Medical Assistant Prep / Unit 1 MAS 008 worked example, 60 to 90 seconds
Scope Is Set by the State and the Practice
The idea
What a medical assistant may do is set in layers, and every layer must allow a task before you perform it.
In practice
Step one is the state. Tasks allowed to assistive personnel vary from state to state, and the rules sit with state agencies such as the health department or a licensing board; some states require graduation from an accredited program, a license, or a certification. Step two is the employer. Each practice writes policies describing which tasks its staff may perform and what training they need first. Step three is the provider's order for the patient in front of you. Step four is your own training: you may perform a task only after you have been taught it and shown that you can do it.
Where people slip
The layers are cumulative, not alternatives. A task the state allows, but the practice has not trained you for, is still outside your role in that practice.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
Unlocks
- 009Policy Can Be Stricter, Never Looser
- 010Judgment Belongs to the Licensed Provider
- 012Accept Only What You Are Trained To Do
- 017One Morning in a Family Practice
- 018A Request Outside the Role
- 143Know Your Limits With Medications
- 451Phlebotomy in the Medical Assistant's Role
- 651Law and Ethics in Everyday Work
- 652Scope of Practice Is a Legal Limit
- 740Where Your Role Ends
- 741Learning Continues in Practice
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