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Nursing and Allied Health

Overview Degrees/Certificates Courses Faculty

Allied Health (AH) Courses

AH 112 Strategies for Student Success in Health Occupations

  • Units:3
  • Hours:54 hours LEC
  • Prerequisite:None.
  • Advisory:Eligible for ENGRD 310 or ENGRD 312 AND ENGWR 300; OR ESLW 340.
  • General Education:AA/AS Area III(b)
  • Catalog Date:January 1, 2025

This course provides realistic and useful strategies to enhance success in reaching career goals associated with health occupations. It covers the necessary skills to determine a career path based on a realistic understanding of specific health occupations and associated aptitudes.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

  • describe the evolution of healthcare beliefs and causes and treatments of disease from the inception of organized healthcare systems to care-delivery models today.
  • identify at least five current trends or projections related to the delivery of healthcare for the next several years.
  • distinguish between the different types of healthcare facilities and insurance options available in the United States.
  • identify the essential characteristics of a patient's basic rights within a healthcare setting.
  • compare and contrast the roles and responsibilities, the scope of practice, educational requirements, credentialing requirements, and employment trends for at least five health professions.
  • research in-depth at least one healthcare career that is of interest to the student.
  • identify and apply legal, ethical, and professional principles to common situations encountered in the health occupations.
  • list the commonly recognized learning styles, assess individual learning style, and develop strategies to maximize learning by utilizing that style.
  • utilize effective verbal and non-verbal communication skills to establish and enhance the therapeutic/helping relationship inherent in health occupations.
  • formulate a plan by identifying necessary resources to support college success including self-care, time management, peer and instructor support, study skills, and financial resources.
  • define cultural competency and identify best practices to deliver culturally and linguistically appropriate services.
  • accurately spell and pronounce common medical terms and abbreviations used in health occupations.
  • apply basic math calculation to measures and calculations used in healthcare.
  • apply standards for the safety, privacy, and confidentiality of health information.
  • identify personal traits and attitudes desirable in a member of the career-ready healthcare team.
  • demonstrate effective methods of delivering and obtaining information.
  • define implicit/explicit bias, and understand the importance of recognizing individual implicit biases to enhance patient care.

AH 299 Experimental Offering in Allied Health

  • Units:0.5 - 4
  • Prerequisite:None.
  • Catalog Date:January 1, 2025

This is the experimental courses description.


AH 311 Medical Language for Health-Care Providers

  • Units:3
  • Hours:54 hours LEC
  • Prerequisite:None.
  • Transferable:CSU
  • Catalog Date:January 1, 2025

This course is an orientation to medical language. It covers the basic structure of medical terms and their components: prefixes, suffixes, roots, and combining forms with emphasis on meaning, spelling, and pronunciation. This course also builds a medical vocabulary applicable to the specialties of medicine, the systems of the body, names of major diseases, and terms used in physical examination, diagnosis, and treatment. This course was formerly known as AH 110, and is not open to students who have completed AH 110.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

  • demonstrate a workable knowledge of medical terminology.
  • analyze the structural design of medical terms.
  • compare the meanings of terms with combinations of word elements.
  • compose medical words with correct spelling and pronunciation.
  • utilize medical terms as they apply to the systems of the body, including anatomy, physiology, disease, diagnosis, and treatment.
  • compare and contrast the meanings of medical abbreviations and descriptive terms.
  • translate health care reports/records accurately into clear, non-medical terms.

Nursing (NURSE) Courses

NURSE 100 Nurse Assistant

  • Units:7
  • Hours:86 hours LEC; 120 hours LAB
  • Prerequisite:AH 311 with a grade of "C" or better
  • Enrollment Limitation:Acceptance into the CNA Program.
  • Catalog Date:January 1, 2025

This course leads to the nurse assistant certification exam. It emphasizes the gerontological nursing assistant's role and responsibilities as a healthcare team member. It also covers principles of asepsis, infection control, resident care skills, and emotional, social, and spiritual needs of the resident.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

  • identify and discuss Title 22 relative to the role and responsibilities of the Certified Nurse Assistant with regards to professionalism, ethics, and confidentiality.
  • list and discuss patient rights.
  • demonstrate medical asepsis for infection control.
  • demonstrate emergency procedures and routine resident care skills.
  • identify appropriate basic restraints and resident safety precautions.
  • differentiate among common therapeutic diets.
  • utilize proper body mechanics in resident moving, transfers, rehabilitation, and restorative care.
  • effectively interact with clients, families, and other members of the healthcare team.
  • integrate effective communication skills for the client with mental illness and decreased mental capacity.

NURSE 101 Home Health Aide

  • Units:1.5
  • Hours:22 hours LEC; 24 hours LAB
  • Prerequisite:Proof of having completed a CA approved nurse assistant course or proof of current California nurse assistant certification
  • Catalog Date:January 1, 2025

This course focuses on home health nurse aide responsibilities: personal and rehabilitation nursing care in the home, skills of maintaining a safe home environment, meal planning and preparation, emotional care of the homebound, and home emergency procedures. Additional information on this course is available on the ARC Nursing Program website.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

  • describe and discuss the expanded responsibilities of the certified nurse assistant in the role of home health aide.
  • discuss and demonstrate documentation requirements of the home health aide.
  • list body systems and their normal function.
  • prioritize and describe changes in a client's function that would necessitate reporting to the nurse supervisor.
  • describe and discuss signs and symptoms of common diseases and disorders of the home client.
  • describe how culture, lifestyle and life experience of the client and family can influence care provided.
  • analyze the dietary requirements of the client and describe personal preferences and cultural and religious practices influencing nutritional status.
  • discuss how the home health aide provides a clean, safe, and healthy environment for the home client.
  • demonstrate sensitivity to the spiritual needs of the home client.

NURSE 299 Experimental Offering in Nursing

  • Units:0.5 - 4
  • Prerequisite:None.
  • Catalog Date:January 1, 2025

This is the experimental courses description.


NURSE 305 Transition to Nursing, Patient, and Healthcare Concepts for the Associate Degree Nurse

  • Units:5
  • Hours:54 hours LEC; 108 hours LAB
  • Prerequisite:None.
  • Enrollment Limitation:Acceptance into the career mobility track of the Associate Degree Nursing Program.
  • Transferable:CSU
  • Catalog Date:January 1, 2025

This bridge course is designed for the California Licensed Vocational Nurse (LVN) who is admitted for advanced placement into the second year of the Associate Degree Nursing (Registered Nursing) Program. It introduces the concept based curriculum and the knowledge, skills, and attitudes essential to nursing. It focuses on nursing management of the patient's response to health alterations as well as health promotion through the application of nursing knowledge, nursing process, and evidence based practice. The clinical laboratory experience is designed to facilitate the development of the core competencies of clinical practice: communication, leadership, patient centered care, professionalism, safety, teamwork and collaboration, evidence based practice, informatics and technology, and quality improvement. Emphasis is placed on health assessment across the lifespan, family communication, patient education, teamwork and collaboration, role transition, clinical judgment, and management of care.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

  • identify best current evidence from scientific and other credible sources as a basis for nursing practice and clinical decision-making.
  • use information technology in the provision of patient care.
  • participate in the implementation of quality improvement strategies to improve patient care.
  • collaborate and communicate with diverse patients, families, and the interdisciplinary healthcare team to plan, deliver, and evaluate care.
  • use leadership skills in the provision of safe, quality patient care.
  • participate in behavior that reflects the values of the nursing profession including self-awareness, a spirit of inquiry, ethical comportment, effective communication, and clinical judgment and competence.
  • adhere to standards of practice within legal, ethical, and regulatory frameworks of the professional nurse.

