The growing role of MAs in geriatric care: A fulfilling career path

Medical assistants are versatile healthcare workers that perform a blend of essential clinical and administrative functions in a healthcare setting. They fluctuate between duties like greeting patients, preparing exam rooms, updating patient records, taking vital signs, scheduling appointments and so much more.  It can be an excellent career option for people who enjoy a variety of responsibilities, interacting with patients and want a job that could lead to many other healthcare roles.  

Medical assistants can work in nearly any healthcare environment. If you’re passionate about caring for elderly populations, you may be wondering whether that includes geriatric care settings. The answer, however, is a little complex. 

Medical assistants in geriatric care settings

When you think of geriatric care settings, you probably imagine nursing homes, assisting living and skilled nursing facilities. The reality is that most of these facilities require staff to have some kind of license to work there. This often includes positions like registered nurses (RNs), licensed practical/vocation nurses (LPN/LVNs) or certified nursing assistants (CNAs). In fact, most states require long-term care professionals to have a qualifying license by law.  

“Right now I know that in Florida to work in assisted living or a nursing home facility, it’s usually a state requirement to be a CNA or an RN or LPN,” said Michelle Keim, Medical Assisting Program Director for Indian River State College in Florida’s Port St. Lucie. “They may be able to integrate that medical assistance and have it under a different type of position, maybe more like a patient care tech or a health aide. But for the most part I’m still kind of seeing that’s strictly going to be those state licenses.” 

Since there are no licenses for medical assistants, nursing staff handles clinical care while medical assistant positions in these types of facilities are usually more administrative in nature. But these aren’t the only places you can treat older adults as a medical assistant.  

“We live in Florida, we live in the land of the retired. There is no shortage of geriatric practices. Even within the family practice, they’re going to see patients up until possibly palliative care is needed. Medical assistants are still going to be utilized in those kind of settings,” Keim said.

Are opportunities in geriatric care growing?

It’s difficult to say with certainty whether job opportunities for medical assistants in geriatric care settings are indeed on the rise. After all, employment for medical assistants in nursing homes, assisted living and skilled nursing facilities is somewhat limited due to their scope of practice and lack of licensure.

A struggling labor force

But there are a few things we do know for certain. The workforce in long-term care settings is experiencing a massive labor shortage. A 2024 report from the American Health Care Association (AHCA) and the National Center for Assisted Living (NCAL) found that 99% of nursing homes currently have job openings, with 89% actively hiring for registered nurses (RNs). In addition, nearly half (46%) of nursing homes surveyed were actively limiting admissions, and nearly 20% reported closing a unit, wing or floor due to labor challenges.  

The COVID-19 pandemic is partly to blame. Nursing homes experienced the worst job losses during the pandemic compared to any other healthcare sector, according to the report. And when you consider that the industry was experiencing staffing shortages long before the pandemic, it makes clear just how dire things are. The report goes on to say that 94% of facilities claim it’s difficult to recruit new staff, with 67% of facilities citing a lack of interested or qualified candidates as an “extremely big obstacle.”

Where do MAs come in?

So—could medical assistants help offset some of these staffing challenges? It’s possible.  

“I’m a little bit biased because I run the program, but I feel that an MA could be very similar, if not the same as a CNA position. As far as their qualifications and the skill sets that are required, it’s very, very similar to a CNA’s capabilities within those type of facilities,” Keim said. “I’m hoping that those doors will start to open a little bit more. And quite honestly, if they do, that would be a huge bonus for medical assisting in general because that’s a lot of job opportunities and we’re trying to get as many medical assistants out in the community as we can.” 

The reality is that lawmakers may need to amend state laws and develop a standardized medical assistant license for this to change. In the meantime, opportunities for medical assistants in other, similar settings may be on the rise. 

“In the last year and a half, I know that one of our local hospice chapters had started utilizing medical assistants,” Keim said. “It was more of an administrative position, but that’s the first time that I’ve ever encountered a need or a request for a medical assisting applicant in a hospice setting, so that is promising. I think the doors are going to continue to open.”

Working in geriatric care

If you’re a medical assistant interested in working with the elderly population, there are still some options. As Keim pointed out, a medical assistant is bound to encounter elderly patients even in standard family practice settings, outpatient clinics and specialty medical offices. You may even be able to find a job in hospice and palliative care settings.  

“A lot of students have to learn and adapt their communication skills when it comes to dealing with their geriatric patients,” Keim said. “They have to be very attentive listeners, really understand the patient’s comprehension level and the common health issues that they’re dealing with. And again, patient education is incredibly important with that generation.”