Respiratory Care

Respiratory Care Therapist

The respiratory care industry is in high demand! Start here to earn nationally recognized credentials and a rewarding career!

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Respiratory Care practitioners work in a variety of extremely busy environments, such as hospitals, pediatric/neonatal care units, skilled nursing and rehabilitation facilities, and many others to help treat critically ill patients and their families. They analyze data, evaluate patients, and make critical thinking decisions that directly affect the well being of patients.

Respiratory Care Application Packet

Accreditation
The Respiratory Care Program is fully accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (CoARC).  The Francis Tuttle Technology Center CoARC program number is 200454. 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 educational goals of the program are achieved and by which program effectiveness is documented. 

Programmatic outcomes from the most recent Annual Report of Current Status.

www.coarc.com

www.coarc.com/students/programmatic-outcomes-data

Respiratory Therapy Professional Licensure Disclosure

Program Goals and Standards
To prepare graduates with demonstrated competence in the cognitive (knowledge), psychomotor (skills), and affective (behavior) learning domains of respiratory care practice as performed by respiratory therapists.

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Respiratory Care Therapist Majors

About this Occupation

Respiratory Care Practitioners (RCP’s) work in an extremely busy environment and deal with critically ill patients and their families. They must be able to work effectively as part of a multidisciplinary team and must be able to communicate effectively with team members, patients, and families, even under stressful conditions. Respiratory Therapists must have the ability to analyze data, evaluate patients, and make critical thinking decisions that directly affect their patient’s wellbeing.To perform necessary job functions, Respiratory Care Practitioners must have visual acuity sufficient to read monitors from a distance of 6 to 8 feet and to observe and assess patients. They must also be able to read patient charts and small print on laboratory reports, medication containers, and technical manuals. In addition, they must have auditory acuity sufficient to accurately assess heart and breath sounds, understand instructions in a normal tone of voice without seeing the speaker's face, and hear and respond to audible alarms.When working in this field, steady physical activity is required and may consist of walking, standing, and assisting in moving patients and/or equipment. Daily tasks require occasional lifting up to 30-40 lbs. When dealing with patient care there is occasional to frequent exposure to communicable disease, and direct contact with blood or other bodily fluids requires that personal protective equipment be worn in these circumstances.

Learn from Experienced Instructors

Melody Beard, M.Ed., RRT-NPS

Respiratory Care instructor

Melody Beard, M.Ed., R.R.T.-N.P.S., teaches Respiratory Care in the Health Sciences Center at the Rockwell campus. She earned an Associate in Applied Science degree at Rose State College in Midwest City, Oklahoma, a Bachelor of Science degree at the University of Oklahoma, and a Master in Adult Education degree at the University of Central Oklahoma. Melody previously worked as a Respiratory Clinical Educator at INTEGRIS Baptist Medical Center in Oklahoma City, and as a student therapist at the OU Health Sciences Center.

Michael Bonham, M.S., RRT-ACCS

Respiratory Care instructor

Mike Bonham, M.S., R.R.T.-A.C.C.S., teaches Respiratory Care in the Health Sciences Center at the Rockwell campus. He earned a certificate of completion in Francis Tuttle’s Respiratory Care program, and both a Bachelor in Health Services Management and a Master in Healthcare Administration at Independence University, Salt Lake City, Utah. Mike previously worked in a temporary capacity for Francis Tuttle, served as director of pulmonary services at the Christus Trinity Mother Francis Hospital in Tyler, Texas, simultaneously working as a faculty program advisor and online respiratory instructor for Independence University in Salt Lake City, Utah, and as director of the cardiopulmonary department and hospital risk manager at Grady Memorial Hospital in Chickasha, Oklahoma.

Crystal Cosper, M.Ed., RRT-ACCS

Respiratory Care program director and instructor

Crystal Cosper, M.Ed., R.R.T.-A.C.C.S., teaches Respiratory Care and serves as clinical program director in the Health Sciences Center at the Rockwell campus. She earned an Associate in Applied Science in Respiratory Care from Oklahoma City Community College and Francis Tuttle Technology Center, a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from Southeastern Oklahoma State University and a Master of Education in Adult Education-Training from the University of Central Oklahoma. Crystal previously worked as a respiratory therapist at St. Anthony Hospital in Oklahoma City, and as a substitute instructor in Francis Tuttle’s Respiratory Care Program.

Emilee Hedrick, A.A.S., RRT-NPS, RRT-ACCS

Respiratory Care program clinical director and instructor

Emilee Hedrick, A.A.S., R.R.T.-N.P.S., R.R.T.-A.C.C.S., teaches Respiratory Care and serves as the program clinical director in the Health Sciences Center at the Rockwell campus. She earned an Associate of Applied Science in Respiratory Therapy at Oklahoma City Community College in conjunction with Francis Tuttle, and a Bachelor of Science degree in Lifespan Care and Administration. Emilee previously worked at Francis Tuttle as a substitute instructor, while also serving as a Registered Respiratory Therapist at Integris Baptist Medical Center in Oklahoma City. She has earned Respiratory Therapy certifications in Neonatal Pediatric Specialist and Adult Critical Care Specialist.

Jack Turner, B.S., RRT-ACCS

Respiratory Care instructor

Jack Turner, B.S., R.R.T.-A.C.C.S., teaches Respiratory Care in the Health Sciences Center at the Rockwell campus. He earned an Associate of Science degree at Northern Oklahoma College and an Associate of Applied Science degree in Respiratory Care from Oklahoma City Community College and Francis Tuttle. Jack previously worked as a Registered Respiratory Therapist/Supervisor at Integris Baptist Medical Center, and as a Registered Respiratory Therapist at Saint Anthony Hospital, both in Oklahoma City.

Christina Wynn, B.S., RRT-NPS, RRT-ACCS

Respiratory Care instructor

Christina Wynn, B.S., R.R.T.-N.P.S., R.R.T.-A.C.C.S., teaches Respiratory Care in the Health Sciences Center at the Rockwell Campus. She earned an Associate of Applied Science degree in Respiratory Care from Oklahoma City Community College and a Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University Of Central Oklahoma. Christina previously worked as a substitute instructor in the Health Sciences Center, and as a Respiratory Care Practitioner at for Integris Baptist Medical Center in Oklahoma City.