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By Cynthia M. Piccolo (Career Questions)
dearCPMedicalAssistantRefresher image

Dear Cindy: 

I have been working for the Department of Corrections for the past 15 years. Recently I was in a serious car accident, and I am no longer able to perform the duties of a correctional officer. However, I do possess a degree in medical assisting, achieved many years ago. I was wondering if there is a way that I can get a refresher course on my medical assistant degree. How long will this refresher course take, and how expensive will it be for me? I am too young to be completely retired. I would love to work in a hospital or doctor's office. Many sites ask for a résumé and unfortunately I have no résumé that would reflect any medical experience.

Sincerely,

J

Dear J: 
I didn't think that there would be a refresher for medical assistants, because the training programs are generally short (one to two years, for those who don't know), and MAs are not a licensed profession (though one can be certified). So I called the American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA) to confirm, and the person I spoke with said there aren't any refreshers. Were you ever certified by the AAMA or registered by American Medical Technologists (AMT)? If so, did you maintain your certification/registration? If not, you may want to contact the relevant body about renewing – or you may want to ask about initial certification, and/or about access to the AAMA's self-study CE courses, which could be helpful for you. AMT also provides a listing of MA study reference materials, which you could look at for self-study. Other study options include retaking the medical assisting course or taking individual related courses at a college or vocational school (e.g., medical terminology, office procedures, a nurse aide course) to construct a refresher for yourself. (To see what topics you may want to pursue if you were to do this, you could look at the AAMA's CEU page, since they have a breakdown of relevant education topics and categories.) Renewing your certification and/or taking courses would help with your résumé problem. Another thing to do would be to use a functional or combination style résumé, since these focus on skills (immediately applicable, transferable, and soft), training, credentials, and accomplishments that you have, rather than on when/where.

Some other tactics may be:

  • Look for job posts that take entry-level applicants or will provide OTJ training, since you would probably get up to speed very quickly.
  • Network with friends, relatives, and acquaintances to see if anyone knows of any jobs. If someone who knows you will recommend you to someone they know or work with, it typically helps to minimize the problem of lack of current experience.

    • Good luck with your career change.
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