Texarkana AHEC to Host Respiratory Care Open House

By todd

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LITTLE ROCK – New respiratory therapists are needed and the Area Health Education Center (AHEC) Southwest, 300 E. Sixth St., in Texarkana will host an open house Dec. 17, from 10:30 a.m. until noon, for the respiratory care program offered through the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS).


 


Respiratory care is one of the fastest growing jobs in health care, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, as an aging population needs more care. The need for respiratory therapists is expected to increase 35 percent through 2012, and graduates from the UAMS program have historically enjoyed near 100 percent job placement in a career that can carry a starting salary of more than $40,000.


 


The open house will offer hands-on demonstrations of respiratory care techniques by students and faculty. Information also will be available about the two-year professional program, with classes conveniently offered at UAMS’ AHEC Southwest in Texarkana. 


 


For more information regarding the open house, contact Karen Diles at 870-779-6032. Program information is also available online at www.uams.edu/chrp/res.


 


UAMS is the state’s only comprehensive academic health center, with five colleges, a graduate school, a medical center, five centers of excellence and a statewide network of regional centers. UAMS has about 2,320 students and 690 residents and is the state’s largest public employer with almost 9,000 employees. UAMS and its affiliates have an economic impact in Arkansas of $4.3 billion a year.


 


UAMS centers of excellence are the Arkansas Cancer Research Center, Harvey and Bernice Jones Eye Institute, Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging, Myeloma Institute for Research and Therapy and Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute.