Most people know what a secretary is, but may not understand what a medical secretary is.
A medical secretary handles the administrative and organizational tasks in a medical office, hospital, or other healthcare organization.
This career is great for people who are interested in healthcare, want to earn a good living, and have great customer service skills.
Medical secretaries are required to have a high school diploma or GED, but they often choose to get certified as medical administrative assistants. Earning a certification makes it easier to get a job and feel confident in your skills as a medical secretary.
This guide will go over what medical secretaries are, what their responsibilities are, average salaries, requirements, and more.
What is a Medical Secretary & What Do They Do?
Medical secretaries—also called medical administrative assistants, medical receptionists, medical office assistants, medical office specialists—have a job description that is similar to other types of secretaries. However, medical secretaries have duties that can be more complicated than other types of secretaries.
Medical secretaries' daily responsibilities include:
- Prepare the office for the day. Medical secretaries typically arrive before physicians and nurses and get the office ready for the day. They make sure that things are clean and organized, return missed calls, and confirm the daily schedule of appointments and physician availability.
- Schedule appointments and send appointment reminders. One of the main responsibilities of the medical secretary is to schedule patient appointments and send appointment reminders. They have to know how long each appointment should last, physician availability, and how much time it will take to clean rooms between patients.
- Take inventory and reorder supplies. Each day, medical secretaries need to assess both office supplies and medical supplies and figure out what needs to be re-ordered or reorganized. They may have to look at the daily schedule and stock rooms for specific procedures or appointments that will be happening.
- Handle billing and coding. Some medical secretaries take special billing and coding courses to ensure they can handle their responsibilities. Billing and coding can be confusing and must be done efficiently and accurately.
- Answer patient questions. Medical secretaries answer patient phone calls and can answer questions about billing and scheduling. In addition, medical secretaries have to coordinate with physicians when patients call asking questions about medications, side effects, or health problems.
- Help manage prescription refills. Many patients call or email medical secretaries when they need a prescription refill. The medical secretary works with the physician and pharmacist to help patients get the medications they need.
Where Do Medical Secretaries Work?
Medical secretaries work in many different types of healthcare organizations. They may work in offices of physicians, hospitals, offices of dentists, surgical centers, birthing centers, chiropractic offices, or even insurance offices.
Medical secretaries in offices and outpatient surgical centers are more likely to work a regular weekday schedule, while those in birthing centers or hospitals may have to work holidays, nights, and weekends.
Most medical secretaries stay busy throughout the day and spend a lot of time on the computer but also are on their feet some restocking supplies and organizing the office.
Why You Should Consider Getting Certified as a Medical Secretary
If you want to be successful as a medical secretary, you may want to consider earning a certification.
Medical secretaries have to have a good understanding of complex topics such as medical terminology, billing and insurance coding, and customer service for patients dealing with medical issues.
In addition, most healthcare organizations prefer to hire allied health professionals who have earned a certification.
The most popular certification for medical secretaries is the NHA’s Certified Medical Administrative Assistant (CMAA). Earning this certification—which is the most recognized nationally—shows that you have the knowledge, skills, and motivation to be an effective medical secretary.
Here at Stepful, we have a 3-Month Online Medical Secretary Program that prepares you to work as a medical secretary. We even help with resume building, job interview prep, and finding jobs, and have a 100% job placement guarantee.
How to Become a Medical Secretary: Requirements & Steps
If you are interested in becoming a medical secretary, you can complete your training, earn a certification, and get a job in just a few weeks.
Requirements and steps you can take to start a career as a medical secretary include:
- Obtain your high school diploma or GED. All medical secretaries must have their high school diploma or GED.
- Decide if you want to pursue a certification. While it is not required, becoming a CMAA can help you become a more competitive job applicant and ask for a higher starting salary. Some organizations may require their employees to earn their certification.
- Start a training program. Online training programs are a great way to get an education, especially if you need to continue working or taking care of your family while in school. Training programs will help you learn about customer service, healthcare ethics, and handling insurance claims in just a few months. For example, we have an online medical administrative assistant program here at Stepful that only takes 3 months.
- Study for your exam. Even after completing your training, you will have to commit some time to studying for your certification exam. The pass rate for the CMAA exam in 2023 was 69%.
- Take your certification exam. The CMAA exam must either be taken at a testing center or with a live proctor online. No calculators or notes are allowed, and the exam has 110 scored questions. Students are given two hours and 15 minutes to complete the test.
- Get started on your career. After you pass your exam, you are ready to start your career as a medical secretary. Many training programs have job placement support and can help you build a resume, practice interview techniques, and apply for jobs.
- Maintain your certification. It is important to remember that CMAA certifications must be renewed every two years.
Skills Required to be a Successful Medical Secretary
In addition to having a certification, there are several skills you can develop to be a successful medical secretary. These include:
- Driven. In order to be successful as a medical secretary, you need to be self-reliant and able to stay on task. Medical secretaries have busy schedules and should be prepared to work hard throughout their shifts.
- Patient. People who interact with medical secretaries are often nervous about their medical appointments. Medical secretaries need to be reassuring and understanding while answering patients’ questions and addressing their concerns.
- Reliable. Anyone who works in the medical field needs to be reliable and responsible. Everyone on the healthcare team, including medical secretaries, has a responsibility to care for the health and well-being of every patient that they care for.
- Organized. Medical secretaries spend their days managing busy schedules, handling supplies, and recording medical information. Being well-organized ensures that no important information or medical equipment is lost or misused.
- Great communication. Throughout the day, medical secretaries may work with physicians, nurses, therapists, patients, and insurance representatives. They must have clear written and verbal communication to ensure that things are done safely and efficiently.
- Good problem-solving skills. Medical secretaries often face many challenges throughout the day and have to be able to manage them without getting overwhelmed. Rescheduling appointments, finding missing equipment, or correcting billing mistakes are just some of the problems that a medical secretary may have to solve during a workday.
Medical Secretary Salaries & Job Outlook
Medical secretaries earn an average of $20.85 per hour or $43,380 per year. Medical secretaries with certifications and more experience may earn up to $28.05 per hour, or $58,340 per year.
Because they are specialized and need extra training, medical secretaries are typically paid more than non-medical secretaries.
Working in a specialty unit or large city may allow you to ask for a higher starting wage. Earning a certification, completing a billing and coding course, or working night and weekend shifts are also good options if you want to increase your salary.
