a Clinical Research Administrator, the aspiring candidates need to earn a 4-year bachelors degree in clinical research or any discipline in science. However, many employers often prefer the job aspirants with a two-year master’s degree in clinical research or related field in science.

The common syllabus includes epidemiology, human anatomy, biology, medicinal chemistry, molecular pharmacology, bio-statistical methods, medical computer information systems etc.

Certification and Licensure

Since the practice of a Clinical Research Administrator requires to be licensed in many states of USA, the candidates have to pass the required Licensure Exam. The candidates can also obtain exam-based certification from the Society of Clinical Research Associates (CRA).

Skill Set

Clinical Research Administrators possess a great deal of knowledge of GCP, ICH guidelines and regulatory requirements for clinical trial management. Besides, they possess various traits such as high level of attention to detail, excellent organizational skills, problem solving and decision making abilities, strong leadership quality, competent in computer operations, effective verbal and written communication skills ability to align with business initiatives etc.

Job Outlook and Salary

The job outlook for a Clinical Research Administrator remains excellent across the USA. According to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the growth rate for job opportunities in this profession may rise 6% during 2012-2022. The average annual salary of a Clinical Research Administrator was $58,580 in 2014.

Becoming A Chiropractic Assistant

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Chiropractic Assistants perform a variety of clinical and administrative tasks under the direct supervision a Chiropractor in a health care setting. Their clinical responsibilities include obtaining patient’s vital signs such as blood pressure, temperature etc., explaining treatment procedures, escorting patients, taking X-rays, maintaining equipments so on an so forth. Administrative duties may include responding to patient’s queries, scheduling appointments, maintaining patients’ check in and checkout, recording medical histories, calculating billing, attending phone calls, assisting in insurance claims etc.

Chiropractic Assistants work under a licensed chiropractor in variety of settings such as hospitals, clinics, residential care facilities, rehabilitation facilities etc. They may have to work on day or night shifts as well as in the weekends.

Educational Requirements

To become a Chiropractic Assistant, the aspiring candidates need to earn at least a high school diploma or GED equivalent. The students can hold a two-year associate’s degree program in chiropractic technology for better job prospects in this field. Most of the employers in USA, however, prefer candidates with previous experience in a medical or chiropractic environment for these professionals.

Chiropractic Assistants study the coursework of medical terminology human anatomy, biology, physiology, billing, office management, insurance processing etc.

Certification and Licensure

Since many states of USA require a Chiropractic Assistant to be licensed, the aspiring candidates need to earn an exam-based License. The candidates can also obtain certification from the state’s Chiropractic Examiners Board.

Skill Set

Chiropractic Assistants possess various traits such as empathy towards patient, detail oriented, high medical ethics, a great deal of physical stamina to stand for long duration, ability to assist the patients emotionally and physically, familiarity with patient care and customer service, ability to perform multitask job simultaneously, effective verbal and written communication skills, computer skills etc.

Job Outlook and Salary

The job outlook for a Chiropractic Assistant remains excellent across the USA. According to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the growth rate for job opportunities in this profession may rise 29% from 2012 to 2022. The average annual salary of a Chiropractic Assistant was $29,370 in May 2012.