Back Office Medical AssistantAt — South County Urgent Care

The student will serve in a Back Office Medical Assistant role within an urgent care clinical setting under the supervision of licensed medical providers and clinic management. The position involves providing direct clinical support and patient care while maintaining professionalism, ethical standards, and confidentiality.

Primary responsibilities include assisting with patient intake and rooming, obtaining vital signs, preparing patients for examination, and supporting providers during clinical encounters. The student will interact directly with a diverse patient population and will be expected to communicate clearly, calmly, and empathetically with patients experiencing a range of physical and emotional concerns.

The student will assist with clinical documentation as permitted, follow established protocols and workflows, and support the coordination of care between patients and medical staff. The role requires adherence to HIPAA regulations, infection control procedures, and clinic policies at all times.

In addition to technical tasks, the student will be expected to demonstrate professional behavior, emotional regulation, adaptability, and teamwork in a fast-paced healthcare environment. The position provides exposure to the intersection of physical health, mental health, and patient behavior, allowing the student to observe and apply psychological concepts within a real-world medical setting.

All duties will be performed under appropriate supervision and within the scope of training provided by the clinic.

Task:

The student will perform professional and pre-professional duties under supervision that support applied learning in psychology within a healthcare setting. Duties will include:
Direct Patient Interaction:
Engage with patients during intake, rooming, and care coordination while practicing professional, ethical, and trauma-informed communication with individuals experiencing anxiety, distress, pain, or emotional dysregulation.
Behavioral Observation and Documentation:
Observe and note patient behavioral and emotional responses during clinical encounters, including stress reactions, coping behaviors, and communication patterns, and accurately document relevant observations within appropriate clinical systems as permitted.
Support of Patient Intake and Screening Processes:
Assist with patient intake procedures, including collecting relevant patient information and supporting standardized screening tools or questionnaires when applicable (e.g., anxiety, depression, substance use, stress indicators), while maintaining confidentiality and professionalism.
Application of De-escalation and Emotional Support Techniques:
Utilize approved de-escalation strategies and empathetic communication techniques when interacting with patients who are distressed, agitated, fearful, or overwhelmed, under guidance of clinical staff.
Ethical and Confidential Practice:
Adhere to HIPAA regulations, ethical standards, and professional boundaries in all patient interactions, demonstrating understanding of confidentiality and ethical decision-making in a clinical environment.
Interdisciplinary Collaboration:
Communicate with medical assistants, nurses, providers, and supervisory staff to support patient care, demonstrating professional teamwork and understanding of roles within a healthcare system.
Reflective Practice and Learning Integration:
Participate in reflective activities such as discussing patient interactions with supervisors, identifying psychological concepts observed in practice, and integrating coursework knowledge with real-world clinical experiences.
Professional Skill Development:
Demonstrate time management, emotional regulation, adaptability, and professional conduct in a fast-paced urgent care setting, consistent with expectations for pre-professional healthcare and psychology-related roles.
The majority of the student’s responsibilities involve professional-level patient interaction, behavioral observation, ethical practice, and applied psychological learning, meeting the standards required for college-level internship credit.

Training:

The student will receive structured and ongoing training to support learning outcomes throughout the placement. Training will include:

Initial General Employer Orientation:
The student will complete a mandatory onboarding and orientation covering clinic policies and procedures, patient flow, scope of duties, professionalism, HIPAA compliance, confidentiality, and workplace safety.
Clinical Job Shadowing:
The student will initially shadow experienced medical assistants and clinical staff to observe patient intake, vital signs collection, patient communication, and provider interactions, with particular attention to patient behavior, emotional responses, and communication techniques.

Direct Skills Training and Supervised Practice:
The student will receive hands-on training in back-office clinical tasks (e.g., patient intake, vitals, rooming, documentation) under supervision, with emphasis on calm, empathetic, and trauma-informed patient interaction.
Training on Patient Communication and De-escalation:
The student will be trained in appropriate communication strategies for interacting with patients experiencing anxiety, distress, frustration, or pain, including maintaining professionalism, emotional regulation, and patient-centered care.
Overview and Contextualization of Assigned Tasks:
Supervisors will provide explanation and context for assigned duties, including how patient interactions, behavioral observations, and ethical considerations relate to psychological concepts such as stress responses, coping, and emotional regulation.

Ongoing Supervision and Feedback:
The student will receive regular informal check-ins and feedback from the site supervisor and clinical staff to discuss observations, questions, and professional development related to patient behavior, communication, and ethical practice.
Exposure to Screening Tools and Clinical Documentation (when applicable):
The student may be exposed to standardized screening tools or documentation processes related to patient mental health indicators (e.g., anxiety, depression, substance use, stress) as appropriate within the urgent care setting.
This combination of orientation, observation, skills training, and supervision is designed to support the student’s development of applied psychological understanding within a healthcare environment.

Learning Outcome:

By the end of the academic internship, the student will be able to:
Demonstrate effective, ethical, and trauma-informed communication with patients experiencing a range of emotional states, including anxiety, distress, pain, and crisis, in a fast-paced healthcare environment.
Identify and describe common psychological and behavioral responses observed in patients within an urgent care setting and explain how these responses impact patient interactions and care experiences.
Apply principles of confidentiality, professionalism, and ethical conduct consistent with HIPAA and psychology-related ethical standards during all patient interactions.
Demonstrate increased awareness of the relationship between physical health and mental health, including how stress, fear, trauma, and social factors influence patient behavior and healthcare outcomes.
Reflect on clinical experiences to integrate psychological concepts (e.g., emotional regulation, coping, stress responses, communication strategies) with real-world patient care under supervision.