CHC-backed program graduates first medical-assistants class

Article first published in Hartford Business Journal

The first class of medical assistants trained specifically to work as key members of primary care teams graduated last week from the National Institute for Medical Assistant Advancement (NIMAA), a new national training program developed by Community Health Center Inc. of Middletown and Salud Family Health Centers of Colorado.

The seven-month classroom, online and clinical training program trains students to be medical assistants (MAs) who help with primary care office tasks such as taking weight and blood pressure, using electronic records and choreographing patient visits with physicians. They are not nurses, but the position provides entry-level exposure to the medical profession and is a growing area in health care, said Leslie Gianelli, CHC spokeswoman.

CHC graduated four students last week and Salud six and the two plan to expand their NIMAA program to 10 or 12 more clinics across the U.S. who subscribe to their training model and curriculum, Gianelli said. Classes would begin in September and cost $6,000. NIMAA also plans a shorter, less expensive program to upgrade skills of existing medical assistants, starting in early 2018.

CHC and Salud started the program after finding new MAs often weren’t fully prepared for team-based primary care and required additional training, so it began the higher-level NIMAA program allowing graduates to be ready to work on their first day, Gianelli said. CHC may hire some of the graduates, pending passing a required exam, but graduates are free to take their skills anywhere.

The Department of Labor anticipates more than 20 percent growth in the need for MAs over the next decade, said David Aylward, project lead for NIMAA.