MA 117 - Medical Administrative Practice I

A study of medical office communications with a focus on written correspondence, telephone techniques, non-verbal messages, therapeutic communication strategies, meeting agenda and minutes preparation, patient education resources, business travel arrangements and processing incoming/outgoing mail. Direct writing style for a specific purpose will be emphasized. Use of proper medical terminology, abbreviations, acronyms, eponyms and sound-alike words will be integrated into sentence structure and proofreading. Use of library reference materials, internet and online databases will be used to conduct medical research on a health topic of interest. The impact of technologies on oral and written communication will be addressed.

Course Outcomes
Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

• apply non-verbal communication skills by interpreting body language and recognizing barriers to effective communication;
• demonstrate active listening, reflection, restatement and clarification of therapeutic techniques when communicating with patients;
• write correspondence with the purpose to inform, promote goodwill, respond to a request and/or educate the patient in a medical office environment;
• create patient education/community resources pamphlets, referencing medical dictionaries, library materials and/or online databases to clarify medical terminology, abbreviations, eponyms and acronyms used in medical correspondence;
• apply professional telephone procedures used in a medical office including triage, screening, directing and prioritizing calls;
• participate in a business meeting; prepare minutes and agendas;
• create a travel itinerary for a medical conference; and
• learn techniques for processing incoming and outgoing mail in medical offices.