The patient lay across the worn leather surface of the procedure bed, her body trembling as surging adrenaline expedited the time between each breath. As the assigned medical assistant, I dissected each element of her chart before she arrived at the dermatology clinic. Her medical history provided context to my observations, with an extensive history of malignant melanoma as the source of her fear.

She was young, a woman in her late twenties. To the outside eye, she had her whole life ahead of her. And yet, the scars from each excision served as daily reminders of her mortality; she offered this thought while I took her vitals, cleansed the biopsy site, and injected a localized anesthetic in preparation for the procedure. As I listened, my brain replayed a particularly painful segment of my childhood, a memory of my mother’s long but triumphant battle with the same diagnosis. Relapse was a fear with which I was all too familiar, and thus I was happy to lend an ear for a few moments of consolation.

In the minutes that proceeded the biopsy, I returned to the room bearing discharge paperwork. Together, we reviewed expectations for the following days, which mostly involved directions for proper biopsy site care, details of which had become commonplace. As we returned to the waiting room, the patient surprised me with an expression of gratitude, noting a sense of relief and solstice from her emotions heard.

This encounter profoundly shifted my perspective on the roles of a medical assistant within a patient care team. While an MA performs many crucial clinical tasks in support of the provider, they also hold the potential to impact the patient in ways that reach far beyond immediate medical needs. Frequently, I am reminded why I initially pursued this profession, with each patient interaction a testament to the fulfilling nature of my career as a medical assistant.

Become a Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (CCMA) on your terms.