ATU-Ozark cardiac class moving to ACHE Research Institute

The cardiac sonography program offered through Arkansas Tech University-Ozark Campus will move to the Arkansas Colleges of Health Education Research Institute Health and Wellness Center beginning July 1.

“We are excited to welcome ATU-Ozark to our RIHWC facility,” said Les Smith, ACHE chief operating officer. “Together, we will work on a shared mission to educate and empower future healthcare professionals.”

The ATU-Ozark cardiac sonography program is a specialty area of cardiac imaging utilizing ultrasound technology to evaluate a patient’s heart. The program, accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs, provides educational training specialized in sonography for the heart.

According to the ATU-Ozark website, the associates degree program is blended. The first two semesters (fall & spring) in the program are in-person, in-class, and in-person clinical rotations. The third semester (summer) has online classes with in-person clinical rotations. Students who complete the program will be prepared to enter the healthcare field in cardiac sonography labs as cardiac sonographers.

Cardiac sonography, also known as echocardiography, is a specialty area of cardiac imaging that uses ultrasound technology to evaluate the heart, the website states. A cardiac sonographer uses sound waves created by the machine to acquire images of cardiac chambers, walls, valves and blood flow. Cardiac sonographers generally work with cardiologists, who use the images to diagnose cardiac diseases.

Students completing the associate degree in cardiac sonography can sit for the Registered Cardiac Sonographer (RCS) exam through Cardiovascular Credentialing International (CCI) and the Registered Diagnostic Cardiac Sonographer (RDCS) exam through American Registry for Diagnostic Medical Sonography (ARDMS). According to the ATU-Ozark website, graduates from the program have had a 100% pass rate on the CCI cardiac sonography exam for the past three years.

The program has averaged an enrollment of 15 students in the program since 2016, with an average of 13 graduates from the program each year. Of the 12 graduates in 2022, 12 are employed in cardiac sonography, the website states. Laura Rudolph, director of community outreach at ATU-Ozark, said they are not looking to increase the class size with the move. The program has two instructors.

“We really are satisfied with the size of the program. We are just happy to be moving into such an amazing facility,” Rudolph said.

According to the website, graduates can are qualified as sonography applications specialists, staff or lead cardiac sonographers, travel cardiac sonographers and sonography machine sales representatives. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), cardiac sonographers can expect a median salary of $76,000. Job openings for cardiac sonographers in the U.S. are expected to grow much faster than average, according to the BLS, which predicted a 10% growth rate from 2021 to 2031 in the field of diagnostic medical sonographers.

“About 10,100 openings for diagnostic medical sonographers and cardiovascular technologists and technicians are projected each year, on average, over the decade. Many of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire,” the Bureau of Labor Statistics website states.

The ACHE Research Institute Health and Wellness Center is located at 1000 Fianna Way in Fort Smith. ACHE hosted a ribbon cutting for the 317,000-square foot facility March 10. The facility will be used for biomedical research and targeted health and wellness initiatives.

In addition to its cardiac sonography program, ATU-Ozark offers programs in emergency medical technician/paramedic, health information, human services, medical assisting, occupational therapy assistant, physical therapist assistant, practical nursing, registered nursing, certified nursing and medicine assistant-certified.