Wallace State Community College to Offer Electroneurodiagnostic Certificate, Degree

Hanceville, Ala.-- June 29, 2008
In response to increased demand for diagnostic testing professionals, Wallace State Community College in Hanceville will introduce a certificate course in Electroneurodiagnostic Technology during fall semester 2008.

Electroneurodiagnostic Technologists are multi-skilled Allied Health professionals who perform diagnostic testing procedures including but not limited to: Electroencephalograms (EEG), Evoked Potentials (EP), Nerve Conduction Studies (NCS), and Electronystagmograms (ENG).

EEGs record electrical activity in the brain to diagnose a wide range of disorders that alter the function of the brain; ENGs investigate nerves responses in muscles; EEPs record evoked responses of the brain to external stimuli.

“We conducted assessment studies of area hospitals to identify the need and we have had very positive responses in hospitals from Huntsville to Birmingham,” said Wallace State polysomnography program director, Dr. Ken Crow. “Most of the hospitals were also very willing to allow students to come and train there as part of their clinical rotation. We had no problem recruiting clinical sites because of the demand for this kind of training.”

Wallace State has taught polysomnography as a two-semester certificate course for the past two years. The certificate course prepares graduates to work in the field of sleep medicine and succeed in the Board of Registered Polysomnographic Technologists (BRPT) Registry exam after the required work time.

Following approval by the Alabama Commission of Higher Education, the Alabama State Board of Education, and the Alabama Department of Postsecondary Education, an Associate in Applied Science Degree in Electroneurodiagnostic (END) Technology will also be introduced this fall. The END associate degree program will combine the polysomnography and electroneurodiagnostic technology certificate programs into one degree program.

Under the new program students will have three options: taking either the END course or the PSG course as two-semester stand-alone certificate programs or taking both the END and the PSG courses with the required general courses such as biology, anatomy, English and math to earn an Associate in Applied Science Degree in Electroneurodiagnostics.

“Many of our past polysomnography certificate course graduates have expressed the desire to come back to Wallace State to earn their associate degree,” said Dr. Crow. “They can re-enroll and take any required general courses plus the EEG course to earn that degree. People who are trained in both areas are very valuable to the healthcare system.”

Graduates of the associate degree program will be able to work in both neurodiagnostics and sleep labs in hospitals or free standing diagnostic centers.

Wallace State hired a new program director, Russell Rogers, to oversee the END program. Rogers was formerly director of neurodiagnostics at Cullman Regional Medical Center.

The END and PSG programs are two-semester courses of study that include general education and discipline-specific courses. Discipline-specific classes include classroom, lab and clinical experiences in a variety of healthcare settings where students perform clinical procedures under the supervision of certified technologists and physicians.

PROCEDURES AND REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMISSION

Applicants Must:

1. Meet all of the general requirements of WSCC.

2. Possess a GPA of 2.0 on a 4.0 scale.

3. Submit a WSCC application to the Admission's office.

4. Submit official transcripts from all schools previously attended to the Director of Admissions.

5. Submit ACT scores to the Admissions Office.

6. Submit a program application to the Program Director by June 15. Applications received after June 15 will be considered on a space available basis.

7. All information must be included for the packet to be complete. Any missing information will result in the applicant not being considered for admission.

For more information, contact Dr. Ken Crow at (256) 352-8305 or ken.crow@wallacestate.edu, or visit www.wallacestate.edu.