Medical Assistant Transition to a Nursing Career

Medical assistants are fortunate in that they learn a number of different clinical skills. Their role is to assist providers with requested and necessary tasks, and they are trained to perform basic clinical tasks such as:

• Taking vital signs
• Performing ear lavage
• Simple wound care
• Suture or staple removal
• Performing EKGs
• Collecting medical histories
• Administering medications/ giving injections

Because medical assistants have a background in supporting medical providers in clinic, they may find transitioning to nursing goes smoother compared to those with little to no background in healthcare.

Your first first step in becoming a career nurse is to enroll in nursing school. Sumner College can get you starter with their Medical Assisting program which can be completed in a 7.5 months giving you an advantage. Some nursing programs receive more student applicants than their nursing programs can allow in. Some schools grant admission based on prior healthcare experience, so the MA’s background may give you a leg-up when it comes to applying for a nursing program.

Check out Sumner College’s Medical Assistant Program HERE.