Chapter 1: The Professional Medical Assistant & HC Team

• Integrity: adhering to ethical standards or right conduct standards
• Learning Style: the way an individual perceives and processes information to learn new material
• Overlearn: To learn or memorize beyond the point of proficiency or immediate recall
• Triage: The process of sorting patients to determine medical needs and the priority of care
• Patient Navigator: a person who identifies patients' needs and barriers, then assists by coordinating care and identifying community and healthcare resources to meet the needs of the patient.
• Processing: How an individual internalizes new information and makes it their own.
• Mnemonic: A learning device that a person uses to help them remember information.
• Conscientious: Meticulous, careful.
• Percieving: How an individual looks at information and sees it as real.
• Reflection: The process of thinking about new information to create new ways of learning.
• Detrimental: Harmful.
• Negligence: Conduct expected of a reasonably prudent person acting under similar circumstances; it falls below the standards of behavior established by law for the protection of others against unreasonable risk of harm
• Complementary & Alternative Medicine (CAM): A group of diverse medical and healthcare systems, practices, and products that are not generally considered part of conventional medicine; some are used in combination with conventional medicine and others are used instead of conventional medicine.
• Morale: Emotional or mental condition with respect to cheerfulness or confidence
• Allopathic: A system of medical practice that treats disease by the use of remedies such as medications and surgery to produce effects different from those caused by the disease under treatment.
• Reliable: Dependable; able to trusted.
• Contamination: The process by which something becomes harmful or unusable through contact with something unclean.
• Initiative: The ability to determine what needs to be done and take action on your own.
• Holistic: A form of healing that considers the whole person (i.e, body, mind, spirit, and emotions) in individual treatment plans.
• Hospice: A concept of care that involves health professionals and volunteers who provide medical, psychological, and spiritual support to terminally ill patients and their loved ones
• Demeanor: Behavior toward others; outward manner
• Critical Thinking: The constant practice of considering all aspects of a situation when deciding what to believe or what to do.
• Indicators: An important point or group of statistical values that, when evaluated, indicates the quality of care provided in a healthcare facility.
• Clinical Skills: Performing patient screening procedures, Obtaining and recording vital signs and medical histories, and administering vaccinations and medications.
• Administrative Skills: Performing routine maintenance of facility equipment, creating and maintaining patient health records, and performing procedural and diagnostic coding.
• Characteristics Of Professional Medical Assistants: Make patients feel welcome as soon as they step into the clinic, use a calm tone of voice, and make eye contact when appropriate.
• The Scope Of Practice: the range of activities that a health professional is permitted to perform.
• The Standards Of Care: The legal term that refers to whether the level of quality of patient service provided is the same as what another healthcare worker with similar training and experience in a similar situation would provide.
• Provider: leads the medical assistant in the provision of health care services to the patient.
• Medical Assistants: must listen and take instruction from the provider, and must not make any moves until approved by a licensed physician.
• 5 Practices That Are Beyond the Scope Of Practice: Analyzing or interpreting test results, operating laser equipment, performing laboratory tests that are not CLIA-waived, scheduling diagnostic and radiographic tests/procedures without a provider order, automatically submitting refill prescription requests without provider's orders.
• Osteopathic physicians, or DO's, complete requirements similar to those for MD's to graduate and practice medicine.
• Physician Assistants provide direct patient care services under the supervision of licensed physicians and are trained to diagnose and treat patients as directed by the physician.
• Athletic Trainer: Provides services such as injury prevention, assessment, and rehabilitation
• Kinesiotherapist: A physical therapist who specializes in the use of movement to improve mobility and function.
• Diagnostic Cardiovascular Technologist: Performs diagnostic examinations of the heart or blood vessels, both invasive and non-invasive.
• Pharmacy Technician: Assists licensed pharmacists by performing duties that do not require the expertise of a pharmacist.
• Anesthesiology Assistant: Assists in developing and implementing anesthesia care plans for patients.
• Physical Therapist: helps improve patient mobility, relieve pain, and prevent or limit permanent physical disabilities.
• Therapeutic Recreation Specialist: Helps patients use their leisure in ways that enhance health, functional abilities, independence, and quality of life.