Medical Assistants
On the Job
Medical Assistants work under the direction of doctors. They perform medical and clerical duties such as scheduling appointments, maintaining records, taking vital signs, and drawing blood. They often prepare patients for medical appointments.
Typical Work Tasks
People who work in this career often:
- Administer basic health care or medical treatments.
- Apply bandages, dressings, or splints.
- Assist practitioners to perform medical procedures.
- Give medications or immunizations.
- Record vital statistics or other health information.
- Interview patients to gather medical information.
- Explain technical medical information to patients.
- Assess physical conditions of patients to aid in diagnosis or treatment.
- Conduct diagnostic tests to determine patient health.
- Schedule patient procedures or appointments.
Typical Working Conditions
- Frequent contact with others.
- Working with a group or team.
- The importance of being accurate or exact.
- Close physical proximity with other people.
- Exposure to disease or infections.
- Responsibility for others' health and safety.
- Serious consequences if mistakes are made.
- Dealing with unpleasant or angry people.
- Wearing common protective or safety equipment such as safety shoes, glasses, gloves, hearing protection, hard hats, or life jackets.
- Meeting strict deadlines.
This page includes information from the O*NET 24.2 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Source: You can learn about our data sources in the About Us section.
