This program prepares students to work in the field of medical administration and/or as medical office assistants. In the Healthcare Office Assistant program, you will take courses carefully designed to provide you with the skills and resources necessary to be successfully employed in a variety of roles in health care administration. By developing the key skills for a range of tasks, you will be prepared for responsibilities that can arise in any medical office, and therefore broadening your appeal to potential employers.
Completion Requirements: In order to successfully graduate, students are required to:
- Complete each course/module in the program with a 70% or higher marks;
- Have paid all dues (money owed) in full to the College;
Program Duration: 800 Hours. 40 Weeks.
Homework Hours: 4-6 Hours per course.
Program Organization
| Title of Course |
# of Hours |
| BUSN208 Business Career Development |
80 |
| COMM101 Business Communication |
80 |
| HCOA101 Introduction to Healthcare |
80 |
| HCOA102 Medical Office Administration |
80 |
| HCOA103 Management of Health Information |
80 |
| HCOA104 Human Behavior for Health Professionals |
80 |
| HCOA105 Ethics of Healthcare |
80 |
| HCOA106 Electronic Healthcare (Medical) Record |
80 |
| HCOA107 Healthcare Finance and Accounting |
80 |
| HCOA108 Medical Terminology |
80 |
| Total Program Hours |
800 |
Graduate students will be able to enter the job market in a variety of entry-level positions, such as:
- Private and Public Hospitals
- Public Health Offices
- Long Term Care Facilities
- Medical Offices
- Specialists’ Offices
- Nursing Services (scheduling)
- Insurance companies
- Government Offices with medical-related departments
- High School graduation or equivalent OR
- Mature Student status (19 years old before starting classes)
English Language Proficiency Admission Requirements
- English 12 (or equivalent) with Grade C or higher from Canadian High School
- Canadian Language Benchmarks (CLBs) 7 or higher
- IELTS minimum 6 overall or higher
- TOEFL 550 score or higher
- TOEFL (iBT) 70 or higher
- Cambridge English 160 or higher
- Pearson Test of English (PTE) 59 or higher
- Duolingo English Test 95 or higher
- Canadian English Language Proficiency Index Program (CELPIP) 7 or higher
- Wonderlic SLE 15 or higher
Upon completion of this program, the successful student will have reliably demonstrated the ability to:
- Perform medical office tasks, including scheduling appointments, and documenting and maintaining medical records, while maintaining confidentiality, managing time effectively, showing professionalism, and being ethical.
- Apply and understand commonly used medical terminology.
- Assist physicians and prepare patients for examinations, clinical procedures, and tests.
- Manage the input and retrieval of data using electronic medical record software.
- Prepare bills for visits, supplementary items, and diagnostic procedures carried out in a medical office, a hospital, or home as dictated by the Medical Services Plan (MSP) of British Columbia.
- Create professional medical documents, letters, and emails that are respectful to the recipients and contain proper paragraphs, proper sentence structure, correctly spelled words and abbreviations, and correct grammar.
- Apply critical thinking and problem-solving techniques to resolve issues that can be found in a medical office.
- Provides person-centred care and assistance that recognizes and respects the uniqueness of each individual client.
- Communicates clearly, accurately, and in sensitive ways with clients and families within a variety of community and facility contexts.
- Interacts with other members of the healthcare team in ways that contribute to effective working relationships and the achievement of goals.
