Associate in Applied Science in Respiratory Care
Mission Statement
The mission of the Respiratory Care program is to provide high quality instruction to students at the undergraduate level with emphasis on active learning, problem solving, and critical thinking. The program is committed to preparing graduates with demonstrated competence in the cognitive (knowledge), psychomotor (skills), and affective (behavior) domains of respiratory practice as performed by registered respiratory therapists (RRTs). Our vision is to achieve excellence in education through creative use of traditional and innovative instructional methods and technology. The faculty participates in outreach to the state and nation through services to the university community, to public, to governmental and industrial sectors, and to professional societies.
Program Information
Students in this major will learn about the theory and practice in preparation for the Respiratory Therapist. Respiratory care procedures and the medications used in the treatment of respiratory and cardiac disorders are presented. They will also learn the anatomy and physiology of healthy and diseased cardiopulmonary systems. In addition, students will learn chemistry, physics, biology and microbiology as it relates to respiratory care additionally; the student is provided the opportunity to use the theory in practical clinical experiences.
This career major is designed to prepare students for employment as a Respiratory Therapist. Respiratory Therapists work in a wide variety of clinical settings to evaluate, treat, and manage patients of all ages with respiratory illnesses and other cardiopulmonary disorders.
Upon successful completion of the Associate in Applied Science in Respiratory Care degree, graduates will be eligible to sit for the National Board of Respiratory Care credentialing exam to become a Certified Respiratory Therapist and a Registered Respiratory Therapist.
Program Accreditation
The Respiratory care program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (CoARC), http://www.coarc.com (CoARC Program Number 200531). CoARC accredits respiratory therapy education programs in the United States. To achieve this end, it utilizes an "outcomes based" process. Programmatic outcomes are performance indicators that reflect the extent to which the educational goals of the program are achieved and by which program effectiveness is documented. Programmatic outcomes data reported on the CoARC outcomes webpage (https://coarc.com/students/programmatic-outcomes-data/) include: the three-year time period being reported; credentialing success; RRT credentialing success; Attrition; Job placement; Overall Graduate Satisfaction; Overall Employer Satisfaction; Graduation Rate; Total number of program enrollees; Total number of program graduates; Maximum Annual Enrollment.
Application Process
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