Medical Assistant - Part Time 20 hours

About the role

Medical Assistants (MA) at Lynn Community Health Center (LCHC) deliver high-touch care as integral members of the integrated care team in a patient-centered health home. LCHC MAs continually embrace and adopt increasingly dynamic and complex responsibilities to meet the demands of an ever-evolving healthcare marketplace and the integration of innovation in patient care delivery. The MA performs a variety of patient care activities as a core member of an interdisciplinary health home team.

Responsibilities

• Optimize patient satisfaction, provider time, and exam room utilization by maintaining patient flow, keeping appointments on schedule, alerting providers of patient arrivals, reviewing service delivery, and reminding providers of delays.
• Ensure efficient patient visits by preparing all appropriate data, documentation, reports, and forms for the provider prior to the visit.
• Obtain brief history of chief complaint, reason for visit, allergy status, and other pertinent information in the EHR.
• Perform vital signs, necessary screenings, measurements, and point-of-care testing, recording results accurately in the EHR.
• Prepare patients for examination, including assisting with undressing, gowning, draping, and setting up necessary equipment/supplies.
• Assist providers during and after exams, including chaperoning, assisting with procedures, labeling and sending specimens to the lab, and clearing instruments.
• Assist patients post-exam, clean and set up rooms for reuse, and perform Point of Care Testing (POCT) in accordance with Joint Commission standards and federal regulations.
• Perform quality assurance (QA) activities and report any errors or problems immediately.
• Clean and store equipment, reporting any issues to the supervisor.
• Assist with patient discharge, review after-visit summaries, and schedule follow-up appointments.
• Follow up with patients who miss appointments.
• Accurately use EPM and EHR systems for scheduling, documentation, and updating patient information.
• Assist providers and nurses with paperwork and phone calls as assigned.
• Maintain neat and stocked exam rooms, monitor supply levels, and reorder as necessary.
• Attend in-service training, team meetings, and other relevant medical or staff meetings.
• Perform medication reconciliation.

Disease-Specific and Life-Cycle Responsibilities

• Accurately perform diagnostic tests, including NST, EKGs, audiometry, vision exams, teledermatology photos, and spirometry.
• Assist specialists with all aspects of patient visits when assigned.
• For pediatric patients, perform and record head circumference, behavioral, and developmental screenings.
• Perform and record behavioral and mental health screenings, including tobacco, alcohol, drug use, depression, and anxiety.
• Conduct family planning activities, including screening for and educating about sexually transmitted infections and pregnancy avoidance.

Patient Care Documents

• Assist with accurate completion of WIC Forms, DCF Forms, medication prior authorizations, and other clinically focused patient forms.
• Assist with tracking and completion of VNA forms.

Pre-Visit Preparation

As a core member of a patient-centered care team, the MA performs pre-visit planning activities based on the patient’s age, life cycle, risk factors, and disease to identify needed care, including:

• Risk-based screening for HIV and HCV.
• Cohort-based screening for chlamydia, HIV, and HCV.
• Disease monitoring for asthma and diabetes.
• Routine health maintenance, including adult vaccines, cervical, breast, and colon cancer screening.
• Disease-based health maintenance and monitoring for diabetes and HIV.
• Adult routine and disease-based immunizations.
• Chronic controlled substances monitoring.
• Depression and anxiety symptom monitoring.
• Routine pregnancy and well-child screenings (behavioral, developmental, anthropometric, serological).
• Setups for procedures and special testing.
• Retrieval of results, discharge summaries, and newborn records as needed.

Care Management

• Follow up with patients who do not attend appointments.
• Assist with collecting patient care data essential for comprehensive care and care planning, including medical, surgical, family, and social history, as well as social determinants of health.

Emergency Situations

• Be prepared to respond to emergency situations, including temporary reassignment of duties or locations.
• Maintain a Personal Emergency Plan to fulfill job responsibilities during health center emergencies.

Qualifications

• High School diploma or equivalent required.
• Completion of a Medical Assistant Training program with a successfully completed externship or completion of a Medical Assistant Training program and 6 months of experience working as a medical assistant.
• Medical Assistant certification from an accredited program preferred.
• Bilingual in Spanish, Khmer, or Russian with knowledge of medical terminology preferred.
• Exceptional attendance and a positive work attitude.
• Desire to work as a collaborative member of a multidisciplinary team.

Experience

Previous medical assisting experience in a community setting with demonstrated attention to detail is preferred.

Team Responsibilities

• Assigned to a specific team but may be "floated" or reassigned to meet patient and staffing needs.

Customer Service

• Demonstrates understanding of customer service principles by completing online training.
• Applies customer service principles when interacting with patients, team members, and staff from other departments.

Cultural Competence

• Demonstrates knowledge of culture by completing online training on Cultural Competence.
• Utilizes respect for diversity when interacting with patients, team members, and staff from other departments.
• Responds appropriately or seeks support when confronted with cultural biases or conflicts.

Physical and Mental Requirements

• Work is performed in an office environment; requires ability to move around, enter/retrieve data from electronic systems, and operate office equipment.
• Ability to move tools and materials weighing less than 10 pounds.
• Ability to reason logically, make sound decisions, and communicate effectively orally and in writing.
• Ability to remain poised under pressure and interact positively to produce confidence and trust.
• Demonstrated ability to perform in high-pressure environments, manage multiple complex issues, and maintain focus amid distractions.
• Ability to work independently, exercise sound judgment, and perform effectively under pressure, including in emergencies.

Special Requirements

• Respect and maintain patient confidentiality in all aspects of care, including electronic information.
• Annual bloodborne pathogen training required due to potential exposure to airborne infections, body fluids, and bloodborne pathogens.
• Up-to-date flu immunization and annual TB screening/attestation required.
• Hepatitis B vaccine and COVID-19 vaccination strongly recommended.
• Results of a background check must meet health center standards.