As a requirement for the completion of my course, I had to undertake an internship program. Of course, there are quite a lot of insights that I gained after undertaking my attachment at the Spring St. Dermatology, (73rd) street New York. In line with the specialization of the office I was attached to, I gained much experience in skin medical and cosmetics procedures.
Of the many insight that I got was a new meaning for professionalism and also to appreciate it. I learn that professionalism has to do with observing the ethics related to a given line of work, and maintaining the highest levels of integrity even in the most unfavorable circumstances. The experience imparted on my personal professionalism where I came to learn that it is about having a great personality, and having the knowledge about the concept of being a medical assistant. As such I practiced much professionalism while dealing with the patients such that I got a lot of positive feedback. However, there are always the low moments in everything, and at times I had to deal with angry and upset clients who gave negative comments. Since this is the nature of the job, I had to deal with it professionally. This changed the manner in which I deal with patient presentation. Whether they have negative or positive attitudes, I have to deal with them professionally.
The experience also impacted on the manner in which I relate with my co-workers. Through practical hands on experience of the actual environment that I will be working in, I came to realize that there will always be differing points of view between my colleagues and I. The good thing is that the experience taught me that there is always the good way of dealing with such differences in order to get a positive outcome.
Through the experience, I had hoped that I could gain experience with EKG’s, venipuncture, and urinalysis. However, this was not to be the case since the facility did not have this facility. Nevertheless, I did venipuncture and was excellent at it. In fact, I was frequently asked to do it since I never missed the veins. This was quite exciting and fulfilling on my side. They also called me an expert of doing pre acne extraction procedures; feeling amazing when the doctor asked me to do it. I felt I gain the trust that I was looking for to myself, because I do not have confidence when I started the job. After I familiar the procedures, I performed it professionally though there was not so much on the managerial part. I did not perform the clerical duties at the front desk (phone, billing and filling) but I did lab testing, data entry, instrument inventory, samples inventory and maintaining and organizing around the area.
In regard to the computer skills that I learned from school, it was quite helpful but Spring Street site did not use Microsoft Word. I would, therefore, suggest the initiation of medisoft software class, since most medical fields are currently using the same or similar software. Another addition should be the Mac OS because many medical facilities are shifting to Mac OS.
Regarding with the time management skills, I could say that the experience taught me to be good on a lean schedule and still deliver the right results. I got to work on time; never got late, and stayed longer hours. This went a long way in improving my set of skills which is a major development in my career.
In addition, I could say that the experience gave me more knowledge of being a medical assistant. It is well known that having the theoretical knowledge of a subject does not mean that an individual has the right qualifications for the job. As such, this was a time for me to gauge whether I am fit for the work I am trained for, and I am proud to say that I feel set for the task ahead. In conclusion, the experience was much of what I had expected to get. There were some low moments for me, especially when I was blamed for something that I had not done. However, this does not disregard the fact that it was an eye-opening opportunity for me, where I had an insight into the real professional world.
