CMA (AAMA) Scheduling & Health Records Practice Questions
Scheduling & Health Records makes up 4 of every 50 questions on a Tigertest CMA (AAMA) practice test. Here are 10 of the 16 questions on it, each with the answer and the reason.
Updated by the Tigertest team. Based on the AAMA Content Outline for the CMA (AAMA) Certification Exam. Original questions; 50 per test, weighted like the real exam. Not affiliated with the AAMA.
1. A patient last saw a provider in the practice 4 years ago. For billing, how is the patient classified at the next visit?
- A.Inactive patient
- B.New patient
- C.Established patient
- D.Consult patient
Answer: B. Under CPT rules, a patient is established if seen by the same physician or one of the same specialty in the group within the past 3 years. After 4 years the patient is new.
2. A walk-in clinic sees patients in the order they arrive, with no set appointment times. What is this scheduling method?
- A.Double booking
- B.Cluster scheduling
- C.Stream scheduling
- D.Open hours
Answer: D. Open hours (open access) lets patients come in without appointments. Waits can be long and unpredictable.
3. Two patients are given the same 10:00 time slot with the same provider. What is this called?
- A.Double booking
- B.Stream scheduling
- C.Wave scheduling
- D.Open hours
Answer: A. Double booking puts two patients in one slot, often to fit in an urgent case. Done routinely, it leads to long waits.
4. Each patient is given a set time, and visits follow one another through the day. Which scheduling method is this?
- A.Wave scheduling
- B.Modified wave booking
- C.Stream scheduling
- D.Open hours
Answer: C. Stream (time-specified) scheduling gives each patient a set time and a set length based on the visit type. It is the most common method.
5. Two calls come in: one for a routine annual physical and one from a parent whose infant has a high fever and is not feeding. How should they be scheduled?
- A.The physical first, then the infant
- B.Both by mail next week
- C.The infant today, physical later
- D.Both on the next open day
Answer: C. A sick infant needs a same-day urgent visit (or emergency care per protocol), while a routine physical can be booked in advance.
6. The provider is called to the hospital for an emergency and will be 90 minutes late. What should the medical assistant do?
- A.Tell patients, offer choices
- B.Send everyone home without notice
- C.Have another assistant see them
- D.Say nothing and hope it is quick
Answer: A. Patients are told about the delay honestly and offered the choice to wait, run an errand or reschedule. Patient privacy about the emergency is kept.
7. A patient is booked for an outpatient CT at the hospital. What should the medical assistant give the patient?
- A.The CT technologist's name
- B.Only the hospital phone number
- C.A copy of the provider's notes
- D.Date, place and prep steps
Answer: D. The patient needs the date, time, location and any preparation (fasting, contrast instructions), in writing. Any prior authorization is obtained first.
8. At check-in, what helps protect against medical identity theft?
- A.Rely on a signature on the form
- B.Check a photo ID and insurance card
- C.Ask the patient's birth month
- D.Accept the name the patient gives
Answer: B. Comparing a government photo ID with the insurance card and the patient confirms the person is who they say they are before services are billed.
9. A returning patient checks in. What should be confirmed at the desk?
- A.Nothing if seen last year
- B.Address, phone and insurance
- C.Only the reason for visit
- D.The patient's employer's tax ID
Answer: B. Demographic and insurance details change often, so they are confirmed at every visit. Wrong data causes claim rejections and missed messages.
10. What can patients usually do through a patient portal?
- A.Edit provider notes
- B.Approve their own refills
- C.Change their own diagnoses
- D.View results, message staff
Answer: D. Portals give secure access to results, visit summaries, appointment requests and messages. Patients cannot change the medical record directly.
Practice all 16 scheduling & health records questions, and the rest of the 200-question bank, in the free CMA (AAMA) training sets. Questions you miss come back until you have mastered them.
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