NURSE 310 Pharmacology and Implications for Health Care Practitioners

  • Units:3
  • Hours:54 hours LEC
  • Prerequisite:None.
  • Transferable:CSU
  • Catalog Date:January 1, 2025

This course presents the principles of drug therapy as they apply to treating disease and maintaining health. It covers the metabolism and action of drugs, absorption, duration of action, distribution in the body, and adverse drug reactions. Major drug classes are included, as well as their related implications for people receiving these drugs and the effects on the body. This course also includes discussions on the administration of medications according to nursing professional standards and other health care professionals.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

  • differentiate between pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and pharmacotherapeutics.
  • utilize pharmacology concepts and their application to patient care in the treatment of disease and the promotion of health in the major body systems.
  • integrate knowledge of pharmacology and its application to patient care as it applies to fluid/ electrolyte/nutritional imbalance; control of inflammation; allergy and organ rejection; prevention and treatment of infection; and treatment of malignant neoplasms.
  • evaluate how client lifespan considerations and other factors affect drug absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion.
  • analyze how drug forms affect drug absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion.
  • assess how the major drug classifications affect the body and recognize the implications to the health care practitioner with each classification.

NURSE 320 Medical Dosage Calculations

  • Units:1.5
  • Hours:27 hours LEC
  • Prerequisite:None.
  • Advisory:MATH 25 and 41
  • Transferable:CSU
  • Catalog Date:January 1, 2025

This course prepares health professionals to calculate oral and parenteral drug dosages with a focus on safety and accuracy. Three systems of measurement and conversion are practiced. This course also provides experience in understanding drug orders and drug labels. Calculation accuracy is emphasized by clinical scenarios and case study assignments.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

  • evaluate problems using addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division of whole numbers, fractions, and decimals.
  • assess drug label and package inserts accurately.
  • calculate drug doses using conversion methods, which include: ratio/proportion, formula method, and dimensional analysis.
  • verify appropriate equipment for medication administration.
  • write and interpret a list of common abbreviations used in drug orders and dispensing.
  • evaluate written drug orders and explain how to administer medication utilizing the three checks and the six patient rights.

NURSE 370 Focused Learning in the First Year of the ARC Nursing Program

  • Units:1.5
  • Hours:27 hours LEC
  • Prerequisite:None.
  • Corequisite:NURSE 400
  • Transferable:CSU
  • Catalog Date:January 1, 2025

This course offers strategies to enhance student success in the first year of the Associate Degree Nursing (ADN) program. It provides an assessment of personal aptitudes, learning styles, strengths, and weaknesses in written and verbal communication, and potential barriers to successful completion of the nursing program. It also provides the development of personal and professional support systems and development of a purposeful analytic process that supports reasoned decisions and judgments as a health care professional. Pass/No Pass only.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

  • prioritize factors which promote and inhibit success in a nursing program.
  • identify personal learning style and determine effective learning strategies.
  • incorporate critical thinking skills into nursing clinical and theory practice appropriate to the semester of enrollment in the nursing program.
  • utilize specific Assessment Technologies Institute (ATI) materials to strengthen understanding of course content.
  • evaluate current level of clinical performance and compare with Registered Nurse standards of competent performance according to the Department of Consumer Affairs Business and Professions Code.
  • utilize medical terminology and medical abbreviations to read medical documents.
  • prioritize the qualities/behaviors of a successful registered nurse.
  • apply strategies for utilizing the NURSE 400 or NURSE 410 worksheet to successfully manage a clinical workload.
  • explain the rationale for clinical tips/tools/timesavers for clinical success.
  • analyze common laboratory and diagnostic tests ordered in the hospital setting, including causes of increased and decreased values.
  • utilize basic math skills to safely calculate drug dosages.

