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Respiratory Care Program

Message from the chair

I would like to take this opportunity to welcome you to the Respiratory Care Department. We offer a fully accredited (CoARC) Respiratory Care program whose goal is “To prepare graduates with demonstrated competence in the cognitive (knowledge), psychomotor (skills), and affective (behavior) learning domains of respiratory care practice as performed by the registered respiratory therapist.

We have exceeded accreditation thresholds for job placement, employer satisfaction & success on credentialing exams. On many occasions our graduates, besides becoming outstanding clinicians, have continued their education to become Physicians, College Professors, Hospital Administrators, Perfusionists & Nurse Practitioners.

To prepare you for a career in Respiratory Care we have a state-of-the-art laboratory, outstanding clinical affiliates, and exemplary faculty in class, in lab & in our clinical affiliates all with advanced credentials and a plethora of clinical experience. We also have outstanding physician input spearheaded by Board Certified Pulmonologists. Our clinical rotations cover all facets of our profession from premature infants to the geriatric population, from acute care to long-term care.

We foster an atmosphere of support to enhance the learning environment including Peer Tutoring & Faculty Tutoring. I wish you all the best in your academic journey and I encourage you to stop by and meet our faculty in the Health Science Building.

Cordially,

Patrick Barrette, MBA, RRT-ACCS, NPS, RPFT

medical-billing-certificate-header

Respiratory Care A.A.S.

The Respiratory Care A.A.S. program at Westchester Community College equips students with the skills and experience to support critical life-saving treatments in healthcare settings. Students in this program train to work directly with patients, managing respiratory therapies and conducting diagnostic evaluations, often within high-stakes environments like emergency rooms and intensive care units.

Learn More

Frequently Asked Questions

Applicant Inquiry Response
  • If you are not a WCC student, you need to work directly through the Admissions Office.
  • If you are currently a WCC student, you need to work directly with the Counseling Office.
  • There is no deadline for applying as we do rolling admissions
  • A GPA of 2.50 & successful scores on the standardized WCC placement test indicating readiness to take College Algebra & College English (or successful completion of the aforementioned) is required.
  • When eligible you will be placed on the wait list as the upcoming Fall class is already filled.
  • The length of the wait list is unpredictable as many students sign up & change their minds without withdrawing their names from the list. We update the list every Summer.
  • Students on the wait list take courses (other than the actual respiratory care courses) required for graduation while they wait thus the wait time is productive towards the degree.
  • While on the wait list you must take both Anatomy & Physiology classes if you have not already done so
  • Foreign transcripts must be evaluated by an independent agency in conjunction with our Admissions Office
  • We have no time limit on courses you have taken in the past
  • A maximum of 34 credits may be transferred in if the grade is “C” or better AND they are equivalent to our required courses.
  • Once your number is called the program takes two years to complete
  • There is no fast track option
  • It is a traditional daytime program with classes scheduled from Mondays through Fridays
  • Tuition, fees, estimated costs are available on our website
  • The program may be completed either full-time or part-time
  • There are no evening or weekend Respiratory Care classes
  • There are two 5-week Summer Clinical classes: one after the first year & one after the second year
  • Upon completing our program, you will receive an A.A.S degree in Respiratory Care. This qualifies you to take the Board Exams administered by the NBRC. Upon successful completion of the RRT Board exam, you can apply for state licensure. Upon receiving your license, you may be employed as a respiratory therapist.
  • Questions about Board exams: https://www.nbrc.org/crt/Pages/default.aspx
  • Questions about New York Licensure: http://www.op.nysed.gov/prof/rt/rtlic.htm (also view the Licensure Application form on this web site)
Academic Resources

Helpful Links

Respiratory Therapist Named a “Best Job” by U.S. News

U.S. News Tags Respiratory Therapist as a Hot Job

Respiratory therapist is in the top 25 of the best 100 jobs for 2013 named by U.S. World and News Report.

Tim Myers, MBA, RRT, FAARC, Associate Executive Director of the AARC, was interviewed by the magazine, which annually ranks the best jobs on the short term horizon. Myers said, “We like to call ourselves the Rodney Dangerfield of healthcare.” He said it’s not because we get no respect, but that “people don’t know about respiratory therapists. We’re often confused with nurses.”

The annual ranking by the magazine lists several health care jobs as good bets for today’s workforce.

