Respiratory therapist or also knows as respiratory practitioners evaluates, treats and cares for patients having breathing and cardiopulmonary disorders. These respiratory therapists works under the direction of a physician while they do their primary responsibility of providing respiratory care and treatments to patients. Respiratory technicians follow a specific respiratory care procedure with the help and supervision of a physician. In a clinical setting, the daily duties of a respiratory therapist and respiratory technician may tend to overlap. But the respiratory therapists mostly have the greater responsibility than the technicians. Respiratory therapists consult with the physicians and other health care staff when it comes to developing and modifying the patient care places. Respiratory therapists also are more likely to give intricate therapy requiring significant independent decision, such as caring for patients on life support in intensive-care units of hospitals. Respiratory therapists deal with different kinds of people from infants to the older people. They should make certain that all respiratory treatments of the patient have been performed properly. It is also a part of their job to provide relief to the patients with difficulty in breathing. They also perform different types of test to identify possible complications. Some of these tests are measuring the patient’s lung capacity that lets the patient breath into a device while the respiratory therapist takes note of the levels of oxygen inhaled and exhaled by the patient.
Respiratory therapists usually work between 35 and 40 hours a week. For the reason that hospitals function around the clock, therapists may work in three different rotations from evenings, nights, or weekends. They use up long periods standing and walking among patients’ rooms. In an urgent situation, therapists work in the stress of the situation. Respiratory therapists working in home health care must travel habitually to patients’ homes.
Having a high school diploma is the basic requirement in becoming a respiratory therapist. There are a lot of schools that offer programs that can let you choose if you want to finish a baccalaureate or an associate degree. It is also recommended that a person must choose to have a baccalaureate degree because it will give them an edge when they are trying to find for a job. So where should one look for a respiratory therapist education? Respiratory therapist education is offered by technical and vocational schools, universities and colleges also. These schools offer subjects needed by this course like anatomy, physiology, physics, chemistry, pharmacology and even the use of certain equipments. After one has able to accomplish the respiratory therapist education, a person can choose whether he or she wants a certification or license. If one chooses to have only a certification, they only need to pass the certification exam after finishing the program. If one wants to have a license, they need to pass the licensee exam provided by the Licensing Board of the State.
The median respiratory therapist salary is $6 an hour for those employees having more than 20 years of working experience. For a full time respiratory therapist there is a large difference of almost $14,000 when it comes to the salary compared to the non-experienced therapist. For new therapist they may earn $7 an hour but this will increase as the experience grows.
