General: Foundations, Communication, Law, and Ethics
Know your role, then the rules around it
General-domain questions reward precision about boundaries. Expect medical terminology (roots, prefixes, suffixes, plurals), basic anatomy and physiology sufficient to spell and pronounce what a provider dictates, and the professional organizations behind the credential - the AAMA awards the CMA (AAMA), which is recertified every five years through continuing education or re-examination. Distinguish licensure, certification, and registration.
Communication: therapeutic technique means open-ended questions, reflection, restatement, clarification, and silence. Avoid "why" questions, false reassurance, giving advice, and closed yes/no questions that shut down disclosure. Review Maslow's hierarchy (physiologic needs before esteem), common defense mechanisms, and Kübler-Ross stages of dying.
Law: know standard of care, scope of practice (set by state medical practice acts plus the delegating provider), and the four elements of negligence - duty, dereliction (breach), direct cause, and damages. Consent may be expressed (written or spoken) or implied (emergency, or a patient extending an arm for an injection); informed consent is the provider's obligation, not the assistant's. HIPAA allows treatment, payment, and operations uses without written authorization but requires it for psychotherapy notes, marketing, and most research; release only the minimum necessary. Sensitive services for minors (reproductive, substance use) vary by state - check policy, never assume.
Ethics: autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence, justice; advance directives, living wills, durable power of attorney for health care, Patient Self-Determination Act.
Trap: answer choices that have you interpret a diagnosis, disclose results, or advise treatment independently. Rule of thumb: if you cannot point to a provider order or a written policy, do not do it.