Are you interested in becoming a medical assistant but not sure if you are ready to learn phlebotomy? Medical assisting programs teach you what you need to know to be successful in this field. From office to clinical procedures, it’s all covered. But there’s often some confusion about whether the curriculum includes phlebotomy. The good news is, it does. A valuable skill, phlebotomy is just one of many you’ll learn on the path to your new career.
What Does a Medical Assistant Do?
Medical assistants manage a broad range of clinical and administrative duties in a medical office setting. Employed by private practices, clinics and hospitals, medical assistants are the backbone of any medical facility. Here are some of their daily responsibilities:
Triaging Telephone Calls
While office assistants handle routine scheduling, when patients need to speak to someone with clinical expertise, calls go to a medical assistant. Medical assistants screen for symptoms and direct priority inquiries to the doctor so the sickest patients receive prompt care.
Greeting and Rooming Patients
Medical assistants accompany patients to treatment rooms, making clinical observations on the way. They update clients’ medical records, perform standardized assessments, and prepare patients for the exam before the provider arrives.
Obtaining Vital Signs
A patient’s temperature, heart rate, and blood pressure can tell the doctor a lot about their condition. A medical assistant takes vital signs before each visit to track changing trends and save the doctor time.
Assisting with Treatments and Procedures
Whether it’s packing a wound or performing a minor surgical procedure, doctors need a helping hand with complex treatments. Medical assistants can set up equipment, pass instruments and monitor patients for comfort and safety as well as manage post-procedure care, such as suture removal.
Infection Control
Infection control is essential in medical settings. Medical assistants keep patients and colleagues safe by sanitizing shared spaces and sterilizing instruments and treatment supplies.
Stocking Exam Rooms
Medical assistants ensure treatment rooms are fully stocked and ready to go when patients arrive, also helping to manage inventory.
Performing Diagnostics
Medical assistants perform important diagnostic tests such as EKGs, pacemaker checks, pregnancy tests and many more. With supervision and additional training, medical assistants can assist with x-rays and fetal heartbeat monitoring.
Patient Education
Serving as the doctor’s liaison, medical assistants help patients better understand their treatment plans. They reinforce recommendations, review instructions, discuss lab results and provide timely information on health issues from drug safety to vaccines.
Phlebotomy
Phlebotomy, the science of drawing blood from a vein with a needle, is a highly sought-after skill. Let’s take a closer look at what it is, the tools of the trade and how it’s done.
Do Medical Assistants Learn Phlebotomy?
Phlebotomy is part of the medical assisting curriculum. While the instruction is not as in-depth as what someone in a certified phlebotomy course would receive, students learn the techniques necessary to perform basic draws in office settings.
What Tools and Supplies Will You Use for Phlebotomy?
In a medical assisting program, you’ll learn about the different supplies and tools used to perform phlebotomy. They include:
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
Medical assistants protect themselves from blood splatter and needle-stick injuries by using personal protective equipment, such as disposable gloves and face shields.
Sharps Containers
Used needles are immediately discarded in red, portable, puncture-resistant biohazard containers with tamper-proof lids known as Sharps containers.
Alcohol or Chlorhexidine Pads
Phlebotomy is a clean process, although not fully sanitized. Scrubbing the needle insertion site with an alcohol or chlorhexidine pad reduces bacterial counts and helps avoid infections.
Needles
Needles are available in a broad range for patients of all sizes. Measured in gauge, longer, larger diameter needles are perfect for most adults while shorter length needles are preferred for children and seniors.
Larger needles exert excessive pressure on weak veins and can cause them to collapse or roll when punctured. In your medical assisting program, you’ll develop the clinical judgment necessary to make the appropriate choices.
Tourniquets
Applying a light tourniquet above the phlebotomy site enlarges the vein by keeping blood in the limb. It also increases the vein’s resistance to pressure so that it’s less likely to move or collapse when the needle is inserted. Most commonly, you’ll apply it to the mid-upper arm for draws from the antecubital vein near the elbow or just above the wrist for sites on the top of the hand.
Collection Tubes
Blood was once drawn with the same type of needle and syringe that injections are given with. Today, vacuum collection tubes take the stress out of drawing and mixing samples. Color-coded tubes in your choice of sizes come preloaded with the additives required for certain tests, resulting in better quality samples and more accurate results.
Bandages
It’s not unusual for a phlebotomy site to bleed after a draw. You’ll press a gauze pad or cotton ball on the site to stop the bleeding and minimize bruising, covering it with a dry bandage to protect the patient’s clothing.
What Is the Phlebotomy Procedure Like?
