In healthcare, there are many different kinds of providers on a medical team. It can be confusing trying to remember who’s who and who does what. I equate the different roles and ranks to something like the military, especially with all of the acronyms. Part of being a Wise Patient is being familiar with the medical team.

MA: Medical Assistant

A medical assistant will often work alongside doctors in an outpatient setting. They are the team members that check you in, check your vital signs, and administer vaccinations. They will also handle a lot of your doctor’s correspondence with you, your insurance company, or with the pharmacy. An aspiring MA will go to an accredited MA training course for 9-12 months. They have the option of becoming certified through the American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA). However, they do not have to have a degree or be certified to serve in their position.

LPN: Licensed Practical Nurse

A licensed practical nurse is similar to an MA. An LPN will have to take boards at the end of his/her training in order to become licensed. In our office, we use MAs and LPNs interchangeably. In other healthcare settings, like a labor and delivery unit, long term care facility or in a specialist’s office, the roles may vary to a greater degree. An LPN will typically go to a 1 year training school.

CNA: Certified Nurse Assistant

A certified nurse assistant is also similar to an MA, however I only encountered CNAs while I was working in hospitals. This may vary in different healthcare settings, but this was my experience. CNAs would assist nurses (RNs) with vital signs, cleaning patients, helping them get up to the bathroom etc. As the name indicates, CNAs are certified at the end of their training with an examination. They must maintain their certification by performing continuing medical education every few years. 

RN: Registered Nurse

A registered nurse has gone to college and nursing school in order to achieve their degree in nursing. They also have to pass board examinations to become registered. An RN has a broader scope of practice than the previous 3 positions. They can often administer and interpret diagnostic tests, administer medications, manage wounds etc. Some RNs will specialize in a certain area, like my brother, who is a critical care nurse in an ICU in Nashville. In my office, my nurses will assess patients’ symptoms over the phone or via email. They can even see sore throats, blood pressure checks, and other basic complaints on their own without consulting with a doctor. 

NP: Nurse Practitioner

A nurse practitioner (also called a midlevel or an advanced practice partner) is an RN who has done additional schooling in order to see patients on their own. NP school takes 2-4 years. They can operate as an independent provider and are licensed to make medical decisions on their own. I have excellent nurse practitioners in my office who handle a lot of my sick and complex patients. 

PA: Physician Assistant

A physician assistant is also called a midlevel and/or advanced practice partner. Physicians assistants will go to PA school for 2-3 years. They must practice under the guidance of a licensed physician. I have excellent PAs in my clinic that can handle a lot of medical complexity, as well. Both NPs and PAs can focus on a certain medical specialty and assist specialists with procedures, assist in surgeries and will even be consulted by other primary care doctors regarding their specialty. 

MD: Medical Doctor

This is what my dad, my wife, and I are, Medical Doctors. MDs will get a 4 year college degree, then graduate from a 4-year medical school and then will train at a residency program for 3 years before practicing on our own. My wife is a rheumatology specialist so she trained in a rheumatology fellowship for an additional 2 years. Different specialties require different lengths of training. A neurosurgeon, for example, will graduate from medical school and then train in a neurosurgery residency for another 7 years. My medical school training was slightly different than the traditional path that I mentioned above, but I will talk about this in other posts.

DO: Doctor of Osteopathy

MDs and DOs are generally interchangeable nowadays. We go to different medical schools and have different accreditation boards, for example, but our capacity to practice medicine is quite similar. Initially, DO schools taught osteopathic manipulation therapy and their training was similar to that of a chiropractor, but that has changed so that DOs and MDs are now equal in their scopes of practice. Many DOs go on to specialize in the same residencies and fellowships as the MDs. 

This list is neither exhaustive nor comprehensive, but I wanted to inform you of the different team members that you may encounter while you are receiving healthcare. It can be overwhelming to start on a medical journey for the first time, especially if you have a symptom or diagnosis that is frightening. It’s important to know who’s on your team.