NURSE 372 Focused Learning in the Second Year of the ARC Nursing Program

  • Units:1.5
  • Hours:27 hours LEC
  • Prerequisite:None.
  • Corequisite:NURSE 420 or 430
  • Transferable:CSU
  • Catalog Date:January 1, 2025

This course offers strategies to enhance student success in the second year of the Associate Degree Nursing (ADN) program. This course reviews personal aptitudes, learning styles, strengths, and weaknesses in written and verbal communication as well as potential barriers to completion of the nursing program. Course content addresses the specific theory and clinical needs of NURSE 420 and NURSE 430 while focusing on the development of critical thinking skills used when managing a group of patients in the clinical setting. Pass/No Pass only.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

  • evaluate factors which promoted or inhibited success in prior Associate Degree Nursing courses.
  • identify personal learning style and determine effective learning strategies.
  • incorporate critical thinking skills into nursing theory and clinical practice appropriate to semester of enrollment in the nursing program.
  • utilize specific Assessment Technologies Institute (ATI) and Elsevier/Evolve materials to strengthen understanding of specific semester enrollment course content.
  • evaluate current level of clinical performance and compare with Registered Nurse standards of competent performance according to the Department of Consumer Affairs.
  • evaluate potential for successful RN licensure.
  • utilize advanced math skills to safely calculate intravenous infusion drug doses.

NURSE 400 Nursing, Patient, and Healthcare Concepts I

  • Units:10.5
  • Hours:81 hours LEC; 324 hours LAB
  • Prerequisite:None.
  • Corequisite:COMM 301
  • Enrollment Limitation:Acceptance into the Associate Degree Nursing Program
  • Transferable:CSU
  • Catalog Date:January 1, 2025

This course introduces essential concepts of safe and effective nursing care for patients across the lifespan, utilizing the nursing process and evidence based practice. It focuses on the introduction of the wellness/illness continuum and the core competencies of clinical practice. The competencies include communication, leadership, patient centered care, professionalism, safety, teamwork and collaboration, evidence based practice, informatics and technology, and quality improvement. The clinical experience is designed to facilitate the fundamental acquisition of the core competencies of clinical practice. Emphasis in clinical is placed on health assessment across the lifespan, recognition of alterations from the norm, safety for patients and providers of care, interpersonal communication, patient centered care, ethics, and safe, evidence based technical skill interventions.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

  • identify best current evidence from scientific and other credible sources as a basis for nursing practice and clinical decision making.
  • use information technology in the provision of patient care.
  • participate in the implementation of quality improvement strategies to improve patient care.
  • collaborate and communicate with diverse patients, families, and the interdisciplinary healthcare team to plan, deliver, and evaluate care.
  • employ leadership skills in the provision of safe, quality patient care.
  • demonstrate behavior that reflects the values of the nursing profession including self awareness, a spirit of inquiry, ethical comportment, effective communication, clinical judgment, and competence.
  • adhere to standards of practice within legal, ethical, and regulatory frameworks of the professional nurse.

NURSE 410 Nursing, Patient, and Healthcare Concepts II

  • Units:10.5
  • Hours:81 hours LEC; 324 hours LAB
  • Prerequisite:COMM 301 and NURSE 400 with grades of "C" or better
  • Corequisite:ANTH 310, ANTH 481, SOC 300, or SOC 480
  • Transferable:CSU
  • Catalog Date:January 1, 2025

This course applies concepts of safe and effective nursing care for diverse children, adults, and families, concentrating on healthcare needs on the wellness/illness continuum across the lifespan. It focuses on nursing management of the patient's response to health alterations as well as health promotion for childbearing and childrearing families through the application of nursing knowledge, nursing process, and evidence based practice. The clinical experience is designed to facilitate the development of the core competencies of clinical practice: communication, leadership, patient centered care, professionalism, safety, teamwork and collaboration, evidence based practice, informatics and technology, and quality improvement. Emphasis is placed on family communication, patient education, teamwork and collaboration, clinical judgment, and management of care.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

  • identify best current evidence from scientific and other credible sources as a basis for nursing practice and clinical decision making.
  • use information technology in the provision of patient care.
  • participate in the implementation of quality improvement strategies to improve patient care.
  • collaborate and communicate with diverse patients, families, and the interdisciplinary healthcare team to plan, deliver, and evaluate care.
  • employ leadership skills in the provision of safe, quality patient care.
  • demonstrate behavior that reflects the values of the nursing profession including self awareness, a spirit of inquiry, ethical comportment, effective communication, and clinical judgment and competence.
  • adhere to standards of practice within legal, ethical, and regulatory frameworks of the professional nurse.

