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Respiratory Care FAQ's |
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What is a Respiratory Therapists? A Respiratory Therapist (sometimes called respiratory care practitioner) is an essential member of the health care team. Like other Allied Health professions, the Respiratory Therapist (RT) works under the direction of a physician. In most states, a license is required to practice as a Respiratory Therapist. By taking credentialing examinations administered through the National Board For Respiratory Care (NBRC) graduates of an accredited program can become certified and registered Respiratory Therapist. RT's participate in the diagnostic evaluation and management of patients with deficiencies of the heart and lungs. Most RT's work in a hospital, but there are many other opportunities. You can learn more about licensure and credentialing by going to the National Board for Respiratory Care (NBRC) web site. To find descriptions of the profession and learn about available jobs go to the American Association for Respiratory Care (AARC) web site.
What do Respiratory Therapists do? Respiratory Therapists (RT's) work with all ages of patients from the premature baby to the elderly. Respiratory Therapists do simple yet vital things such as setting up and monitoring oxygen therapy and delivery of life-saving aerosolized medication. RT's are involved in more complex tasks as well. Disease management for patients with pulmonary disease, monitoring and maintaining respirators, complex diagnostic testing including sleep studies, pulmonary function, arterial blood gases are just some of the duties of Respiratory Therapists.
Where can I get a job when I'm done with the program? The answer to this question is "just about anywhere." The demand for Respiratory Therapists (RT's) is great in part due to the ever aging Baby Boomer generation. Also, as medicine progresses, equipment and therapy becomes more and more complex requiring specially trained health care workers capable of understanding the patiend/equipment interaction to produce the best outcomes. The majority of Respiratory Therapists are employed at acute care facilities (hospitals) in metropolitan and rural settings. RT's can also be found working in home care, diagnostic labs (sleep studies, pulmonary function, etc.), long term care facilities, sales, and others.
As of May 2004, the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics projects "employment of Respiratory Therapists to increase faster than the average for all occupations through the year 2012." The average median salary for a Respiratory Therapists is $40,000 per year, and the flexibility of this job is like no other in the field of Allied Health. Check out this link to Career for New Graduates or go to Advance for RCPs for a listing of jobs nationwide.
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