Medical Assistant Jobs in Bakersfield, CA
Medical assistants in Bakersfield keep the city's clinics running, from Clinica Sierra Vista health centers to Kaiser Permanente's Stockdale Medical Offices, and posted pay runs about $21 to $31 an hour. Here are the current openings, followed by who is hiring and how to get trained.
Current medical assistant Openings in Bakersfield, CA
Listings marked External are sponsored openings provided by the Jobs2Careers network.
Medical Assistant Work in Bakersfield
Most medical assistant jobs in Bakersfield are in outpatient care rather than hospital wards. Clinica Sierra Vista runs community health centers across the city, including Central Bakersfield, South Bakersfield and 34th Street, and Kaiser Permanente staffs medical offices in Stockdale and East Hills. The downtown medical corridor around Memorial Hospital on 34th Street and Mercy Hospital on Truxtun Avenue adds hospital-owned specialty clinics, while urgent care and pediatric offices cluster in the Northwest along Olive Drive and in the Southwest off Stockdale Highway.
Education and health services is the fastest-growing part of Kern County's job market, and the clinics feel it first. Pay here sits a little under the California average, with a BLS median of $22.39 an hour against $23.88 statewide, but the large health systems post well above that. More than half of Bakersfield residents are Hispanic or Latino, so Spanish at the front and back of the office is a practical asset.
Top Bakersfield Employers Hiring Medical Assistants
These Bakersfield employers have posted medical assistant openings on their own career sites:
- Clinica Sierra Vista - the community health center network, headquartered on Camino Media, hires Medical Assistant I and float MAs for its Bakersfield clinics.
- Kaiser Permanente - hires Medical Office Assistants, its title for clinical MAs, at the Stockdale and East Hills Medical Offices.
- Dignity Health - staffs medical assistants in clinics tied to Memorial Hospital and at Mercy Hospital's Women's Breast Center.
- Valley Children's Medical Group - hires full-time day medical assistants at its Stockdale Pediatrics office.
- Concentra - the occupational health and urgent care provider hires medical assistants for its Bakersfield center.
- Emergency Physicians Urgent Care - the local urgent care group hires medical assistants at its Olive Drive clinic in the Northwest.
Medical Assistant Salaries in Bakersfield
- Entry level: about $21 to $23 an hour for new graduates at urgent care and clinic employers.
- Experienced: roughly $23 to $27 an hour, with clinic and hospital-system postings starting around $25.
- Senior / top of range: $28 to $31 an hour at the top of large-system pay scales.
These are estimates built from BLS figures for the Bakersfield-Delano metro and pay ranges posted by local employers. What moves pay most is the employer: large health systems such as Kaiser Permanente and Dignity Health post the highest ranges, and California's health care worker minimum wage law sets different floors for large systems, clinics and other facilities. Certification, an injection certificate, bilingual skills and specialty experience in pediatrics or women's health also help.
How to Become a Medical Assistant in Bakersfield
California does not license medical assistants. The Medical Board of California says they must work under a licensed physician, podiatrist, physician assistant, nurse practitioner or nurse midwife who is physically present in the facility. Before giving injections or skin tests an MA needs at least 10 hours of training in those tasks, and venipuncture requires its own 10 hours. Certification is optional under state law but many employers ask for it, through a board-approved body such as AAMA, AMCA, AMT, the California Certifying Board of Medical Assistants or the Multiskilled Medical Certification Institute.
Locally, Bakersfield College offers a Clinical Medical Assistant Certificate of Achievement, Carrington College's Bakersfield campus on New Stine Road runs a Medical Assisting certificate that can be finished in as few as 9 months, and Bakersfield Adult School teaches a Medical Assistant program at its Health Careers Center on F Street.
What the Job Involves
Medical assistants room patients, take vital signs and medical histories, and prepare exam rooms. Under a provider's order they give injections, perform finger sticks and EKGs, collect specimens, and assist with minor procedures. Many also schedule appointments, update electronic health records, and handle referrals and prior authorizations.
Skills Employers Look For
- Completion of an accredited medical assistant program
- Current BLS card
- Injection and venipuncture training that meets California rules
- Accurate vital signs, EKGs and specimen handling
- Electronic health record experience
- Clear, calm communication with patients
Career Path and Advancement
Many Bakersfield MAs start at a community clinic or urgent care, move to a large system such as Kaiser Permanente or Dignity Health for higher pay, and then step into lead MA or clinic coordinator roles. Others use the job as a bridge into nursing through Bakersfield College's Vocational Nursing certificate or the Adult School's LVN program, and from there to an RN through Bakersfield College or CSU Bakersfield.
Related Careers in Bakersfield
If medical assisting interests you, these Bakersfield healthcare guides are close matches:
Frequently Asked Questions
Do medical assistants need a license in California?
No. The Medical Board of California does not license or require certification for medical assistants. You do need the required training before giving injections or drawing blood, and many Bakersfield employers prefer or require national certification.
How much do medical assistants make in Bakersfield?
The BLS median for the Bakersfield-Delano metro is $22.39 an hour. Recent postings from local employers range from about $21 an hour at urgent care clinics to just over $31 at the top of large-system pay scales.
How long does it take to become a medical assistant in Bakersfield?
Carrington College's Bakersfield campus says its Medical Assisting certificate can be completed in as few as 9 months. Bakersfield College and Bakersfield Adult School also offer programs, so timing depends on the schedule you choose.
Can medical assistants give injections in California?
Yes, under a provider's written or standing order, with a licensed provider on site, and after at least 10 hours of injection and skin test training. Kaiser Permanente's Bakersfield postings list an injection certificate as a requirement.
Where are most medical assistant jobs in Bakersfield?
Most openings are in community health centers, medical offices and urgent care rather than hospital inpatient units. Look at Clinica Sierra Vista clinics across the city, Kaiser Permanente in Stockdale and East Hills, the 34th Street medical corridor, and urgent care in the Northwest.
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