Health Professions

HLTH 100 First Aid Training (two days)

• Prepares students to make appropriate decisions regarding first-aid care.

HLTH 130 Phlebotomy (16 week)

Prepare students to perform phlebotomy techniques that include venipuncture, dermal punctures, special procedure techniques, medicolegal, infection control and safety aspects of the profession, and anatomy, physiology, and terminology of the body systems.

Healthcare is demanding and challenging, and has many satisfying professions which require clinical expertise, academic knowledge, critical thinking skills, physical stamina, and personal integrity.

Nurses are vital to healthcare. Individuals preparing to enter nursing must be caring, self-disciplined, and committed. Nurses are highly regarded in our society. A 2004 Gallup Poll, rated nurses number one for "honesty and ethical standards of various professions.”

Respiratory therapists evaluate, treat, and manage patients of all ages with respiratory illnesses and other cardio-pulmonary disorders. Excellent career opportunities are available in hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, home care, and education.

Career and Technical Education Option

At Richland Community College, the Respiratory Care program is offered by a joint educational agreement with Parkland College using interactive teleconferencing equipment provided for students in a designated Richland classroom.

A physical therapy assistant assists the physical therapist in implementing treatment programs according to the plan of care, training patients in exercises and activities of daily living, conducting treatments using special equipment, administering modalities and other treatment procedures, and reporting to the physical therapist on the patient’s responses.

The occupational therapy assistant works under the direction of an occupational therapist. The assistant’s duties may include working to provide services and/or activities to those individuals whose abilities to cope with tasks of daily living are threatened or impaired by developmental deficits, the aging process, physical injury or illness, or psychological and social disability; providing selected tasks to restore, reinforce, and enhance performance, and promoting activities to maintain maximum levels of functioning.

Dental hygienists work with dentists in the delivery of dental care to patients. The hygienist performs patient screening procedures, removes calculus and plaque from teeth, applies preventive materials to teeth, teaches patients appropriate oral hygiene techniques, and provides the patient other services or teaching about good oral health. Excellent career opportunities exist for dental hygienists in dental offices, dental specialist clinics, hospitals, nursing homes, public health clinics, schools, teaching, and research.

Medical laboratory technicians perform laboratory tests for detection, diagnosis, and treatment of many diseases and also in the promotion of health. They work under the direction of medical technologists, pathologists, or other trained scientists who specialize in clinical chemistry or microbiology. Excellent career opportunities are available in hospitals, medical laboratories, clinics, industry, and related businesses.

Richland Community College has Cooperative Educational Program agreements with other Illinois community colleges that allow Richland Community College District residents to enroll in a vocational/technical degree and/or certificate not available at Richland. In the Health Professions Division, those cooperative programs include: