Damian Melendez never thought about working in health care until his father had a heart attack.
That’s when his personal experience turned into a professional calling. In his early 20s, working in customer service at a New York airport and taking care of his father, Melendez said his decision wasn’t just about being a good son, it was about finding a purpose in life by offering compassionate care to people he didn’t even know. “It was a moment that shaped my entire career,” said Melendez, a certified medical staff assistant at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School who has worked in the field for the past two decades. “My father’s survival and my dedication to his recovery became my greatest professional inspiration, teaching me that true health care is about compassion, understanding and treating each patient as if they were your own family.”
In New Jersey and throughout the United States, medical assistants – who perform both clinical and administrative tasks and are often the first health care professional to interact with patients – are in high demand. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the need for medical assistants is expected to increase 15% by 2033.
The medical assistant shortage emerged prominently after the COVID-19 pandemic and is continuing as the U.S. population ages and patient visits increase, said Jeanne Clark, a Henry Rutgers Professor and the chair of the Department of Medicine at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. To read the full story.