Respiratory Care

The SCCC Respiratory Care program 200331 is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (CoARC). 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. The most recent re-accreditation process of the SCCC Respiratory Care program was in March of 2020 and the site reviewers listed the following as the strengths of the program:

1. Recently appointed program key personnel have already made significant strides in program improvement.
2. Administration very supportive of the program as evidenced by continuation of the program while student numbers were very low.
3. Advisory Board very involved and supportive of the program. Many are program graduates and highly likely to hire Seward County graduates. They spoke highly of the Seward County students when comparing to other programs.
4. Medical Director very supportive of the program and willing to consider ways to increase his participation.
5. Excellent clinical site opportunities for the students.
6. The new Allied Health building offers excellent lecture, lab, and simulation space.
7. The collaboration with other community colleges in the distance program strengthens SCCC and the communities by meeting the needs of the hospitals.

CoARC 2020-2030 

264 Precision Blvd.
Telford, TN 37690
817-283-2835
https://coarc.com/
Programatic Outcomes Data
Kansas Degree Statistics link

We are pleased to note your interest in the Seward County Community College Respiratory Care program! Respiratory Care is one of the fastest growing Allied Health professions with a demand for these health care specialists increasing steadily. It is a health care specialty that offers a set of unique challenges in the areas of prevention, treatment, management, and rehabilitation of people with cardiopulmonary problems.

Please complete the following:

1. Online SCCC Application for Admission, please indicate admission for Fall despite that the start date of the program is in the Spring.
2. Online SCCC Scholarship and Grant Application.
3. Make arrangements for your college transcript to be sent to the SCCC Registrar’s office.
4. Contact one of the Respiratory Care program faculty.
   • Please find their contact information under the Program Faculty Tab on the RC webpage navigation bar.
5. Complete the Test of Essential Academic Skills exam at the SCCC Testing Center or remotely.
   • Contact the Testing Center at 620-417-1042 to schedule an in-person or remote exam.
6. Complete an online Allied Health Respiratory Care Student Application.

• • The application will be opened from August 26th -November 4th.
  • If the program is not full at that time, the online applications will remain open until maximum capacity is met at 20 students.
    1. For current SCCC students click here.
    2.  For non-current SCCC students click here.
       •  Create an account with Dynamic Forms.
       •  Exit out of Dynamic Forms.
       •  Click link again to access application.

Upon completion of all the items on the list including the TEAS test and application forms, a program faculty member will contact the student to schedule an interview. The program can admit up to 20 new students per cohort. The admission evaluation criteria point system will determine which applicants will be considered for admission into the program.

If we can be of any assistance to you, please contact the program faculty. For more information about the program, please continue to review the program’s webpage.

We look forward to working with you in the near future!

Respiratory Care Admission Point Criteria

This page provides you with links to the colleges that we have established an articulation agreement with for students to continue their education for completing a bachelor’s degree. An articulation agreement means that these colleges have looked over the SCCC Respiratory Care degree curriculum and have agreed that the courses will transfer to their school and count toward your advanced degree with them. However, depending on the school and the degree that you seek, the transfer institution will determine the additional course work that will need to be completed to earn a bachelor’s degree.

All of these schools offer an opportunity to advance your education online. If you have more questions about the requirements of an advanced degree offered by one of the colleges below, please click on the links and contact the school’s advisors as indicated or you can reach out to the SCCC Respiratory Care program faculty.

Fort Hays State University

Bachelor of Science in Health Studies

University of Kansas

Bachelor of Science in Respiratory Care

Midwestern State University

Bachelor of Science in Respiratory Care

Ottawa University

Bachelor in Healthcare Management

SCCC Respiratory Care Program Approximate Costs

Click here for a downloadable XLSX copy of the SCCC Respiratory Care Program Approximate Costs.

