Respiratory Care

The Be An RT Video, which can be found at the following web page,  https://be-an-rt.org/,  shows the roles and responsibilities of respiratory care practitioners and interviews with real-life therapists, students, and physicians, and shows the various work settings and types of patients, as well as educational requirements.

Respiratory therapists provide direct patient care, patient education, and care coordination. They practice in acute care facilities, long-term acute care facilities, skilled nursing facilities, assisted living centers, subacute care units, rehabilitation centers, diagnostic units, and in the home. Their clinical decisions are increasingly data-driven by scientifically supported algorithms (protocols) to deliver respiratory Care. They are involved in research and need to be adept at understanding the practical ramifications of published research. Respiratory therapists use sophisticated medical equipment and perform complex therapeutic procedures and diagnostic studies. They also provide education to patients and other members of the public. Respiratory therapists must possess and in-depth understanding of human physiology and apply that knowledge in the clinical setting.

The continually expanding knowledge base of today's respiratory care field requires a more highly educated professional than ever before. Factors such as increased emphasis on evidence based medicine, focus on respiratory disease management, demands for advanced patient assessment, and growing complexities of American healthcare overall, clearly mandate that respiratory therapists achieve formal academic preparation commensurate with an advanced practice role.

The primary purpose of a formal respiratory care educational program 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 registered respiratory therapist (RRT’s) and prepare competent respiratory therapists for practice across multiple health care venues. The Respiratory Care Program is twenty-four months and the graduate will receive an associate degree. Full-time students in this program enroll in three to five courses per term which average 17-30 class/lab hours per week or 9-12 credit hours per term. The two year graduate will receive an associate of applied science degree in respiratory care and is eligible to apply for admission to the National Board Exams and for South Carolina State Licensure.

Clinical rotations follow the initial fall term. Students are scheduled at affiliated hospitals and other designated areas where practical experience is gained. Affiliated hospitals are Spartanburg Regional Medical Center, SRHS Mary Black Campus, Spartanburg Hospital for Restorative Care,Pelham Medical Center, Cherokee Medical Center, Union Medical Center, Rutherford Regional Health System, and Piedmont Medical Center. Practical studies also include home care, sleep lab, rehabilitation facilities and physician offices.

Accreditation

The Respiratory Care Program is accredited by CoARC ((The Committee on Accreditation for Respiratory Care.  Their website is https://coarc.com/

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.  Click on the link to see all program outcomes.   Programmatic Outcome Performance (SCC 200362)

Each year CoARC (our accreditation agency) awards a program that has (1 three years of outcome data; (2 hold accreditation without a progress report; and (3 have RRT credentialing success of 90% or above with green in all outcomes thresholds. In 2014, only 62 (sixty-two) out of 438 programs in the country met these criteria. We are proud to say we are one of those programs:  CoARC 2020 Awards

Distinguished Registered Respiratory Therapist Credentialing Success 2020
Distinguished Registered Respiratory Therapist Credentialing Success 2019
Distinguished Registered Respiratory Therapist Credentialing Success 2018
Distinguished Registered Respiratory Therapist Credentialing Success 2017
Distinguished Registered Respiratory Therapist Credentialing Success 2016
Distinguished Registered Respiratory Therapist Credentialing Success 2015
Distinguished Registered Respiratory Therapist Credentialing Success 2014
Distinguished Registered Respiratory Therapist Credentialing Success 2013
Distinguished Registered Respiratory Therapist Credentialing Success 2012