NURSE 420 Nursing, Patient, and Healthcare Concepts III

  • Units:10.5
  • Hours:81 hours LEC; 324 hours LAB
  • Prerequisite:NURSE 305 or 410 with a grade of "C" or better; SOC 300 or SOC 480, or ANTH 310 or ANTH 481, with a grade of "C" or better.
  • Transferable:CSU
  • Catalog Date:January 1, 2025

This course adapts concepts of safe and effective nursing care for diverse adults experiencing acute and chronic alterations across the wellness/illness continuum. It focuses on nursing management of the adult patient's response to physical and mental health alterations through the application of nursing knowledge, nursing process, and evidence based practice. The clinical experience is designed to facilitate the development of the core competencies of clinical practice: communication, leadership, patient centered care, professionalism, safety, teamwork and collaboration, evidence based practice, informatics and technology, and quality improvement. Emphasis in clinical is placed on clinical judgment, interprofessional communication, patient centered care, safety, and team collaboration.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

  • employ clinical reasoning and knowledge based on the nursing program of study, evidence based practice outcomes, and research based policies and procedures as the basis for decision making and delivery of comprehensive, safe, patient centered care.
  • utilize information and technology to communicate, manage knowledge, and mitigate error.
  • participate in quality improvement activities to measure patient outcomes, identify hazards and errors, and to improve care.
  • coordinate, collaborate, and communicate with diverse patients, families, and the interdisciplinary healthcare team to plan, deliver, and evaluate care that promotes quality of life.
  • demonstrate delegation, management, and leadership skills that integrate systems thinking, communication, and change processes.
  • demonstrate behavior that reflects the values of the nursing profession including self awareness, a spirit of inquiry, leadership, ethical comportment, effective communication, clinical judgment and competence, and mentorship.
  • adhere to standards of practice within legal, ethical, and regulatory frameworks of the professional nurse.

NURSE 430 Nursing, Patient, and Healthcare Concepts IV

  • Units:10.5
  • Hours:81 hours LEC; 324 hours LAB
  • Prerequisite:NURSE 420 with a grade of "C" or better
  • Transferable:CSU
  • Catalog Date:January 1, 2025

This course integrates concepts of safe and effective nursing care for individuals and groups of patients across the lifespan. It is designed to facilitate integration of knowledge, evidence based practice, and clinical judgment in the management of patients with complex healthcare needs, and to facilitate the student's transition into the profession of nursing. Clinical judgment skills are enhanced through advanced clinical experiences and role transition opportunities. The clinical experience is designed to facilitate the development and demonstration of the core competencies of clinical practice: communication, leadership, patient centered care, professionalism, safety, teamwork and collaboration, evidence based practice, informatics and technology, and quality improvement. Emphasis in clinical is placed on evidence based practice, quality improvement, team collaboration concepts, managing care for groups of patients, the role of the nurse in a systems based practice, interprofessional collaboration, legal precepts, and health policy.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

  • employ clinical reasoning and knowledge based on the nursing program of study, evidence based practice outcomes, and research based policies and procedures as the basis for decision making and delivery of comprehensive, safe, patient centered care.
  • utilize information and technology to communicate, manage knowledge, and mitigate error.
  • participate in quality improvement activities to measure patient outcomes, identify hazards and errors, and to improve care.
  • coordinate, collaborate, and communicate with diverse patients, families, and the interdisciplinary healthcare team to plan, deliver, and evaluate care that promotes quality of life.
  • demonstrate delegation, management, and leadership skills that integrate systems thinking, communication, and change processes.
  • demonstrate behavior that reflects the values of the nursing profession including self awareness, a spirit of inquiry, leadership, ethical comportment, effective communication, clinical judgment and competence, and mentorship.
  • adhere to standards of practice within legal, ethical, and regulatory frameworks of the professional nurse.

NURSE 499 Experimental Offering in Nursing

  • Units:0.5 - 4
  • Prerequisite:None.
  • Transferable:CSU
  • Catalog Date:January 1, 2025

This is the experimental courses description.