Respiratory Therapist Opinions on Obtaining a Bachelor’s Degree

Critically ill patients that require mechanical ventilation are at risk of developing secondary infections that may increase length of stay and possibly even morbidity. This fragile patient population requires special attention and meticulous adherence to established nursing standards of care. These standards of care are founded on evidenced based practices. It is important that nurses receive education about why these standards are in place and what consequences can result due to not following the established care protocols.

Aiken, L. H., Clark, S. P., Cheung, R. B., Sloan, D. M., & Silber, J. H. (2003). Education levels of hospital nurses and surgical patient mortality. Journal of the American Medical Association, 290, 1617-1623. Retrieved from http://www.massnursing.org/MACN_July05.pdf

In order to be considered for a job in this field you need to have a Master’s Degree in Occupational Therapy. Along with a Master’s Degree you also need to have a state license, be CPR or Basic Cardiac Life Support (BCLS) certified, sometimes both are necessary. In order to get a state license, you need to go through a Master’s program, have fieldwork experience, and pass the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT) exam. Once pass the exam, you will be given an OTR credential and continued education will have to follow in order to maintain the OTR credential. Others optional certifications can be taken from the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA). Also, you are required to have at least one to two years of experience, but some employers may differ. Key skills that an employer’s looks for in an Occupational Therapist are good communications and interpersonal skills, compassion, patience, and strong writing skills. Physical strength is sometimes taken into consideration as

The growing need for Respiratory Therapists is in high demand due to the increasing numbers of elderly people, environment; such as asthma, smoking and COPD, treatments for cardiopulmonary diseases, and premature babies. In May 2008 Respiratory Therapists accounted for about 105,900 jobs, 81 percent worked in hospitals. The numbers of therapists are expected to continue growing up to 21 percent from 2008-2018. Due to the high demand of jobs in the medical field, you will always have a job to

In the first step of the Tanner (2006) model nurses use their personal knowledge and experience to notice whether the patient requires attentions based on their expectations and looking at environment of the patient. Therefore, for an experience nurse it is easier for them responding to the similar situation if she or he revisit because the knowledge is already there through experience. In the case of Mr Devi, assessment will perform using systematic assessment based on the ABCDE approach (Airway, Breathing, circulation, Disability and Exposure). The ABCDE approach is an evidence-based practice widely accepted and used by all the members of a multidisciplinary team (MDT) to assess an acutely ill patient (Harrison and Daly 2011). First, life-threatening

Quality patient care relies on having an educated workforce. There is a growing body of evidence that shows that the Bachelor of Science Nursing graduate brings unique skills to their work as nursing clinicians and play an important role in the delivery of safe patient care. In addition to having basic nursing fundamentals nurse’s today are expected to take a huge part and lead professional initiatives that drive towards improving the safety, quality, and efficiency of care that is delivered to patients.

Respiratory care makes a difference. And there are reasons why a Respiratory Therapist would be a great job. A guest speaker came into our class to explain more about the job. He explained education requirements, the job description, and the job opportunities.

My name is Dorlie Leandre and for as long as I can remember I wanted to be in the medical field. My passion for biology is the reason why I chose to pursue a career in medicine. In June 2014, I became a licensed Respiratory Therapist in NYS. I’ve been working as a full time Respiratory Therapist at Montefiore Medical Center for almost three years. I also work per diem at a nursing home. When I’m not at work, I enjoy cooking, traveling and most importantly sleeping. I’m currently enrolled at NYCCT, pursuing Bachelor’s degree in Health Service Administration (HSA).

Respiratory therapists are specialized healthcare practitioners that care for patients who have trouble breathing due to a multitude of reasons such as asthma, emphysema, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. They practice under and aid physicians in assessing patients, diagnostic evaluations, treatment, prevention, education and general pulmonary care. Respiratory therapists assume primary responsibility for all diagnoses and treatments. Respiratory Therapists discuss and review patients with physicians and other healthcare professional to assist in developing and/or modifying a patients’ care

I was recently made aware of the Respiratory Therapist position at Hospital, when you spoke to my Respiratory Therapy class at Missouri Southern State University about what University of Missouri Health Care has to offer. In response to that, I scheduled a shadowing opportunity with the University of Missouri Health Care, which was a great experience. Since many of the world's best health care providers, it would be an honor to work alongside well-respected physicians using evidence based medicine.

The future of careers of respiratory therapists is also on the rise. Regardless of which level of education or credentialing one may choose there will be many opportunities within this field of study. The profession has grown quickly since its inception in the 1940s and demand for respiratory therapists in continually on the rise. Coupled with the ever-increasing number of lung disorders being diagnosed, those demands ensure that individuals who enter the profession will enjoy good career opportunities.

Respiratory therapists have one of the most exciting and gratifying careers within the medical field. Unfortunately as with any other job or career, it doesn’t come without having challenging times. Respiratory therapists work along-side physicians and are highly trained to treat patients with any sort of lung concern or breathing complications. This job requires hands on care, and deals with life and death daily. One specific scope of this field involves caring for patients (of all ages) attached to mechanical ventilation. It is the respiratory therapists’ responsibility to remove assistive ventilation to patients with written order from the doctor; which ultimately results in death of the patient (Keene, Samples, Masini, Byington).

The five core competencies identified by IOM and the sixth added by QSEN, safety, are believed to be necessary to improve both quality and safety of the healthcare system within which nurses work (Multimethod teaching). The six core competencies outlined are patient-centered care, teamwork and collaboration, evidence-based practice, quality improvement, informatics, and safety (Diffusing Qsen). While all competencies are significant to the healthcare system, patient centered care is vital to positive patient outcomes and focuses on the patient’s perspective within the healthcare system.

The survey consists of a few questions about COPD (e.g., what are the two conditions of COPD and what COPD strategies do they know/use) and questions that ask about their preferred learning styles. Approximately, 75% of the participants did not know the two conditions of COPD and none of the participants reported knowing or using COPD interventions. Based from these results, I developed a presentation that focused primarily on non-pharmacological interventions (e.g., nutritional therapy, chest physiotherapy, and hand hygiene) that the staff members may use to improve the resident’s quality of

Eighteen therapy staff participated fully in the interview portion, with one providing partial data, via an email response. These therapy staff members represented fifteen facilities, within seven climate regions. A staff member representing both occupational and physical therapy provided feedback from four facilities; while a staff member representing either occupational or physical Therapy provided feedback from the remaining facilities. Data from thirteen therapy staff respondents complemented the survey data received previously from the supervisory personnel respondent from their facility. The six other respondents provided data from a facility not represented by supervisory personnel in the survey portion of the study. In total, 42% (n=8) of the therapy staff respondents were physical therapists, and 58% (n=11) were occupational therapists. An equal number of the therapy staff had earned Master’s degrees 42% (n=8), and Doctoral degrees 42% (n=8), while 16% (n=3) held Bachelor’s degrees. An equal number 50% (n=9) had five years or less of experience, as those with over five years of experience 50 % (n=9); with data for one respondent unknown. In terms of employment, 53% (n=10) had been employed at their facility for less than five years, 42% (n=8) more than five years, and one’s years of employment was not indicated (Table