Fast-track Online Medical Office Specialist Pilot Program and Safe Zone Workshops
Program Description:
- Safe Zone Workshops bring together health equity, social justice, and access-to-care concepts to describe patterns and underlying causes of inequities, and the systems and policy barriers that contribute to health disparities.
- CAAHEC partnered with the Regional Center for Border Health (RCBH) to provide opportunities for health center staff to train prospective and current Medical Assistants (MAs) through a Medical Office Specialist Pilot Program known as MA Fast Track, training students how to check in patients, collect payment and insurance information, and more.
Program Goals:
- Address barriers to care faced by minority and marginalized populations and improve health disparities through Safe Zone workshops.
- Respond to healthcare workforce shortages through early and accelerated MA training.
CDC COVID-19 Health Disparities Grant Strategies:
Strategy 1: Expand existing and/or develop new mitigation and prevention resources and services to reduce COVID-19-related disparities among populations at higher risk and that are underserved.
Key Impacts:
The Safe Zone workshops deepened participants’ understanding of the impacts of racism and other systemic biases that impact the health of high-risk and marginalized populations such as the LGBTQ community, people with substance use and mental health issues, enabling them to address policy barriers and improve local systems and health equity.
The MA Fast Track program helped to address the shortage of health professionals in critical areas and provided career advancement opportunities. Participation from the health centers meant the ability to combine additional training with students’ regular duties. The ongoing support from CAAHEC and the RCBH through the program represents a significant commitment to the health centers and their communities.
“The MA Fast Track program has great potential, it is a morale booster for our team and if there are additional opportunities to expand, that would be incredible for our health center!”
Milestones:
- Conducted two Safe Zone workshops in the Summer of 2022 and the Spring of 2023, educating University of Arizona Health Sciences students, Area Health Education Centers Scholars, health care professionals, and high school students
- Launched two cohorts of students
- Cohort 1: 88% of 32 students graduated from the MA pilot program in February 2023; 100% of these passed their national certifications in Medical Assisting and Medical Office Specialists.
- Cohort 2: 30 students are currently enrolled the program
Stepping into the future:
The MA Fast Track program is ongoing.
Partnerships developed or strengthened:
University of Arizona College of Nursing
Regional Center for Border Health-College of Health Careers
Neighborhood Outreach Access to Health (NOAH)
Wesley Community and Health Centers
Desert Senita Community Health Center
Canyonlands Healthcare
Creek Valley Health Clinic
Tuba City Regional Health Care Corporation
Chiricahua Community Health Centers, Inc.
Circle the City
Native Health
