MA 280 - Health Care Clinical Procedures
MA 280
3 units
Health Care Clinical Procedures
36 hours lecture, 54 hours laboratory
Corequisite: MA 270.
Grading: letter grade.
Description
This is the second course of three courses designed for prospective clinical medical assistants. This course develops the skills required to assist the physician with instruction in the advanced level of psychosocial skills, surgical asepsis, assisting with minor surgery, physical exams, specialty exams, patient positioning, drug administration, and resume preparation.
Transferability
Identifiers & Codes
Department: Allied Health
School: Business, Education, and Health Sciences
Academic Level: Undergraduate
TOP Code: 120800 - Medical Assisting
CTE Status: Yes
SAM Code: C - Clearly Occupational
CIP Code: 51.0801 - Medical/Clinical Assistant.
Credit or Noncredit: Credit
Class Size Max, Units, Hours
Class Size Maximum: 40
Lecture Hours: 2
Lab Hours: 3
Supplemental Hours: 0
Credit Units: 3
Out of Class Hours: 4
Weekly In-Class Hours: 5
Teaching Units: 5
Total Student Learning Hours: 270
Total Contact Hours: 198
Requisites & Limitations on Enrollment
Corequisites: MA 270
Catalog Information
Grade Mode: Letter Grade
Are there Materials Fees for the course? No
Is the course repeatable? No
Student Learning Outcomes & Course Objectives
Student Learning Outcomes:
- 1. Identify situations in the health care office when surgical asepsis must be utilized.
- 2. Safely and competently perform an intramuscular injection, subcutaneous injection, and an intradermal injection.
Course Objectives:
1. Apply the concept of surgical aseptic technique.
2. Given problematic situations related to the performance of surgical asepsis, develop appropriate strategies to correct or resolve the problem.
3. Demonstrate the application of sterile gloves.
4. Assemble surgical instruments required for a minor surgical procedure.
5. Prepare and autoclave a surgical pack.
6. Demonstrate how to remove sutures and staples.
7. In a given situation, set-up instruments required by the physician to perform a specific specialty examinations.
8. Demonstrate the performance of the Snellen, Ishihara and Jaeger eye examinations.
9. Demonstrate audiometry testing.
10. Apply bandaging and dressing material.
11. Analyze a comprehensive physical exam.
12. Discuss the term pharmacology.
13. Identify the trade name, generic name and chemical name of a given medication.
14. Identify the class, sub-class and action of a given medication.
15. Prepare a medical assistant resume.
2. Given problematic situations related to the performance of surgical asepsis, develop appropriate strategies to correct or resolve the problem.
3. Demonstrate the application of sterile gloves.
4. Assemble surgical instruments required for a minor surgical procedure.
5. Prepare and autoclave a surgical pack.
6. Demonstrate how to remove sutures and staples.
7. In a given situation, set-up instruments required by the physician to perform a specific specialty examinations.
8. Demonstrate the performance of the Snellen, Ishihara and Jaeger eye examinations.
9. Demonstrate audiometry testing.
10. Apply bandaging and dressing material.
11. Analyze a comprehensive physical exam.
12. Discuss the term pharmacology.
13. Identify the trade name, generic name and chemical name of a given medication.
14. Identify the class, sub-class and action of a given medication.
15. Prepare a medical assistant resume.
Course Content
Course Content:
I. Physical Exams
A. Components of the physical exam
1. Medical assistant responsibilities
2. Client preparation for the examination
3. Client teaching
B. Components of common specialty examinations
1. Medical Assistant responsibilities
2. Client preparation for the examination
3. Client teaching
4. Eye exams
5. Ear exams
6. Gastrointestinal exams
7. Gynecology/obstetrics
8. Neurologic
9. Respiratory
A. Components of the physical exam
1. Medical assistant responsibilities
2. Client preparation for the examination
3. Client teaching
B. Components of common specialty examinations
1. Medical Assistant responsibilities
2. Client preparation for the examination
3. Client teaching
4. Eye exams
5. Ear exams
6. Gastrointestinal exams
7. Gynecology/obstetrics
8. Neurologic
9. Respiratory
28 Hour(s)
II. Surgical Asepsis
A. Definition and uses of surgical asepsis
B. Preparation for sterilization
C. Skills related to surgical asepsis
1. Sterile gloving
2. Dressings
3. Bandaging
4. Autoclaving
5. Surgical packs
6. Sterile field
7. Minor surgery trays
B. Preparation for sterilization
C. Skills related to surgical asepsis
1. Sterile gloving
2. Dressings
3. Bandaging
4. Autoclaving
5. Surgical packs
6. Sterile field
7. Minor surgery trays
28 Hour(s)
III. Pharmacology
A. History of Pharmacology
B. Legal aspects of drug administration
C. Drug classifications
D. Drug terminology
E. Math for Medications
B. Legal aspects of drug administration
C. Drug classifications
D. Drug terminology
E. Math for Medications
30 Hour(s)
IV. Resume Preparation
A. Types of resumes
B. Purpose
C. Format
D. Content
B. Purpose
C. Format
D. Content
4 Hour(s)
Methods of Instruction & Active Learning
Instructional Method(s):
- Lecture
- Laboratory / Studio / Shop / Clinical
- Demonstration
- Discussion
- Tutorial
- Technology
- Video Presentation
- Collaborative Learning
Examples: Lecture is used to introduce new material, review material covered in the textbook, expand on material in the textbook, and present additional ideas and examples to clarify the key concepts of the course.
