Call for Comments

The Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (CoARC) is beginning the process of revising its Accreditation Standards for Degree Advancement (DA) Programs in Respiratory Care, which were initially adopted on July 1, 2015.

The CoARC Call for Comments invites all communities of interest* to use the attached survey (https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/DAStandards2018) to submit, from now until October 1, 2017, comments or suggested changes/deletions regarding the final draft of the proposed Accreditation Standards for Degree Advancement Programs in Respiratory Care  which includes Evidence of Compliance, and Interpretive Guidelines. Your comments will be an essential part of the revision process. Please Note: Since Survey Monkey only displays a clean version, it may be helpful to view the PDF version as you complete the survey so all modifications can be easily identified. (Click Here for the pdf version).

The revision of the DA Standards will be a continuing item on CoARC meeting agendas until their approval and implementation. Following any revisions related to these comments, the Standards will be sent to the CoARC’s collaborating organizations for their acceptance prior to implementation.

Comments may be sent electronically by emailing shelley@coarc.com or by regular mail:

Questions about the Standards review process should be sent to the Associate Chief Executive Officer, Shane Keene, at shane@coarc.com.

Questions about submitting comments and suggestions on the web-based surveys should be addressed to Shelley Christensen at shelley@coarc.com.

You may complete the entire survey or limit your participation to a particular Standard or Evidence of Compliance. Note that once you begin the survey you cannot save it and return to it later. You can, however, re-do the survey later to add additional thoughts or concerns.

We greatly appreciate your time and input.

*Communities of interest include:

All the bodies within the CoARC organizational structure as well as related organizations (the American Association for Respiratory Care, the American College of Chest Physicians, the American Society of Anesthesiologists, the American Thoracic Society, the Association of Schools of Allied Health Professions, the National Network of Two-Year Community Colleges, and the National Board for Respiratory Care);

RT educational program representatives (CEOs, Deans, Program Directors, Medical Directors, Site Visitors, and Advisory Committee Members); respiratory therapy educators; practitioners;

As well as: consumers, employers, regulators (licensure boards, state higher education commissions), recognition bodies (Council for Higher Education Accreditations), accreditors (regional, national, and specialized accreditors); students; and the public.