Medical assistants are an essential part of the healthcare team. They help with administrative tasks and work alongside physicians to help patients stay safe and comfortable during checkups and minor procedures.
Aesthetic medicine focuses on helping people look and feel their best. These types of offices can do things like reduce the appearance of scars and wrinkles, eliminate extra body fat, correct skin discoloration, remove unwanted hair, and more.
Many aesthetic clinics hire medical assistants to help with various parts of the day-to-day operation.
If you’re interested in working as an aesthetic medical assistant, keep reading to learn about what they do, how much money they typically earn, how to become one, and more.
What is an Aesthetic Medical Assistant?
As the name suggests, aesthetic medical assistants specialize in aesthetic medicine.
Aside from administrative tasks like scheduling and billing, they often help with minor procedures and are highly involved in patient care tasks.
Working in aesthetic medicine means that these types of medical assistants may have to learn special skills and how to handle tools to assist with minor bedside procedures.
What Does an Aesthetic Medical Assistant Do?
Aesthetic medical assistants have to have many of the same skills as other types of medical assistants, with a few additional responsibilities.
Clinical responsibilities of an aesthetic medical assistant include:
- Measuring vital signs. Some patients need to have their blood pressure, heart rate, temperature, and oxygen saturation measured at the beginning of appointments. The aesthetic medical assistant should know how to take these measurements and report any concerning findings to the physician or nurse.
- Drawing blood samples. Sometimes, medical assistants will need phlebotomy skills to collect blood samples. Information from blood samples can keep patients safe or help a provider diagnose an issue.
- Handling specimen samples. Aesthetic clinics may take skin biopsies or other tissue samples and send them to a laboratory for testing. The medical assistant should know how to handle and transport these specimens safely.
- Applying bandages. Many procedures done in aesthetic medical offices require special and even complex dressings. Medical assistants need to have a basic understanding of different types of bandages or dressings and how to apply them.
- Handling surgical tools. Many aesthetic medical assistants will assist the physician with bedside surgical procedures such as Botox, fillers, and laser treatments. They need to know the names of each instrument and how to handle them. Sometimes, learning sterile or aseptic technique is also required.
- Organizing supplies and equipment. Aesthetic medical assistants must always keep rooms stocked with the correct supplies and make sure equipment is ready to go. Ensuring that everything has a place or is working properly keeps things around the office running smoothly.
- Cleaning and organizing rooms. Rooms must be cleaned thoroughly between each patient. Rooms that are used for procedures may require heavy disinfectant.
The administrative responsibilities of an aesthetic medical assistant include:
- Answering phone calls. Patients often call to change their appointments, ask questions, or request medication refills. Aesthetic medical assistants need to understand how to prioritize each of these calls and communicate clearly over the phone.
- Managing schedules. Scheduling patient appointments requires knowledge about how long each type of appointment will take, how long it will take to clean rooms between patients, and physician preferences.
- Dealing with billing and payments. Because billing and payments are such a large part of what an aesthetic medical assistant does, some choose to become certified or take extra courses in medical billing and coding.
- Coordinating with insurance companies. While not all aesthetic services are covered by insurance, many procedures and medications are. Aesthetic medical assistants can help their patients and customers figure out what will be covered and what will not.
- Maintaining accurate medical records. Maintaining accurate records is essential for patient safety, provider accountability, and billing and insurance. Keeping records accurate and up to date is a big part of the medical assistant's job.
Where Do Aesthetic Medical Assistants Work?
Aesthetic medical assistants are very specialized. They often work in aesthetic clinics, medical spas, and dermatology offices.
Med spas and aesthetic clinics usually offer things like botox injections, laser hair removal, laser skin resurfacing, microneedling, and chemical peels.
Dermatology offices help patients struggling with skin conditions like hyperpigmentation and acne.
Aesthetic medical assistants often stay on their feet all day, walking patients from room to room, gathering supplies, and keeping appointments running on time. These types of jobs may require handling body fluids and occasionally working nights and weekends.
Skills Required to Be an Aesthetic Medical Assistant?
Being a great aesthetic medical assistant requires some special skills. These include:
- Attention to detail
- Organization
- Good manual dexterity
- Customer service
- Communication
- Empathy
- Medical terminology
- Computer skills
- Time management
Aesthetic Medical Assistant Salaries & Job Outlook
The national average for medical assistant salaries is $42,000 per hour for full-time work, which comes out to $20.19 per hour. However, salaries vary based on work location, experience, certifications, and type of facility.
The job outlook for medical assistants is good, with a predicted growth of 15% between 2023 and 2033.
Aesthetic medical assistants in the United States earn a medical salary of $44,371, with the lowest 10% making $29,494 and the highest 10% earning $53,997.
Working in a bigger city, earning more certifications, and getting experience can all help you earn a higher salary as an aesthetic medical assistant.
How to Become an Aesthetic Medical Assistant
If becoming an aesthetic medical assistant is something that interests you, there are a few steps you’ll have to take:
- Obtain your high school diploma or GED. All medical assistants, including aesthetic medical assistants, need a high school diploma or GED before they can start working at any kind of medical facility. Most people without a high school diploma can earn their GED in just a few weeks.
- Find a certification program. While certification is not always required, most employers prefer to hire certified medical assistants. You can choose to get an associate degree, but there are also many online medical assistant programs that are much cheaper and can be completed in just a few months.
- Get trained and educated. Medical assisting training programs will include classes on infection control, patient care, customer service, patient documentation, and healthcare laws. Medical assisting courses typically last anywhere from 4 months to 2 years.
- Complete an externship program. If you can, try to get some hands-on experience in a medspa or aesthetic surgery center. Participating in an externship means you’ll get to practice with an experienced medical assistant and learn from them before you start working on your own. You may even build relationships during your externship that help you land a job.
- Build your resume. Even if you have little work experience, you can build a great resume. Including things like service, extracurricular activities, school achievements, and other leadership opportunities will help strengthen your resume.
- Apply for jobs. Applying for jobs with websites such as Indeed and LinkedIn is a great way to streamline the application process and get a job quickly.
- Maintain your certification. After you start working, make sure you pay attention to renewal dates for your medical assisting certification. Certifications typically need to be renewed every two years.
Aesthetic Assistant Certification Options & Requirements
Earning your certification is one of the best ways to guarantee that you’ll be able to land a job as an aesthetic medical assistant.
One option is to become a Certified Medical Assistant (CMA) by taking the exam offered by the American Association of Medical Assistants. This exam covers both administrative and clinical skills for medical assistants.
You may also choose to become a Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (CCMA) by taking the exam offered by the National Healthcareer Association. This exam is similar but is more focused on clinical work such as drawing blood and measuring vital signs.
>> Read More: CMA vs. CCMA: Which is Right for Me?
All of these are great certification options and are recognized by most states and healthcare organizations.
States that require medical assisting certification include Washington, New Jersey, and South Dakota. Even though not many states require it, most employers prefer to hire certified medical assistants.
