Application Essay: A Career As A Medical Assistant

As a child, I remember my mother would bring me to the doctor’s office every other week for minimal reasons, such as a simple cough or a headache. Although I insisted I felt fine, she was always worried my condition was worse than it appeared. Over time, the appointments became mundane as there was nothing significantly wrong with me, and my pediatrician told my mother to stop bringing me so often. As I got older, I realized my mother and I grew in different settings. She was raised in a Vietnamese village, where access to treatment and health care education were limited and overlooked. I knew I needed to further my own education and explore the health care field in order to take care of myself, my mother, and my younger siblings.

I started as a volunteer at the Fountain Valley Regional Hospital, where my sisters and I were all born. I chose to volunteer at this hospital because my family has a long history with it. My normal tasks at the hospital included escorting patients, cleaning gurneys, restocking supplies, and keeping pediatric patients company. After a year and a half, I had the opportunity to work as a medical assistant. Through this role, I experienced direct, hands-on patient care for the first time, making me realize how much I enjoyed impacting people around me. The supervising physician, knowing I was eager to increase my medical exposure, presented me the prospect of shadowing a PA. During my hours shadowing, I noticed the PA carefully examining each patient, reviewing the diagnosis, and spending a lot of time talking and educating the patient about his or her condition and treatment plan. After many hours of shadowing and consulting with the PA, I realized this career path was a perfect fit for me. Not only did it involve advising patients in a one-on-one setting, but it also involved working intimately and autonomously with a collaborative physician. Shadowing the PA made me appreciate the compassion and the knowledge that comes from this profession, something I did not understand as a young child. I want to be able to educate individual patients and whole families on their overall health and well-being. By choosing this career, I know I can educate my own family on their health and continue to influence multiple families as well. Reflecting back on my shadowing experience, there was one particular patient encounter I will always remember. A man in his late forties came in a year after his surgery, complaining of right leg numbness and atrophy. Deeply concerned that his pain had continued for an entire …show more content…
To me, the position is not just another medical profession that effectively treats and diagnoses patients, but is also a position that allows one to seize the opportunity to provide quality patient care by ensuring patients truly understand what they are experiencing and how appease their health concerns. Although my transcripts may not show overall stellar grades, they do reveal an upward trend since deciding to pursue this career. I am very proud of my performance over the last two years of schooling, and I am confident my many years of experience with medical assisting and shadowing are indicative of my relentless and growing desire to become a physician assistant. I have taken the time to prepare for your program and am certain I have equipped myself with the necessary skills and knowledge which will allow me to succeed, not only in the program, but as a physician assistant as