The Respiratory Care profession enables care givers to work with ages from infant to geriatrics, and to work in all areas of the hospital including but not limited to:

• Emergency Room
• Operating Room
• Obstetrics and Delivery
• Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
• Medical and Surgical floors
• Medical and Surgical Intensive Care Units
• Neurological Intensive Care Unit
• Cardiac Intensive Care Unit
• Burn Intensive Care Unit

In addition, there are areas outside of the hospital for employment opportunities, including:

• Diagnostic Laboratories
• Sleep Disorder Laboratories
• Rehabilitation Long-Term Care Facilities
• In-home Care

Respiratory Care is listed as #4 in the “Best Jobs in Healthcare” list and #12 in the “100 Best Jobs in America” according to US News.

money.usnews.com/careers/best-jobs/rankings

According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics the median salary for Respiratory Care Therapists in 2024 is $80,450 and jobs are projected to grow by 13% over the next ten years (much faster than the average).

CIP Code: 51.0908
CIP Name: Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist
Definition: A program that prepares individuals, under the supervision of physicians, to assist in developing respiratory care plans, administer respiratory care procedures, supervise personnel and equipment operation, maintain records, and consult with other health care team members. Includes instruction in the applied basic biomedical sciences; anatomy, physiology, and pathology of the respiratory system; clinical medicine; therapeutic procedures; clinical expressions; data collection and record-keeping; patient communication; equipment operation and maintenance; personnel supervision; and procedures for special population groups.

To ensure the safety of all patients for whom our allied health students provide care, all allied health students over the age of 18 will be required to complete the criminal background check. If a student is found guilty of any felony crime against a person, the student must meet with the appropriate program director to determine the student’s ability to participate in clinical placement. Students who are unable to complete the clinical component of their respective program will be withdrawn from the program.

The following list of felony crimes against persons will prevent clinical placement for any allied health student:

• Murder in the first degree
• International second-degree murder
• Capital murder
• Domestic battery
• Murder in the first degree
• Aggravated kidnapping
• Murder in the first degree; Conspiracy
• Murder in the second degree (reckless)
• Murder in the first degree; Solicitation
• Voluntary manslaughter
• Kidnapping
• Aggravated robbery
• Aggravated battery on LEO-intentional, great bodily harm
• Injury to a pregnant woman in the commission of a felony
• Aggravated battery – intentional, great bodily harm
• Injury to a pregnant woman in commission of K.S.A. 21-342 (aggravated assault), K.S.A. 21-3413 (a)(1), battery or K.S.A. 21-3517, sexual battery
• Involuntary manslaughter
• Robbery
• Aggravated battery – reckless, great bodily harm
• Aggravated assault on law enforcement officer
• Mistreatment of a dependent adult – physical
• Aggravated assault
• Aggravated interference with parental custody
• Blackmail
• Battery against a correctional officer, youth center office, juvenile detention office or city/county correctional officer/employee
• Aggravated battery – intentional, bodily harm
• Aggravated battery – intentional, physical contact
• Stalking when the offender has a previous conviction within 7 years for stalking the same victim
• Aggravated battery – reckless, bodily harm
• Assisting suicide
• Criminal threat
• Stalking in all other cases
• Interference with parental custody in all other cases

The National Board Exam for Respiratory Care graduates is the Therapist Multiple Choice exam.  Graduates can pass this exam at two levels:  As a Certified Respiratory Care Therapist or as a Registered Respiratory Care Therapist. However, the goal of all Respiratory Care programs is to prepare students to pass at the Registry level.  Exam pass rates at the registry level and program outcome data for a three year average are as follows:

SCCC Respiratory Care graduates data from 2023-2025 demonstrate a Therapist Multiple Choice exam High Cut Score rate of 70% (60% threshold) with a Registered Respiratory Therapist credential success rate of 33% (no current threshold).

The data from 2023-2025 demonstrates program student retention is an average of 84% (Outcome threshold is 70%).  Additionally, the data demonstrates an average job placement rate of 87% (no current threshold) by employment in the field, a closely related field, or by continuing their education within one year of graduation.

Respiratory Care graduates data demonstrates a 100% satisfaction (Outcome threshold is 80%) with the SCCC Respiratory Care Program and earn 96% employer satisfaction rate (Outcome threshold is 80%)

CoARC Program Outcomes Data:

https://coarc.com/students/programmatic-outcomes-data/