Methodist College Medical Assistant Program Receives Accreditation

The Methodist College Medical Assistant Certificate program has received national accreditation. Methodist College Chancellor James Dire has announced that the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) voted on September 20, 2019 to award initial accreditation to the Medical Assistant Certificate program at Methodist College.

“The recent peer review conducted by the Medical Assisting Education Review Board (MAERB) and CAAHEP’s Board of Directors recognizes the program’s substantial compliance with the nationally established accreditation Standards,” CAAHEP representatives stated in their notification to the college.

Achieving national certification will allow graduates of the Methodist College program to sit for the Certified Medical Assistant examination offered by the American Association of Medical Assistants. The College will also be able to extend continuing education credits to Medical Assistants in order to maintain their certification.

The Medical Assistant Certificate program at Methodist College was started in the spring 2017 semester in response to changes in the healthcare industry. With the move to provide more care in ambulatory settings – such as urgent care centers – the demand for certified medical assistants to join medical practices has increased.

The Methodist College community celebrated its first Medical Assistant Certificate graduates at the May 2019 commencement ceremony. In addition, those four graduates also successfully passed a national medical assistant certification exam. Since then, three more graduates this summer successfully achieved a 100% first-time pass rate on the national exam.

The college’s application process for accreditation candidacy was led by Medical Assistant Certificate Program Director Courtney Gehrig. Gehrig and Visiting Professor Dr. Amber Schappaugh teach in the program.

Methodist College is hosting a Medical Assistant Program Open House on Wednesday, Oct. 16 at 4:30 p.m. at the college’s campus at 7600 N. Academic Dr. Visitors to the open house will have the opportunity to learn about the program, meet with faculty, visit a medical assistant class and interact with current students. Interested individuals can learn more about the program and register for the open house at www.methodistcol.edu/medical-assistant.