The procedure is tested in the lab and fellow classmates during a medical assistant program. When the program is completed, you will be confident about performing phlebotomy and your patient will sense that too. The procedure of a blood draw is as follows:
Review the Requisition
Lab orders come with requisition forms specifying the type of tests the doctor wants. Reviewing it will help you choose the correct color tubes and supplies for the draw.
Screen the Patient
You’ll verify the patient’s identity and screen them for issues related to blood draws, such as allergies to supplies or a history of fainting.
Gather Supplies
In the middle of a draw isn’t the time to forgot a tube. Gather supplies in advance and check them twice before you begin. While you do, you can explain the process to the patient and answer any questions.
Position the Patient
Most patients sit in upright chairs that allow you easy access to the vein. Typically, there’s an extension upon which to position the arm so it doesn’t slip. People who are fearful of blood draws or likely to faint should lay down. As with any medical treatment, it’s always safety first.
Locate the Vein
It’s important to take blood from a vein that’s likely to give you a good sample. However, among the chronically ill, some have had their blood drawn so many times that veins become scarred. Identifying the best vein possible before beginning the procedure increases the chances of a successful draw the first time.
Draw the Blood
The actual venipuncture process takes less than two minutes, and is as follows:
- Wash your hands thoroughly and put on disposable gloves
- Cleanse the venipuncture site
- Apply the tourniquet
- Stabilize the vein with your thumb and forefinger, you’ll practice this technique in school
- Insert the needle with a quick, smooth motion
- Advance the collection tube
- Release the tourniquet when the tube begins to fill
- Remove the needle and apply pressure to the puncture site to stop the bleeding
- Cover the wound with tape or an adhesive bandage
- Dispose of the needle in a Sharps container
- Discard your gloves and label the collection tubes, accuracy is a must
- Bruising can be a side effect of venipuncture, so before the patient leaves, discuss self-care options, ice and elevation
Why Is Phlebotomy Important for Medical Assistants to Learn?
There are many good reasons to learn phlebotomy. Phlebotomy helps doctors:
Diagnose Disease
Blood tests can measure thousands of components in the bloodstream. Abnormally high or low levels signal a range of medical conditions, such as:
- Heart failure
- Diabetes
- Kidney and liver disorders
- Cancer
- Blood clotting abnormalities
- Nutritional deficiencies
- Anemia
- Infections
Adjust Drug Dosages
Some drugs, such as antibiotics, anticoagulants, and anti-seizure medications have a narrow therapeutic range, meaning that low levels don’t help the patient while high concentrations can be toxic. Many people also have preexisting conditions, such as liver, kidney or gastrointestinal diseases that affect how their bodies metabolize drugs. Testing helps doctors adjust medication doses properly.
Project Health Risks
Without being abnormal, high or low levels of some components in the bloodstream can increase or decrease the risk of illness in the future. High cholesterol, for example, is a risk factor for heart disease, while rising blood glucose could signal diabetes. Identifying these risks early enables prompt treatment.
Skills for Phlebotomists
There are many skills that make a successful phlebotomist. As a phlebotomist you should master the following skills:
Empathetic
Some Americans are afraid to have their blood drawn. A small percent suffer from a severe form of fright known as trypanophobia. As a medical assistant, being able to put yourself in their shoes is a prerequisite for success. Reducing their anxiety makes the process easier for them and you.
A Critical Thinker
Phlebotomists need sound clinical judgment. Vocational school programs teach skills, but common sense is what drives real-world decision-making. The best phlebotomists get to know their patients, making decisions based on their clinical expertise and personal experience.
Dexterity
Having a steady hand is helpful for phlebotomists, but don’t worry if you don’t. With training and experience, it gets easier.
Detail-Oriented
Many lab errors are attributed to phlebotomists. Mistakes on labels and poor venipuncture techniques can result in samples being rejected. No one likes repeat draws.
Confident
The idea of drawing blood is intimidating for some students, but vocational schools have it covered. They’ll help you cultivate the practical and soft skills you need to feel confident. You’ll practice in the lab and on peers until you’re ready to go solo. You may be shaky at first, but projecting confidence is critical. Only practice makes perfect.
Final Thoughts
More private practices are offering phlebotomy services as a convenience for patients and to boost revenue. Because of this, there will always be demand for medical assistants to perform phlebotomy. Phlebotomy is, and will continue to be, among a medical assistant’s most desirable skills.
Meridian College offers hands–on Medical Assistant training from experienced school faculty who know how to prepare you for the daily challenges you’ll face on the job. From assisting doctors with patients to important administrative tasks, our experienced Medical Assistant program teachers will train you for a rewarding new career.
In addition to receiving training from school instructors with real-world experience, you will also complete a school externship in a physician’s office, clinic, or related healthcare facility under the supervision of a physician, nurse, or health services professional to further develop your skills.
Contact Meridian College today to learn more about becoming a medical assistant.