Recognition Guidelines for Quality International Respiratory Care Education

The American Association for Respiratory Care (AARC) recognizes quality Respiratory Care education that meets or exceeds these guidelines formulated by the International Council on Respiratory Care and approved by the board of directors of the AARC.

These Guidelines will be used to recognize quality education designed to produce respiratory care practitioners who provide respiratory care to patients all over the world. The recognition Guidelines reflect contemporary education accreditation best practices and are used to determine if an education experience warrants one of the three levels of recognition granted by the International Education Recognition System (IERS) of the AARC.

These Guidelines were developed in cooperation with the INTERNATIONAL COUNCIL FOR RESPIRATORY CARE, International Educators and clinicians before approved by the 2004 Board of Directors of the AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR RESPIRATORY CARE.

Statement of Purpose

The American Association for Respiratory Care (AARC) and the International Council for Respiratory Care (ICRC) have collaborated to develop a web-based recognition system customized to the needs of the diverse international respiratory care education community. The intent is to provide guidance and/or recognition to respiratory care education that meets or exceeds the predefined quality guidelines. In addition, IERS will use these guidelines and web-based technology to better serve the needs of the international education community to provide educational experiences designed for RC health care professionals in any county in the world. Lists of recognized respiratory care seminars, programs and schools, along with their recognition level and outcome data, will be published on the IERS website for review by individuals, public and private organizations, the professional communities of interest, and the public.

Disclaimer: Recognition by the AARC does not imply that: CRCE credits will be awarded, courses will transfer to US colleges, or that participants/graduates will be eligible for USA NBRC examinations.

This Recognition System is consistent with and serves to advance the Mission Statement of the ICRC adopted in 1991. The Mission states that:

“The ICRC is dedicated to the development of the art, science, clinical practice, research, and educational development related to Respiratory Care around the world. The ICRC is further dedicated to providing public education in cardiopulmonary health promotion and disease prevention as appropriate in each nation and as requested by the Council members.”

Health Care Professionals Providing Respiratory/Pulmonary Care

In the international practice of respiratory care many different health care professionals with diverse professional credentials provide RC by assessing, treating, monitoring and determining the appropriateness of respiratory care in all types of patients suffering from pulmonary, cardiac and related conditions that may affect the patient’s ability to exchange oxygen and carbon dioxide at the lungs and tissues. These health care professionals need appropriately constructed respiratory care education that is matched to the respiratory care practitioner’s preparation and educational backgrounds for it to be effective and efficient. The guidelines will be used to assist the international respiratory care education community to continue to develop seminars, programs and schools for respiratory care that will meet the growing demand across the world. In addition, because of the diversity of preparation and practice specific to a given country, issues of academic preparation or setting are not mandated to fit any one of the three recognition levels. Instead, when appropriate, these guidelines will focus on the instructional and evaluation quality of the RC education and how the specific communities of interest are convinced that the level of preparation is adequate to meet practice demands of the respiratory care practitioner in various clinical settings.

Levels Of Recognition

The three levels of recognition granted to educational experiences intended to improve the education provided to health care professionals who deliver respiratory/pulmonary care around the world are as follows:

Seminar Recognition (Level I)

Granted to educational non-repeating (content) RC seminars of any length. Recognized RC Seminars have met or exceeded the guidelines for quality seminars that teach different content each time they are offered, as set forth in these Recognition System Guidelines.

Program Recognition (Level II)

Granted to educational repeating(content/skills) RC programs that are designed to teach the same content/skill set each time the program is delivered. Recognized RC programs have met or exceeded the guidelines for quality programs that teach similar RC skills each time they are offered, as set forth in the Recognition System Guidelines.

School Recognition (Level III)

Granted to educational programs that meet level II (Recognized Program) recognition guidelines and also meet these level III additional requirements. In addition to level II recognition, RC schools must set local evidence-based outcome measures for (graduate) outcome performance. Recognized Schools have met or exceeded the guidelines for a quality educational experience that graduates RC practitioners who will be providing RC at the bedside anywhere in the world, as set forth in the these Recognition System Guidelines. Graduation from these schools may then be approved by the country’s credentialing and/or licensure system for RC practice in the hospital, ICUs, and other settings where patients receive respiratory care.