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COPD Educators' Program

This is a post-graduate program for health professionals who work with clients with COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) and wish to further their understanding of the disease and current management strategies.

This 2-course program will introduce health care professionals to various skills that will be utilized in their role as effective COPD educators. 

Completion of the program will provide participants with the ability to assist this group of clients' disease management choices through the ongoing support and disease education they can provide in acute care and pulmonary rehabilitation settings.

The program content will support the participants' skill development in the following areas: formation of therapeutic client/professional relationships; a working knowledge of the professional resource network available for this group of clients and COPD educators; the ability to utilize diagnostic criteria in the assessment and differential diagnosis of the disease; disease knowledge and skills to provide optimal educational support; assessment of and optimizing clinical therapeutics; teaching and appropriate use of various coping mechanisms; utilizing standardized tools to manage/evaluate progressive symptoms and quality of life issues.

The COPD Educator Profile in Canada has been completed and the certification process is currently being developed with a projected date of November 2006 as the first offering of the combined Asthma/COPD Educator Certification Exam.

Intake into this multidisciplinary, two-course program is on a continuous basis throughout the year. The program is comprised of two 3-credit courses with the majority of the assignments submitted electronically through the program website. Some assessment will be done via videotape submission and the participant will mail those assignments to the course facilitator for marking. Upon successful completion of the COPD Educators' Program, the participant will receive a certificate of completion from TRU. 

Please note the following:

Entry into the program requires the interested individual have (minimally) a 2 year diploma or degree in a health related field of study (eg. RN, RRT, PT, RPh, MDO.  Prior to online registration, you are required to contact the Program Coordinator / 471 Facilitator, Janine Chan, via email (jchan@tru.ca) with your professional designation to ensure you meet the program entry requirements.  After you receive an email confirmation of your eligibility, proceed to the "Web Registration" link listed on this page.

Successful graduates of the TRU/ProCAM Online Asthma Educators' Program only will receive credit for the first course in this two-course program, ASHS 471: Client Centred Approach to COPD Care.

Online communication in this program is asynchronous in nature. Internet access is required to enroll in this program of study as it is the only means of communication between facilitator and course participants.

The program will utilize WebCT for assignment submission, course communication between the course facilitator and participants, informal communication between course participants, possible online discussion groups and for writing the midterm and final exam.