Overview
Medical Assistants are multi-skilled allied health professionals specifically educated to work in an ambulatory settings performing administrative and clinical duties. Medical Assistants support physician and nurse providers in a wide range of duties and are employed in varied healthcare settings examples include, private physician offices, large medical practices, clinics, urgent care centers and, other settings dedicated to providing ambulatory healthcare services.
Students in the Medical Assistant Program are crossed trained to be entry-level prepared in administrative and clinical knowledge, skills, and behaviors relevant to the requirements of the profession. In their last semester of the program, advancing Medical Assistant students, complete an unpaid, supervised, 160-hour practicum in an ambulatory healthcare setting. Successful graduates of the program are eligible to apply for national certification exam [CMA (AAMA), RMA (AMT), and/or NCMA (NCCT)].
Program Goals and Objectives
- Graduate quality entry-level professionals into the field of Medical Assistant.
- Prepare competent entry-level medical assistants in the cognitive (knowledge), psychomotor (skills), and affective (behavior) learning domains.
- Prepare students to sit for a nationally recognized Medical Assistant exam and become a certified medical assistant per accreditation standards.
Student Spotlight
Alexis Byron ‘21
The Medical Assistant program at Niagara County Community College (NCCC) is excellent for many reasons. Some of things I like most about the program are the instructors, flexible schedule options and smaller class sizes. The Program Coordinator Johanna Armstrong, Lab Instructor Kimberely Fermoile and Instructor Lindsey Bax are excellent. The material covered in all the required courses prepares you as you advance throughout the program. As a working mother, the flexible schedule works with my busy life. The smaller class sizes make it easy to have hands-on learning in labs and make it easy to ask questions and speak with the instructors if needed. The program gives you training in clinical and clerical skills to prepare you for your career. If you want to work in a profession that is rewarding and where you can make a difference in someone else’s life, this program could be for you. My plans after graduation are to work as a Medical Assistant at an outpatient care center or at a local hospital.
Annual Outcomes Reporting
2019 MAERB Annual Report Form (ARF)
Submitted to MAERB: 2/21/2020
| Outcome | Year 2018 |
|---|---|
| Job Placement Rate | 88.89% |
| Outcome | Year 2017 |
| Retention Rate | 60.00% |
| National Certification Exam Passage Rate | 83.33% |
NYS Department Of Labor (DOL) Long-Term Projections
Expected Growth of Occupations1
NYS DOL Long-Term Industry Projections estimates Ambulatory Health Care Service Industry Employment will increase in NYS by 39.1% and in WNY by 24.3% by 2024.2
NYS DOL Long-Term Occupational Employment Projections, 2012 – 20223
| NY State | Western NY | |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 Annual Wage, Entry-Level MA | $26,310 | $26,790 |
| Employment Change | 23.7% | 18.7% |
| NYS Employment Prospective | Very Favorable | Very Favorable |
1 Data Gathered from https://www.labor.ny.gov/stats/lsproj.shtm 2 Retrieved 4/26/2017 from NYS DOL Employment Projections https://www.labor.ny.gov/stats/2014-2024-Statewide-2012-2022-Regional-long-term-industry-projections.xls 3 Retrieved 4/26/2017 from NYS DOL Employment Projections https://www.labor.ny.gov/stats/2014-2024-Statewide-2012-2022-Regional-Long-Term-Occupational-Projections.xls
Accreditation
The Niagara County Community College Medical Assistant Program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (www.caahep.org) upon the recommendation of the Medical Assisting Education Review Board (MAERB).
Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs
25400 US Highway, 19 North, Suite 158
Clearwater, FL 33763
727-210-2350
www.caahep.org