What is a Dermatology Medical Assistant?

A medical assistant specialized in the field of dermatology is called a dermatology medical assistant. Though the responsibilities and duties of a dermatology medical assistant vary in medical organizations and clinics, the popularity and prominence of dermatology medical assistants as the single largest group of support systems to dermatologists cannot be denied. The dermatology medical assistants’ duties also involve them being the point of contact and first assistants during dermatology procedures and settings.

Dermatology medical assistants play an essential role in educating patients about their conditions and being scribes to dermatologists, documenting all procedures and findings. For both, a dermatology medical assistant has to be well-acquainted with the medical terminology of the field as well as standard dermatology disease processes.

Job Duties: What Does a Dermatology Medical Assistant Do?

A dermatology medical assistant has many duties relating to medical and cosmetic dermatology, which are clinical and administrative. They aid health professionals and dermatologists with patient care of individuals who have dermatological issues. These specialized medical assistants are responsible for running the quotidian activities of the medical site, besides maintaining electronic medical records of patients. They are also expected to document procedures and exam findings as well as being assistants of dermatologists. Detailed insight of dermatology medical assistants are provided below:

Education Requirements for Dermatology MAs

A dermatology medical assistant is not mandated by law to have formal education, but it is always better that they do. Most states do not have educational related dermatology medical assistant requirements, but employability chances are more for educationally trained medical assistants. There are many course options available for dermatology medical assistants from reputed public and private MA schools.

A certificate in medical assisting can be procured or a diploma for medical assistants interested in short-term formal education options. For long-term prospects, an Associate in Applied Sciences in medical assisting can be acquired. All courses in medical assisting involve a minimum of 160 hours of unpaid clinical externship under direct supervision to learn about the practical technicalities of the field.

Certification Requirements

Medical assistants who have national certificates have high employability standards and are preferred over the rest by recruiters. The 2 most prominent certification options include Certified Medical Assistant (CMA) from the American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA) and Registered Medical Assistant (RMA) provided by the American Medical Technologists (AMT). For candidates interested in sitting for CMA and RMA examinations, they must have completed formal education from schools that have been accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) or the Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools (ABHES).

There are other options for national certifications too. They include National Certified Medical Assistant (NCMA) credential provided by NCCT, Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (CCMA) by National Healthcare Association (NHA), and Nationally Registered Certified Medical Assistant (NRCMA) provided by National Association of Health Professionals (NAHP).

Dermatology medical assistants require special certification for the specialized services they would provide. Their certification acts as a testimony of their skills at nationally accepted standards. A Specialty Certified Medical Assistant in Dermatology (SCMA-D™) is recommended for dermatology medical assistants. The SCMA certification is available in 13 therapeutic specialties, where Dermatology is just one of them.

There’s also another certification available for dermatology medical assistants, namely, Certified Dermatology Tech (CDT), valid for 2 years after the first certification. This certification ensures that every candidate maintains a higher level of dermatology specific knowledge.

Recertification and Continuing Education

All certifications need to be renewed after a specific period so that medical assistants stay updated with the ongoing changes in the medical field. For the RMA national certification, it must be renewed every 3 years by staying in compliance with the AMT rules and regulations. AAMA’s CMA certification has a separate renewal procedure every 5 years.

For the dermatology specialized certification of SCMA-D™, medical assistants must renew their certification every year. For the Certified Dermatology Tech (CDT) certification, candidates must renew the certificate every 2 years. There’s a nominal fee of $39 attached to the process. The recertification testing is valid for individuals who already have Certified Dermatology Tech (CDT), which is supposed to expire within 8 weeks or has expired but within no greater than the last 6 months.

Enrollment in the renewal course provides candidates 3 months of access to all learning modules. The recertification examination has 300 questions, and they don’t need to complete the entire right away. A span of 2 weeks will be provided to complete the test, and they will be allowed to save their progress. The recertification testing examination must be completed within 3 months of enrollment. They will need to earn a score of 75 or better to pass the recertification examination and have 2 attempts to complete the recertification examination.

Qualities/Skills Required for a Dermatology Medical Assistant

To be a dermatology medical assistant, one needs to have a set of personal and professional qualities. They also have to spearhead emergencies as and when they arise. Some skills required to be a dermatology medical assistant include:

Dermatology Medical Assistant Salary and Job Outlook

According to data from salary.com, dermatology medical assistants get paid around $17 to $19 per hour in the US. The median hourly salary is $18, as of January 03, 2023. They are also entitled to a bonus of $41 and other benefits like social security, disability, healthcare, pension, and time off. The value of benefits with the salary amounts to $56,485 annually.

Resourceful Links for Dermatology MAs

1. Association of Certified Dermatology Techs

   Established in 2012, the ACDT is an organization that houses all certified dermatology techs and looks after their best interests. They provide educational and certification opportunities to medical assistants and other allied health professionals in supportive roles of clinical dermatology.

2. Indeed.com

   It is one of the most reputable resources for medical assistants, informing them of current job openings, salary dynamics, and other important information they need to know.

3. Scope of Practice

   As medical assistants are mostly unlicensed professionals, this scope of practice mentions their responsibilities and the rules and regulations they are expected to function in clinical set-ups and ambulatory settings.