The Respiratory Care program # 200105 offers an AAS degree and is fully accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care.

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. For more information on outcomes data, please refer to the following links:

CoARC’s

CoARC’s Outcomes

Respiratory Care Related Links

Respiratory Therapy Societies
AARC Chapters
Related Medical Societies and Organizations

American Association of Respiratory Care-AARC
Canadian Society of Respiratory Therapists
National Board of Respiratory Care
Canadian Lung Association
American College of Chest Physicians…membership open now to RTs
American Medical Association
Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations
Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
American Subacute Care Assn
New York State Society for Respiratory Care
California Society for Respiratory Care
Minnesota Society for Respiratory Care
Florida Society for Respiratory Care
North Carolina Society for Respiratory Care
Respiratory Therapy Society of Ontario
American Heart Association
www.mesotheliomaweb.org
http://www.MesotheliomaGuide.com
Lung Cancer Resources from OncologySTAT

THE CEU GAME BEGINS HERE – ONLINE AND IN PERSON CEU OPS

Knowledgelinc Interactive Continuing Education

Kansas University Medical Center Can’t get away? These guys have figured out a way to get what you need online while home or at work

Center for Health Education This page is about Acute Care CEUs (for nurses). Back-link to their other programs after checking out this one.

On-Line Publications/Respiratory Care and Related Subjects/Newsletters/ChatLines

Health Educator Publications Unusual Respiratory Care titles. Check it out.
HomeCare Magazine

On-Line Medical/Science/Biology/Natural History Books

Elsevier Science Book/Journal Catalog
National Academy of Sciences-Press
F.A. Davis Publishing Co.
Mosby-Times Mirror
Lippincott-Raven
Williams and Wilkins

HOSPITAL ADMINISTRATION, SECURITY, SAFETY AND HEALTH RESOURCES FROM NICHOLAS CARUSELLE. To nominate additional sites for this section please e-mail: [email protected]

N.Y. State Department of Education-Professional Licensure – background check info on all NYS licensed health care professionals.

SLEEP DISORDERS MEDICINE

Sleep Medicine WebPage
QUIETSLEEP Website
Phantom Sleep Page

Respironics
Sensormedics
Astro-Med, Inc.…maker of Grass EEG and Polysomonography Equipment

YET…MORE SLEEP DISORDERS WEBSITE LINKS

This Week in NAPS Category Search
Welcome to NAPS: New Abstracts and Papers in …
Sleep Trainee Home Page
American Society of Electroneurodiagnostic Technologists
Sleepnet links… these should keep you awake all night

ON-LINE DISCUSSION FORUMS
DEALING WITH RESPIRATORY CARE

On-Line Medical/Med/Bio-Science Journals/Other Publications

Advance for Respiratory Care
Annals of Internal Medicine-The Annals and other ACP Journals can be surfed from here. Check out the new one: Evidence-Based Medicine for a number of articles of interest to RCPs.
New England Journal of Medicine
British Medical Journal
Nature
Journal National Cancer Institute
Journal of Neurobiology of Disease

RCP Personal WebPages and Favorite Links

Breath Sounds on the World Wide Web – Audio Players Available

General Respiratory-Related and Patient Focus/Med- Ed/Index Websites

Alpha-1-Antitrypsin Website
AsthmaNet

Hospital/Medical Center and Respiratory Care Dept. Websites

Beth Israel Hospital-NYC
National Jewish Medical and Research Center
Pulmonology Department, University of Maastricht-Netherlands

Anesthesiology Websites

Australasian Anaesthesia Website

Critical Care and Emergency Medicine Websites

International Trauma Website
www.thoracic.org

Cardiology/Cardiovascular and Cardiopulmonary Resources

American College of Cardiology

Respiratory Care Equipment-Manufacturer/Dealer Websites
…and now a word from our sponsors!

