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  5. Advanced Patient Care Assistant, TCC

Advanced Patient Care Assistant, TCC (AN71)  Technical Certificate of Credit

Campus Locations: Valdosta, Ben Hill Irwin, Coffee, Cook

Prepares students with rigorous classroom training and practice as well as the clinical experiences to perform a full range of patient care duties or services under nursing or medical direction. This includes taking vital signs, obtaining lab specimens, assisting with activities of daily living, observing and charting patient information, and reporting appropriate information to supervisors. Includes Math, English and Pharmacology courses.

This program qualifies for the HOPE Career Grant.

Program Outcomes: This program will equip students with the knowledge and skills necessary to understand and demonstrate the role and responsibilities of a nurse aide. They will develop appropriate communication and interpersonal skills, learn ways to prevent injuries and ensure client safety, perform basic client care, and understand and correctly demonstrate basic medication pharmacology and administration. Upon program completion, students qualify to sit for the NACES exam.

Careers: Nursing Assistants

Length of Program: 2 Terms

Admission Requirements:

Program-Specific Admission Requirements:

  • To enroll in ALHS or NAST classes, students must maintain good academic standing at Wiregrass; those on academic warning, probation, or suspension are ineligible. Additionally, all registration holds must be cleared for registration eligibility.

Program Information

  • Students should meet with their One-Stop Advisor to discuss potential MATH substitutions.
  • Health Science students must meet additional requirements. See the Health Science Program Advising Packet for more information.
  • Clinical experience is required to complete the program, and students must meet all clinical requirements defined by the clinical facility. No student will be denied admissions to a program due to these requirements; however, the clinical partner requirement may prevent a student from completing the program. Clinical requirements may include, but not limited to, some or all of the following: American Heart Association Provider CPR certification, physical examination or proof of ability to perform required duties, Tuberculin skin test, up-to-date immunizations, mandatory vaccinations, and/or titers. A criminal background check and drug screen are required prior to performing the clinical rotation. Students unable to meet clinical requirements may not be able to graduate from the program. Alternate clinical locations may not be offered or available if a student is unable to meet clinical requirements.
Gainful Employment Information
Curriculum Outline (22 hours)
General Core Courses 9
ENGL 1010

Weekly Contact Hours: Lecture - 3 Lab 2 - 0 Lab 3 - 0 Pre-requisite(s): Diploma Level Reading and Writing Scores OR READ 0090 and/or ENGL 0090 w/ a “C” or better Co-requisite(s): None Emphasizes the development and improvement of written and oral communication abilities. Topics include analysis of writing, applied grammar and writing skills, editing and proofreading skills, research skills, and oral communication skills.

3
MATH 1012

Weekly Contact Hours: Lecture - 3 Lab 2 - 0 Lab 3 - 0 Pre-requisite(s): Diploma Level Math Scores or MATH 0090 w/ a “C” or better Co-requisite(s): None Emphasizes the application of basic mathematical skills used in the solution of occupational and technical problems. Topics include fractions, decimals, percents, ratios and proportions, measurement and conversion, geometric concepts, technical applications, and basic statistics.

3
PSYC 1010

Weekly Contact Hours: Lecture - 3 Lab 2 - 0 Lab 3 - 0 Pre-requisite(s): None Co-requisite(s): None Presents basic concepts within the field of psychology and their application to everyday human behavior, thinking, and emotion. Emphasis is placed on students understanding basic psychological principles and their application within the context of family, work and social interactions. Topics include an overview of psychology as a science, the nervous and sensory systems, learning and memory, motivation and emotion, intelligence, lifespan development, personality, psychological disorders and their treatment, stress and health, and social psychology.

3
Occupational Courses 13
ALHS 1011

Weekly Contact Hours: Lecture - 5 Lab 2 - 0 Lab 3 - 0 Pre-requisite(s): Program Admission Co-requisite(s): None Focuses on basic normal structure and function of the human body. Topics include general plan and function of the human body, integumentary system, skeletal system, muscular system, nervous and sensory systems, endocrine system, cardiovascular system, lymphatic system, respiratory system, digestive system, urinary system, and reproductive system.

5
ALHS 1090

Weekly Contact Hours: Lecture - 2 Lab 2 - 0 Lab 3 - 0 Pre-requisite(s): None Co-requisite(s): None Introduces the elements of medical terminology. Emphasis is placed on building familiarity with medical words through knowledge of roots, prefixes, and suffixes. Topics include: origins (roots, prefixes, and suffixes), word building, abbreviations and symbols, and terminology related to the human anatomy.

2
Choose One of the Following (3-6 Hours) 6
ALHS 1100

Weekly Contact Hours: Lecture - 5 Lab 2 - 2 Lab 3 - 0 Pre-requisite(s): Program Admission Co-requisite(s): None Introduces student to the role and responsibilities of the Nurse Aide. Emphasis is placed on understanding and developing critical thinking skills, as well as demonstrating knowledge of the location and function of human body systems and common disease processes; responding to and reporting changes in a residents /patients condition, nutrition, vital signs; nutrition and diet therapy; disease processes; vital signs; observing, reporting and documenting changes in a residents condition; emergency concerns; ethics and legal issues and governmental agencies that influence the care of the elderly in long term care settings; mental health and psychosocial well-being of the elderly; use and care of mechanical devices and equipment; communication and interpersonal skills and skills competency based on federal guidelines. Specific topics include: roles and responsibilities of the Nurse Aide; communication and interpersonal skills; topography, structure, and function of the body systems; injury prevention and emergency preparedness; residents rights; basic patient care skills; personal care skills; and restorative care.

6
NAST 1100

Weekly Contact Hours: Lecture - 4 Lab 2 - 2 Lab 3 - 3 Pre-requisite(s): Program Admission Co-requisite(s): None Introduces student to the role and responsibilities of the Nurse Aide. Emphasis is placed on understanding and developing critical thinking skills, as well as demonstrating knowledge of the location and function of human body systems and common disease processes; responding to and reporting changes in a residents /patients condition, nutrition, vital signs; nutrition and diet therapy; disease processes; vital signs; observing, reporting and documenting changes in a residents condition; emergency concerns; ethics and legal issues and governmental agencies that influence the care of the elderly in long term care settings; mental health and psychosocial well-being of the elderly; use and care of mechanical devices and equipment; communication and interpersonal skills and skills competency based on federal guidelines. Specific topics include: roles and responsibilities of the Nurse Aide; communication and interpersonal skills; topography, structure, and function of the body systems; injury prevention and emergency preparedness; residents rights; basic patient care skills; personal care skills; and restorative care.

6
NAST 2105

Weekly Contact Hours: Lecture - 1 Lab 2 - 2 Lab 3 - 3 Pre-requisite(s): Program Admission Co-requisite(s): None Introduces student to the role and responsibilities of the Nurse Aide. Emphasis is placed on understanding and developing critical thinking skills, as well as demonstrating knowledge of the location and function of human body systems and common disease processes; responding to and reporting changes in a residents /patients condition, nutrition, vital signs; nutrition and diet therapy; disease processes; vital signs; observing, reporting and documenting changes in a residents condition; emergency concerns; ethics and legal issues and governmental agencies that influence the care of the elderly in long term care settings; mental health and psychosocial well-being of the elderly; use and care of mechanical devices and equipment; communication and interpersonal skills and skills competency based on federal guidelines. Specific topics include: roles and responsibilities of the Nurse Aide; communication and interpersonal skills; topography, structure, and function of the body systems; and injury.

3
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