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Patient Gratitude My 91-year-old mother has been going to the same primary care doctor for 10 years. Over the years, the CMA (AAMA) at the office has become an important part of my mom’s care. Not only is she incredibly compassionate, friendly, and thorough, but she also has a knack for getting my mom to open up. Whenever the doctor asks my mom how she’s doing, she always says, “Fine.” But when the CMA (AAMA) talks with her, my mom often reveals how she’s really f...

Debi Erick of Bryant & Stratton College Richmond was announced as a finalist of the Virginia Nurses Foundation’s (VNF) 2019 Leadership Excellence Award in the Nursing Deans and Directors category. Debi was recognized on September 21 at the VNF Gala, an annual event honoring the exceptional work of registered nurses across the Commonwealth.  During the past five years, Ms. Erick has lead the nursing programs at Bryant & Stratton College in reaching licensure pass rates above t...

Kerry Barnard’s family has suffered the heartbreak of heart disease. He has lost many family members to the illness, including some who died suddenly at young ages. “Heart disease is the number one killer and I definitely wanted to do something about that,” Barnard said. During 22 years directing and supervising cardiopulmonary rehabilitation programs, Barnard has worked hard to help forward the field towards savings more lives. Now, as an instructor at Bryant & Stratto...

Kerry Barnard wants students to understand that as medical professionals, they will be bilingual. “The medical field has a language all its own,” he said. “For students to be successful, they’re going to have to be speaking to highly educated colleagues fluently in medical terminology.” That’s why in his class, AHLT100 Medical Terminology, he stresses that understanding a medical term on paper and being able to use it in conversation are two very different, ...

In the fast-paced world of healthcare, the ability to handle multiple responsibilities is vital for just about every employee. Graduates of our Medical Assisting degree program gain the type of first-hand knowledge that make them indispensable to doctor’s offices, clinics, hospitals and other areas within the field. Often job titles or responsibilities are broad because most professionals in this field provide a broad spectrum of services to their employer, including various administrativ...

Jessica Bland sees her role at Bryant & Stratton College as much more than an instructor. Rather, her goal is to light the flame that motivates her students to succeed. In her welcome packet to students she quotes William Butler Yeats to summarize her teaching philosophy: “Education is not the filling of a pail, but he lighting of a fire.” She tells students that her goal is not simply for them to recite facts verbatim, but to develop a passion for learning and embrace their cal...

When a medical administrative assistant arrives at work each morning, they can be faced with gamut of tasks. These professionals can easily switch from administrative to clinical tasks throughout the day and their base of knowledge needs to be as wide as the field of duties they cover. Two courses help medical administrative assistants to stretch their overall knowledge and prepare them to better assist patients and doctors, said Jessica Bland, supportive care nurse practitioner and Bryant &...

Before you can work in virtually any hospital office you need to know the basics of human anatomy. Is your job to schedule a procedure? Transcribe doctor’s notes? Code insurance paperwork? X-ray a patient? In virtually any scenario, if you don’t know the difference between a fibula and tibiofibular, or an ileum and an ilium, or prostate and prostrate, your day can be long and confusing. There is a very long list of medical terminology that sounds similar. In HCAS 133, Survey of Anat...

As a child Tammy Weaver dreamed of being a brain surgeon. After entering nursing school, she quickly learned that the surgeons don’t necessarily have the most important job in the hospital. “Everything you do in the healthcare field is a big deal,” she tells her students. “Everything you do is important. Every person who works at the hospital has value.” Weaver started nursing school but moved to health administration. She earned her Bachelor’s degree fr...

The career of medical coding is so much more than simply punching in numbers. Those who code provide the communication between the doctor, the hospital and the insurance company. Every detail needs to be correct. “This really is one of the most important jobs in the hospital,” said Tammy Weaver who teaches in Bryant & Stratton College’s coding and reimbursement program. Coding is also one of the most lucrative careers in a hospital that does not require graduation from a...