Laboratory activities are designed for the practical application of course topics and concepts. Under instructor direction, guidance and supervision a demonstration of the procedure or an audiovisual aid is utilized. Some psychomotor skills will include hands-on labs with students acting as the patient or the medical assistant and then a role reversal.
Demonstrations (instructor or student) will be used in various activity settings and are designed to provide visual and organizational information regarding the course's concepts as well as for techniques and procedural sequences.
Students are encouraged to participate in discussions on lecture topics, reading assignments, review exercises and practicals. Students may participate in peer group reviews when applicable. These discussions are encouraged throughout the class.
Students are encouraged to utilize the publisher's web site for tutorials. Students will be encouraged to utilize the Nursing and Allied Health Learning Center for computer assisted tutorials and videos.
Power Point presentations and/or computer software may be used to provide supplemental information to the lectures and further assist students in comprehending key concepts.
Videos may be available to students in order to provide further instruction on course content.
Students will work in small groups to solve problems presented in the class laboratory setting in order to practice effective collaboration and communication skills. Students are encouraged to form study groups.
Assignment for In and Out of Class
Assignment Types:
- Substantial college level writing assignment, such as: essay(s), written homework, term/research paper, and/or other (Required).
- Substantial college level reading assignment, such as: textbook, journal article(s), literature, and/or other (specify)
- Lab or field activity, product, and/or report
- Group Assignment
Examples: Students will research articles in professional journals and submit a written summary of articles during the course.
Reading assignments, from the required textbook, will support each lecture topic and will be assigned on a weekly basis. Students will be required to read professional journal articles related to health care.
Weekly text and workbook reading assignments reinforce classroom lecture/demonstrations.
Laboratory activity is designed for development of student understanding of and skill in positioning, sterile technique, dosage calculations, and exam trays. Each laboratory assignment has a specific objective that is achieved by the completion of the assignment.
The class will be divided into groups for role playing and critical thinking exercises. Problematic situations will be assigned to groups covering abnormal vital signs, surgical aseptic technique, pharmacology, and specialty exams during the course and will be evaluated by peers or instructor.
Methods of Evaluation
Written Evaluations:
- Written Homework
Computational or Non-Computational Problem Solving Demonstrations:
- Exam(s)
- Homework Problem(s)
Further Methods of Evaluation:
- Skill Demonstrations such as class performances(s), fieldwork, performance exam(s)
- Objective examinations, such as: multiple choice, true/false, matching items, completion
Examples: Two written summaries from professional journals are to be submitted. Assignments will be evaluated on the completion of the assignment in a timely manner, thorough and correct completion of the assignment based on the instructions given, signs of effort in the completion of the assignment and use of medical terminology.
Exams are evaluated on the student's ability to synthesize key concepts and solve appropriate problems as they relate to the content.
Students will be given several assignments that present a problematic situation with immunization schedules, prescription writing, positioning, sterile technique and specialty examinations to be analyzed and resolved.
Students will be evaluated on skill performances and will be evaluated in the laboratory setting utilizing criteria provided in the course packet by the instructor. The student will be tested on previously learned and new skills following critical elements. Critical elements are essential steps of medical procedures that are absolutely important for accurate performance and are based on industry standards.
Portions of the exams may involve matching items, identifications, or other objective sections in order to allow the students to demonstrate that they have absorbed the basic, surface level elements of the course texts and the background information provided by the instructor.
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibilty
The Medical Assistant program promotes inclusive instruction that prepares students to deliver compassionate, culturally responsive care in diverse healthcare settings. Course content, laboratory experiences, and assessment methods are reviewed regularly to support equitable student achievement and representation of diverse patient populations. Instruction emphasizes accessibility, professionalism, clear communication, and hands-on skill development to ensure students can actively participate and successfully demonstrate required competencies.
Representative Textbooks and Materials
Representative Textbook:
The Medical Assistant and Applied Learning Approach Kinn's. Niedzwiecki Pepper & Weaver. 14th Edition. Evolve Elsevier. 2019.
Medical Assisting: Administrative and Clinical Procedures with Anatomy and Physiology. Kathy Booth. 7th edition. McGraw-Hill. 2020.
Recommended Textbook:
Taber's Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary. Donald Venes. 24nd Edition. F. A. Davis. 2021.
CMA (Certified Medical Assistant) Today Professional Journal Published by American Association of Medical Assistants. http://www.aama-ntl.org/cma-today.
American Medical Technologists (Allied Health Professionals). https://americanmedtech.org/
California Certifying Board for Medical Assistanting https://ccbma.org/
National Center for Competency Testing https://ncctinc.com/
American Association of Medical Assistants https://www.aama-ntl.org/
Medical Board of California (Scope of Practice). www.medbd.ca.gov.