Equipment Repair and MaintenanceMediServe Informations Systems
Novametrix
Baxter Healthcare
Sechrist Industries
Proteus Hyperbaric Med Website
Environmental Tectonics Corporation
Nonin Medical
Nellcor/Puritan-Bennett
OHMEDA
Respironics
ResMed Website
Direct Solutions Website
Tri-anim Corporate Website
Emox Emergency Oxygen

HOME CARE HOME PAGES…

Pediatric Home Service
Lincare Home Care
VitalAire

Pharmaceutical Companies/Drug Related – Websites and Info Databases

Merck Pharmaceuticals
Eli Lilly and Company
CenterWatch Clinical Trials Listing Service
RX-Drug Info Database
Material Data Safety Sheets

Infectious Diseases

Legionnaire’s Disease Website
Legionaire’s Disease-Facts and Information
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
Centers for Disease Control
World Health Organization
U.K.-Communicable Disease Surveillance Center
All The Virology Sites on the WWW Website

Guide to Hospital PPE – Understanding how to stop the spread ofinfectious diseases
https://www.safetecdirect.co.uk/resources/hospital-ppe/

General Medical Websites and Search Engines

Karolinska Institute -Diseases and Disorders Indices
MedExplorer
Pan American Health Organization
Medscape
Med Nexus—A free online service for physicians and other health care providers
Clinical Trials Listing Service
Mesothelioma

Program for Specific Expenses

These items are available at the WCC Bookstore

  • Malpractice Insurance 15.00 a year
  • White Uniforms price will vary with the style and place of purchase:  (approximately) $40.00.
  • Shoes and Hose (approximately) 50.00
  • WCC Patch* – 3.95
  • WCC Student  Name Badge (approximately) 10.00 – it will be as follows:   1st line, first/last name;  2nd line, Westchester Community College; and 3rd line, Respiratory Care Student with a green background and white lettering
  • WCC lanyard with plastic Student photo ID holder* (approximately) 8.00
  • Textbooks approximately 400.00*
  • Stethoscope (approximately) 15.00
  • Watch with a second hand (approximately) 20.00
  • Annual Physical Exam – varies with your Physician’s fee
  • NBRC Self-Assessment Exams – (approximately) 150.00
Respiratory Care Admission Information

General Information

The Respiratory Care Program is a course of study leading to an A.A.S. degree.  It is a selective program accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care.  Graduates are qualified to take all Respiratory Care board exams administered by the National Board for Respiratory Care and are also eligible for state licensure.  Opportunities for employment include hospitals, long term care, rehabilitation facilities, Doctor’s offices, private practice, home care, sales & marketing, education, research and administration.  Students are admitted each September with limited enrollment to qualified applicants.

Admission Information

  1. NEW students who wish to be considered must complete a WCC Application Form for admission to the College and be processed by the Admissions Office.
  2. Upon successful admission, the student must meet with an Academic Counselor ( www.sunywcc.edu/getadvised ) who will evaluate the student’s eligibility to be added to the Respiratory Care waitlist.
  3. CURRENTLY ENROLLED OR RETURNING students who wish to be considered must meet with an Academic Counselor ( www.sunywcc.edu/getadvised ) who will evaluate the student’s eligibility to see if they can be added to the Respiratory Care waitlist.

Selection Process

  1. All applicants must demonstrate a readiness for College level courses including Math, Reading and English. This is demonstrated either by past College courses/transcripts and/or standardized assessments. Any need for remedial courses will render the applicant unqualified.
  2. A cumulative GPA of at least 2.50
  3. Via email, all qualified applicants are given a number in chronological order by Ms. Celeste Cabral.
  4. Qualified applicants are admitted in chronological order. Thirty students are admitted for every Fall semester with the rest of the qualified students placed on a Wait List. The thirty admitted students are contacted in mid-April for early Fall registration. Students accepted for enrollment will be contacted instructing them to register, proceed with the required annual physical exam and orientation information. If you are not contacted that means your number has not been called.
  5. Qualified applicants who are not accepted because the program is full will be maintained on the Wait List, again in chronological order, and contacted only when there is a seat available. Failure to maintain academic standards will have your name removed from the Wait List.
Procedures
  • Correctly read prescriptions, measure arterial blood gases, and review patient information to assess a patient’s condition.
  • Recommend appropriate diagnostic and therapeutic procedures using patient data from laboratory and physiologic evaluations.
  • Manage patient care by performing medical procedures or related duties.
  • Inspect, clean, test, and maintain respiratory therapy equipment to ensure equipment is functioning safely and efficiently, ordering repairs when necessary.
  • Monitor a patient’s physiological responses to therapy, such as vital signs, arterial blood gases, or blood chemistry changes, and consult.
  • Apply the skills required to perform all of the clinical procedural skills associated with the role and scope of practice of the advanced respiratory care practitioner.