Hudson Valley Community College, part of the State University of New York School system, is located in Troy, New York. The Respiratory Care Department implemented the Invasive Cardiovascular Technology Certificate program in August of 1997. The program has maintained a 100% job placement rate as well as 100% passing rate for all those who have taken the CCI RCIS registry upon completion of graduation.

Effective in August 2004, Hudson Valley Community College™s Invasive Cardiovascular Technology program will also be offered in a distance learning format. Ideal candidates for this program are those currently employed in the cath lab setting or other healthcare workers who are ready to advance or cross-train as Invasive Cardiovascular Technologists.

The program is set up so that all didactic lectures will be conducted online and all clinical time would be completed at the hospital where these potential students are currently employed. Hudson Valley Community College utilizes the Blackboard Learning System for online learning. The Blackboard system is a course management system that allows student collaboration through discussion boards and virtual classrooms. The blackboard system allows multimedia files such as powerpoint presentations to be shared with all students, as well as online assessments.

All students will be assigned a preceptor employed at their clinical site. The responsibilities of the preceptor are to assist the student in meeting all of the clinical and behavioral objectives, as well as encourage the student to synthesize the information that is gained from the online courses and apply the theory in the clinical setting. Any exams given for class will be mailed as a hardcopy to the student™s preceptor. All exams will be taken at the clinical site and proctored by the preceptor. Although weekly site visits are not possible at great distances, close contact will be maintained with students and preceptors by phone, email and the Blackboard system communications options.

The program is currently utilizing this blackboard learning system to web-enhance courses in the Invasive Cardiovascular program at Hudson Valley Community College. The students still come to campus for face-to-face lectures, but also get information online and participate in discussion boards. The discussion threads encourage critical thinking and application of the content to the real world. Students can access their assignments from the online files, take practice assessments as many times as desired, and participate in the virtual classroom for extra tutoring time. The benefits noted thus far in the web-enhanced courses have made us confident that the program can produce competent graduates from a distance.

Please contact the program for more information at (518) 629-7454 or email Christine Siko at sikochr@hvcc.edu.