Medical-technical assistant

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A medical technician taking an X-ray image. (Picture from 1960)

Medical-technical assistant (MTA), or gender-neutral u. a. in the emergency room Medical-technical specialist (although the abbreviation MTA is retained) is the collective name for the four job profiles of technical assistants in medicine and veterinary medicine in the German health system. In detail, it includes the training occupations :

The part of the name "-assistent" can lead to confusion with the profession of medical assistant (doctor assistant), which differs significantly in training and activity.

Education and professional practice

The training is regulated in the law on technical assistants in medicine (MTA law or MTAG). It lasts three years in Germany and ends with a state examination. It consists of theoretical and practical lessons at vocational schools (MTA schools) and practical training in hospitals and other health care facilities . The names of the MTA schools are different, e.g. B. medical vocational school , medical training center , training center for medical care professionals or training institute for medical-technical assistants . There are different regional admission restrictions or requirements that must be met, but the training itself is regulated nationwide. In general, at least an intermediate level education is required.

The professional practice takes place in clinics, with resident doctors, in laboratories, test stations, research facilities and in various branches of industry. Although there are still far more women than men in the profession, the proportion of men in work and training is increasing.

Job profiles

Medical-technical assistant for functional diagnostics

Medical-technical assistants for functional diagnostics (MTAF) examine patients according to medical instructions with the help of medical devices. Diagnostics cover four main areas: neurology (nerves), cardiology (cardiovascular system), audiometry (hearing and balance) and pulmonology (lungs).

Medical-technical laboratory assistant

Medical-technical laboratory assistants (MTLA, MTA-L) carry out laboratory tests in clinical chemistry , hematology , immunology , microbiology as well as in histology and cytodiagnostics . All test results must be documented due to legal requirements, for example in treatment contracts.

Medical-technical radiology assistant

Medical-technical radiology assistants (MTRA, MTA-R, RTA) work in the areas of X-ray diagnostics ( computed tomography , magnetic resonance tomography , X-ray , DSA ), radiation therapy , nuclear medicine and dosimetry .

Veterinary technical assistant

Veterinary technical assistants (VMTA) carry out examinations to diagnose animal diseases, animal diseases and to check foodstuffs originating from animals. They only have direct contact with animals in exceptional cases.

Similar job titles in Austria

In Austria the professional title of medical-technical assistant existed until 1992, but the term was clearly defined and only referred to employees in the field of medical-technical laboratory service .

This term is still popular in the vernacular, but is rejected by professionals due to the negative meaning of the term assistant . The correct job title was qualified medical-technical analyst (Dipl-MTA) until July 2005 , since then biomedical analyst . Other job descriptions in the medical-technical service have their own job titles. For example, those working in the medical-technical service in radiology are referred to as radiology technologists (RT). This job title replaced the term radiological-technical assistant (RTA).

Until 2005, the professions of medical-technical services were taught in medical-technical academies or diploma schools, and since then in six-semester technical college courses leading to a Bachelor of Science degree.

See also

literature

  • Birgit Schäfer, Peter Hödl: Medical-technical assistance in modern radiation therapy: Practice-oriented guidelines for professional training and routine . Springer, Berlin / Heidelberg, 1999, ISBN 978-3-540-63834-6 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Law on technical assistants in medicine (PDF; 58 kB)
  2. ^ Pschyrembel dictionary care: Nursing techniques, nursing aids, nursing science, nursing management, psychology and law. Gruyter, 2007, ISBN 3-11-019021-4 , p. 53
  3. ↑ Medical-technical assistant - functional diagnostics in the profession of the Federal Employment Agency
  4. ↑ Medical-technical laboratory assistant in Berufenet the Federal Employment Agency
  5. ↑ Medical-technical radiology assistant in Berufenet the Federal Employment Agency
  6. ↑ Veterinary Medical-technical assistant in Berufenet the Federal Employment Agency