RESPIRATORY CARE

This course introduces students to the fundamentals of respiratory care practice, including credential mechanisms, organization of respiratory care services, theory of modalities performed by respiratory care practitioners (RCPs) in various settings, and the various patient populations RCPs work with. Basics of patient assessment and evidence-based practice protocols are introduced.

This course covers highly sophisticated and complex modern mechanical ventilators. Operational differences, mechanism of action, and taxonomy of the modes of commonly used mechanical ventilators is covered. The course also looks at innovations such closed-loop control of ventilation and the future of the ICU ventilator. Emphasis is placed on understanding the effects of positive pressure ventilation on various physiological systems and how to minimize adverse effects and identification of patient-ventilator asynchrony and strategies to correct it.

This course focuses on the physiology of the cardiopulmonary system from a clinical perspective, including basic anatomy, pulmonary ventilation, diffusion of gases, blood gas transport and acid-base status.

This course provides hands-on skills in the lab setting and supervised clinical experience at local area hospitals with the purpose of gaining experience in the application of mechanical ventilation in the acute care setting. This course provides practice in recognizing and correcting patient-ventilator interactions that cause asynchrony and physiological effects of positive pressure ventilation. In addition, the course explores innovations in mechanical ventilation. Emphasis is placed on evaluating features and capabilities of various mechanical ventilators.

This course presents the basic concepts and principles in oxygen supply systems and administration, humidity and aerosol therapy, lung expansion therapy and airway clearance techniques.

This course provides direct physician interaction and student involvement in the clinical and nonclinical settings. The course will focus on the ability to present patient respiratory assessments, SBAR and assessment of need, assessment of outcome, recognize adverse effects and make recommendations of respiratory care therapeutics to a physician.

This course covers the essentials of invasive and noninvasive monitoring devices. Pulse oximetry, capnography, volumetric capnography and transcutaneous monitoring are covered as well as cardiovascular monitoring using invasive and indwelling catheters. The course also covers drugs used in the application of critical care and advanced life support.

This course presents conventional and unconventional strategies of mechanical ventilation to minimize lung injury. Emphasis is placed on the ARDSnet protocol and airway pressure release ventilation. The concepts of the baby lung and assessment of esophageal pressure, stress index, driving pressure and P-SILI are highlighted. Salvage therapies for ARDS are also discussed. In addition, conventional and unconventional strategies of the gradual or abrupt discontinuation of mechanical ventilation are covered.

This course provides direct physician interaction and student involvement in the clinical and nonclinical settings. The course will prepare students to present case studies coherently and efficiently to a physician. The topics covered include lung protective strategies, weaning and liberation from mechanical ventilation. In addition, noninvasive and invasive monitoring, capnography, pulse oximetry, transcutaneous and hemodynamic monitoring are also covered.

This course presents prenatal development, high risk pregnancy and normal labor and delivery. Assessment of the newborn and pediatric patient, neonatal and pediatric diseases and disorders are described with an emphasis on the respiratory care interventions, techniques, and equipment used in neonatal and pediatric patient care. The use of noninvasive and invasive mechanical ventilation and strategies to reduce the likelihood of ventilator induced lung injury are also discussed.

This course provides supervised clinical experience at local area hospitals. This course facilitates students' successful transition to clinical practice. The student practices civic professionalism, patient education, decision-making, advanced-level respiratory care skills and leadership skills essential to patient care requiring respiratory therapeutics and ventilator management. Readiness to enter the workforce is strengthened as the student gains self-confidence and independence by developing time management skills as the student assumes the role of a practicing Respiratory Care Practitioner.

This course provides hands-on practice of the fundamentals of patient assessment, medical records, and infection control. The basic application of respiratory care modalities performed by respiratory care practitioners are introduced. Patient assessment skills and monitoring are applied to the delivery of floor care modalities. Ethics, Respiratory Care tracking software, HIPAA computer modules and hospital medical requirements are completed to prepare the student for entry to clinical experience.

This course presents the applied physiology, etiology, pathophysiology, diagnosis and treatment of cardiopulmonary diseases such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, pulmonary embolism, pneumonia, atelectasis, interstitial lung disease, etc.

This course provides hands-on practice and supervised clinical experience at local area hospitals with the purpose of practicing the assessment of need, administration, monitoring and reevaluation of respiratory care therapeutics (oxygen therapy, lung expansion therapy, aerosol therapy, lung expansion therapy, airway clearance modalities, and humidity therapy). Technical skills, knowledge and attitude are practiced. The student is assessed in competency of therapeutic delivery, assessment of need, assessment outcome, monitoring and evaluation of therapy.

This course provides supervised clinical experience at local area hospitals with the purpose of gaining experience in the application of noninvasive and invasive mechanical ventilation in the acute care setting. This introductory course in mechanical ventilation provides practice in technical skills of mechanical ventilation such as the initiation, ventilator set-up and monitoring and noninvasive ventilation.

This course provides hands-on skills and supervised clinical experience at local area hospitals with the purpose of gaining experience in the initiation, monitoring and troubleshooting of noninvasive monitoring devices, hemodynamic monitoring and arterial sampling measurement and interpretation in the acute care setting. This course also provides examples of application of medications frequently used in advanced life support and in the intensive care unit (ICU).

This course provides hands-on skills in lab setting and supervised clinical experience at local area hospitals with the purpose of gaining experience in applying evidence-based medicine to advanced concepts in mechanical ventilation. Emphasis is placed on recognizing acute lung injury, acute respiratory distress, and minimizing iatrogenic ventilator induced lung injury. In addition, practice in weaning and discontinuation of mechanical ventilation is covered.

This course presents hands-on application of neonatal-pediatric respiratory care, physical assessment, neutral thermal environment and management of common respiratory diseases/conditions. Application of technical skills used to assess need, initial setup, and monitoring of neonatal and pediatric patient requiring noninvasive and invasive mechanical ventilation are also covered.