BHS in Clinical and Diagnostic Sciences with Emphasis in Respiratory Therapy
Degree Program Description
Respiratory therapists assess and treat dysfunction involving the heart and lungs. Respiratory therapists work in hospitals, intensive care units, emergency rooms, air and ambulance transport, neonatal and pediatric units, patient homes, sleep laboratories, skilled nursing facilities, and in the medical device industry. They work closely with physicians to manage ventilators and artificial airways, administer prescribed inhaled medications, perform pulmonary function testing, and analyze arterial blood specimens.
Entry into Practice RRT
The Respiratory Therapy program at MU includes two years of pre-requisite coursework and two years (including summer semesters) of professional coursework, which can be completed in Columbia or at the program’s satellite campus at Mercy Hospital in St. Louis. However, new students will not be admitted to the Mercy Program beginning Fall 2022. Students graduate with the Bachelor of Health Science (BHS) degree in Clinical and Diagnostic Sciences with an emphasis in Respiratory Therapy. Graduates of the program are eligible to challenge credentialing examinations administered by the National Board for Respiratory Care (NBRC https://www.nbrc.org/).
Entry to BHS in CDS with an Emphasis in RT Program Goals
The goal of the Entry to BHS Respiratory Therapy 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 therapists (RRTs) and to prepare leaders for the field of respiratory care by including curricular content with objectives related to the acquisition of skills in one or more of the following: management, education, research, and advanced clinical practice (which may include an area of clinical specialization).
Entry to BHS in CDS with an Emphasis in RT Expected Student Learning Outcomes
- Demonstrate the ability to evaluate, comprehend, and apply clinical information in order to match patient needs with therapeutic interventions.
- Exhibit technical proficiency in all of the skills necessary to fulfill the role as an advanced level respiratory therapist.
- Display professional behavior consistent with employer expectations for a registered respiratory therapist.
RRT Degree Advancement
A fully online degree advancement program is available for credentialed registered respiratory therapists (RRT) who seek a bachelor's degree. This program includes professional courses to enhance student knowledge in the areas of management, education, research and adult, neonatal/pediatric critical care. Students may transfer general education and respiratory therapy coursework from a regionally accredited institution/program prior to completing the core requirements of the program.
RRT Degree Advancement Program Goals
This program provides graduates of entry into respiratory care professional practice degree programs with additional knowledge, skills, and attributes in leadership, management, education, research, or advanced clinical practice both to meet their current professional goals and to prepare them for practice as advanced degree respiratory therapists.
RRT Degree Advancement Expected Student Learning Outcomes
- Utilize management and leadership principles to solve problems and improve performance.
- Demonstrate strategies and techniques to enhance patient education and rehabilitation.
- Employ research methodology to analyze relevant medical literature.
- Integrate pertinent clinical data into recommendations for appropriate critical care interventions.
- Understand ethical theories and principles as they apply to patient scenarios.
- Analyze multiple perspectives on current issues in healthcare.
Major Program Requirements
There are two options for completing the degree based on a student’s entry level into the program and previous experiences. The Entry into Practice program is for students who are interested in becoming a respiratory therapist. The RRT Degree Advancement option is for students who are credentialed as registered respiratory therapists. The Degree Advancement option takes a student’s previous general education and respiratory therapy coursework into account, and subsequent required coursework to complete the program will be adjusted accordingly. There is no clinical component for the Degree Advancement option.
Students must complete the courses below or an approved equivalent with a grade of C (2.0) or higher to earn the BHS in Clinical and Diagnostic Sciences with an emphasis in Respiratory Therapy degree. In addition, students must meet degree and University requirements, including University general education requirements. A separate application is required for admission to the program. Students are encouraged to work with an advisor in order to best structure the pre-requisites and prepare for the program application.
