Medical Assistant Skills To Include on Your Resume

As per Indeed.com medical assistants benefit from developing certain technical and interpersonal skills. If you want to land a job as a medical assistant, mention these skills on your resume. Employers typically only look at each resume for a few seconds, so by including the most sought-after skills in your field, you give yourself a better chance at getting the job. In this article, learn about some of the best medical assistant skills that you should add to your resume.

What are medical assistant resume skills?

Medical assistant resume skills are the most in-demand skills for medical assistants that you’ll want to include on your resume. Employers are looking for certain keywords when they scan a resume, so including these skills can give you a better chance of getting invited for an interview. Medical assistant tasks are often both clerical and administrative, so the skills you should list on your resume will relate to one of these two categories.

Examples of 9 medical assistant resume skills

Below are nine beneficial skills you should try to add to your medical assistant resume. If any of these skills apply to you, be sure to include them before applying to your next job. It can also help to develop any of these skills if you haven’t done so already.

1. Administrative skills

During a typical day as a medical assistant, you may do things such as answering the phones, scheduling appointments or greeting patients. Employers are looking for medical assistants who can handle these daily administrative tasks and who have experience with them.

The best way to describe your administrative skills is likely through your experience section. If you have a job where you’ve done this work before, even if the job is unrelated, you can list your exact job responsibilities within that position. For example, if you previously worked as a receptionist, mention it on your resume and explain how you used office software to efficiently schedule, reschedule and cancel appointments for visitors.

2. Communication

Medical assistants are required to have strong written and verbal communication skills. You should feel comfortable talking with patients, explaining important concepts clearly and providing them with detailed written notes.

Some daily tasks as a medical assistant that require communication skills may include answering the phones, responding to emails and working with both patients and coworkers.

3. Time management

A good medical assistant will be able to comfortably and manage both their time and their employer’s time. For example, if you’re working in a doctor’s private practice, you may be required to schedule appointments for the doctor.

Medical assistants also have a wide range of clerical tasks that they need to perform each day, making it especially important to manage your time well. Employers want to see that you can complete tasks in a reasonable amount of time and keep things in the workplace running smoothly.

4. Cleanliness and organization

Sterile equipment is a necessity in the health care industry. All medical assistants should know how to keep equipment sterile and to maintain a strong practice of doing so. Sterile equipment is vital for patient health and every employer takes it seriously.

If you have previous experience as a medical assistant, you may have already learned the essential steps involved in keeping medical equipment sterile. By listing this skill on your resume, you’ll show employers you take this responsibility seriously and that you know how to do it.

5. Following protocols

Most health care facilities follow strict protocols designed to keep patients safe and the workplace in order. Some other protocols medical assistants will need to know about include dealing with infectious diseases, the proper way to fill out paperwork, and the right way to bill customers.

Employers will show new medical assistants their own protocols, but having experience with them elsewhere can help you gain an advantage when searching for a new job in this field. It shows that you’re familiar with the importance of following these rules and that you’re able to learn the proper way to do things.

6. Attention to detail

Record-keeping is a big part of being a medical assistant, and it’s vital for keeping patients healthy. Doctors and nurses need an accurate record of any procedures a patient has gone through or medication they are on so they can give them proper medical treatment going forward. It’s often up to the medical assistant to keep track of these procedures and medications for future reference.

To keep accurate records, a good medical assistant will have strong attention to detail. If you have experience keeping records elsewhere, not necessarily in the healthcare field, still list this as a skill on your resume.

7. Knowledge of basic medical procedures

As a medical assistant, you may be required to perform some basic medical procedures. For example, you may need to draw blood, change bandages or administer vaccines. If this is one of your skills, this is another one that fits well within your experience section. When describing your past work experience, be sure to specifically mention the basic medical procedures you’re familiar with.

8. Computer skills

Since a lot of medical assistant tasks are administrative, medical assistants will spend a considerable amount of time using a computer. Listing computer competency as one of your skills will show employers that they won’t need to spend much time training you on their scheduling software or their email program.

9. Interpersonal skills

To excel as a medical assistant, have strong interpersonal skills. You will often deal with patients who are sick or in pain, which requires certain levels of compassion and empathy. A good medical assistant is one that works well with people and who has a passion for helping people. To show your interpersonal skills on your resume, you can list instances in which you helped people. For example, volunteer work may go well here.

Sample medical assistant resume skills section

You can highlight your skills on a medical assistant resume through either the skills section or the work experience section. Here is an example of each:

Medical assistant skills in a resume skills section

Scheduling software

Answering phones

Interacting with patients

Attention to detail

Time management

Strong verbal and written communication