| Pre-Respiratory Therapy Requirements | 45 | |
| MATH 1100 | College Algebra | 3 |
| ENGLSH 1000 | Writing and Rhetoric | 3 |
| or ENGLSH 1000H | Honors Writing and Rhetoric | |
| PSYCH 1000 | General Psychology | 3 |
| or PSYCH 1000H | General Psychology - Honors | |
| COMMUN 1200 | Public Speaking | 3 |
| or COMMUN 1200H | Public Speaking - Honors | |
| BIO_SC 1010 & BIO_SC 1020 | General Principles and Concepts of Biology and General Biology Laboratory * | 5 |
| or BIO_SC 1500 | Introduction to Biological Systems with Laboratory | |
| or BIO_SC 1500H | Introduction to Biological Systems with Laboratory Honors | |
| CHEM 1320 | College Chemistry I | 4 |
| or CHEM 1320H | College Chemistry I - Honors | |
| CDS 2190 | Medical Terminology | 3 |
| PTH_AS 2201 & PTH_AS 2203 | Human Anatomy Lecture and Human Anatomy Laboratory | 5 |
| MICROB 2800 | Microbiology for Nursing and Health Professions | 4 |
| or MICROB 3200 | Medical Microbiology and Immunology | |
| MPP 3202 | Elements of Physiology | 5 |
| STAT 1200 | Introductory Statistical Reasoning | 3 |
| or STAT 1300 | Elementary Statistics | |
| or ESC_PS 4170 | Introduction to Applied Statistics | |
| HLTH_SCI 4200W | Introduction to The Research Process and Evidence Base - Writing Intensive (previously 3900W) | 3 |
| RS_THR 1000 | Introduction to Respiratory Therapy * (Optional) | 1 |
| Major Core Requirements - Entry to Practice | 72 | |
| CDS 3460 | Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Diagnostic Applications I | 3 |
| CDS 4440 | Organization and Administration | 2 |
| CDS 4460 | Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Diagnostic Applications II | 3 |
| CDS 4500 | Emergency and Disaster Management in Healthcare | 1 |
| RS_THR 3000 | Fundamentals of Respiratory Care | 1 |
| RS_THR 3220 | Equipment and Therapeutics | 3 |
| RS_THR 3240 | Assessment and Therapeutics Lab | 3 |
| RS_THR 3290 | Cardiopulmonary Pharmacology | 3 |
| RS_THR 3420W | Principles of Mechanical Ventilation - Writing Intensive | 3 |
| RS_THR 3440 | Mechanical Ventilation Lab | 3 |
| RS_THR 3941 | Clinical Practice I | 2 |
| RS_THR 3942 | Clinical Practice II | 4 |
| RS_THR 3943 | Clinical Practice III | 2 |
| RS_THR 4020 | Perinatal/Neonatal Respiratory Care | 3 |
| RS_THR 4040 | Respiratory Pathophysiology | 5 |
| RS_THR 4220 | Community and Patient Education I | 1 |
| RS_THR 4240 | Pulmonary Rehabilitation | 3 |
| RS_THR 4420 | Pediatric Respiratory Care | 3 |
| RS_THR 4620 | Pulmonary Function Technologies | 3 |
| RS_THR 4930 | Current Issues in Respiratory Care | 3 |
| RS_THR 4940 | Clinical Practice IV | 5 |
| RS_THR 4973 | Clinical Practice V | 4 |
| RS_THR 4983 | Clinical Practice VI | 4 |
| RS_THR 4993 | Clincal Practice VII | 5 |
| Major Core Requirements - RRT Degree Advancement | 29 | |
| CDS 4480W | Clinical Ethics - Writing Intensive | 3 |
| CDS 4500 | Emergency and Disaster Management in Healthcare | 1 |
| RS_THR 4220 | Community and Patient Education I | 1 |
| RS_THR 4240 | Pulmonary Rehabilitation | 3 |
| RS_THR 4420 | Pediatric Respiratory Care | 3 |
| RS_THR 4440 | Organization and Administration | 3 |
| RS_THR 4660 | Advanced Mechanical Ventilation Theory | 3 |
| RS_THR 4820 | Adult Critical Care | 3 |
| or RS_THR 4860 | Neonatal and Pediatric Critical Care | |
| HLTH_SCI 4200W | Introduction to The Research Process and Evidence Base - Writing Intensive | 3 |
| RS_THR 4930 | Current Issues in Respiratory Care | 3 |
- *
Not required for degree advancement students.
Professional Credentialing/Licensure
After graduation, entry to practice students are eligible to take the credentialing exams offered by the National Board for Respiratory Care (NBRC). The RRT credential is required to begin RRT Degree Advancement core courses.
Graduates will also be required to apply for licensing in the state in which they choose to work.
Accreditation
The University of Missouri Respiratory Therapy Program’s Bachelor of Health Science in Clinical & Diagnostic Sciences with an emphasis in Respiratory Therapy, CoARC #200033, in Columbia, MO is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (https://coarc.com/).
The University of Missouri at Mercy Hospital Respiratory Therapy Program’s Bachelor of Health Science in Clinical & Diagnostic Sciences with an emphasis in Respiratory Therapy, CoARC #300006, in St. Louis, MO is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (https://coarc.com/).
The University of Missouri Respiratory Therapy Program’s Bachelor of Health Science in Clinical & Diagnostic Sciences RRT Degree Advancement Program, CoARC #510020, holds Provisional Accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (CoARC). This status signifies that a program with an Approval of Intent has demonstrated sufficient compliance with the Standards through submission of an acceptable Provisional Accreditation Self-Study Report and any other documentation required by the CoARC, as well as satisfactory completion of an initial on-site visit.
Programmatic outcomes data for entry into practice programs are available to the public on the CoARC website.
Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care
264 Precision Blvd
Telford, TN 37690
817-283-2835
https://coarc.com/
Semester Plan for Entry to Practice
Below is a sample plan of study, semester by semester. A student's actual plan may vary based on course choices where options are available. An individualized semester plan will be created for RRT Degree Advancement students by the program director or SHP Student Services.
| First Year | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits | ||
| MATH 1100 | 3 | CHEM 1320 | 4 | ||
| PSYCH 1000 | 3 | ENGLSH 1000 | 3 | ||
| BIO_SC 1010 & BIO_SC 1020 | 5 | COMMUN 1200 | 3 | ||
| Humanities | 3 | STAT 1200, 1300, or ESC_PS 4170 | 3 | ||
| 14 | 13 | ||||
| Second Year | |||||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits | Summer | Credits |
| RS_THR 1000 (recommended) | 1 | MPP 3202 | 5 | RS_THR 3000 (online) | 1 |
| HLTH_SCI 3900W or SOCIOL 3950W | 3 | MICROB 2800 or 3200 | 4 | ||
| PTH_AS 2201 & PTH_AS 2203 | 5 | 2000+ level Humanities | 3 | ||
| HIST 1100, 1200, or POL_SC 1100 | 3 | CDS 2190 | 3 | ||
| SOCIOL 1000 (or other Beh/Social Science) | 3 | ||||
| 15 | 15 | 1 | |||
| Third Year | |||||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits | Summer | Credits |
| RS_THR 3220 | 3 | CDS 3460 | 3 | CDS 4460 | 3 |
| RS_THR 3240 | 3 | RS_THR 3420W | 3 | RS_THR 3943 | 2 |
| RS_THR 3290 | 3 | RS_THR 3440 | 3 | RS_THR 4220 | 1 |
| RS_THR 3941 | 2 | RS_THR 3942 | 4 | RS_THR 4240 | 3 |
| RS_THR 4040 | 5 | RS_THR 4020 | 3 | ||
| 16 | 16 | 9 | |||
| Fourth Year | |||||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits | ||
| CDS 4440 | 3 | RS_THR 4930 | 3 | ||
| CDS 4500 | 1 | RS_THR 4973 | 4 | ||
| RS_THR 4420 | 3 | RS_THR 4983 | 4 | ||
| RS_THR 4620 | 2 | RS_THR 4993 | 5 | ||
| RS_THR 4940 | 5 | ||||
| 14 | 16 | ||||
| Total Credits: 129 | |||||
Degree Audit
The degree audit is an automated report reflecting a student’s academic progress toward the completion of a degree.
MU students can request a degree audit by logging in to myDegreePlanner. Students may also access myDegreePlanner via myZou, in the Student Center, click on the Academic Progress Tile, then select Request Degree Audit. The audit automatically pulls in the student’s MU course work, transfer courses and courses in progress. This is available to current students, admitted students, and those who last attended less than three terms ago.
Past MU students can request a degree audit by contacting the Academic Advising Unit of the division in which they were last enrolled at MU. For contact information, go to https://advising.missouri.edu/contact/.
Prospective students, can access a preliminary MU degree audit via https://www.transferology.com. Information on the college credits already earned will have to be manually entered before it can be evaluated against current degree requirements.
For additional details on degree audits, go to https://registrar.missouri.edu/degrees-audits/degree-audits/.
Major and Career Exploration
The University of Missouri has many resources to assist you in exploring majors and career possibilities. For guidance, visit the Majors and Careers website or view specific resources below.
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If you are considering a change of major or are exploring multiple majors, schedule an appointment with an advisor in the Discovery Center by calling (573)884-9700 or through MU Connect Discovery Center service in you success network.
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If you have decided on a major, visit an academic advisor in the School or College that you are interested in to discuss the process of declaring the major.
- If you would like to learn more about your career interests, abilities, values and talents, visit the MU Career Center. No Appointment is necessary to explore career options with one of our staff members.
- If you would like information about MU majors and degree programs, visit:
- the Degrees, Majors (Degree Programs), Emphasis Areas, Minors and Certificates page in the catalog,
- the MU Majors website.
For additional major and career exploration resources, visit Major & Career Exploration in the catalog.