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Respiratory Therapist

Respiratory Therapist Job Description
There are about 100,000 respiratory therapists in the United States. They work with patients of all ages and in many different care settings. Respiratory therapists are members of the health care team that provide respiratory care for patients with heart and lung disorders.

Most respiratory therapists work in hospitals where they perform intensive care, critical care, and neonatal procedures. They are also typically a vital part of the hospital's lifesaving response team that handles patient emergencies. Of the more than 7,000 hospitals in this country, about 5,700 have separate respiratory care departments.

An increasing number of respiratory therapists are now working in skilled nursing facilities, physicians' offices, home health agencies, specialized care hospitals, medical equipment supply companies, and patients' homes.

Respiratory therapists perform procedures that are both diagnostic and therapeutic.

Some of these activities include:

• Obtaining and analyzing sputum and breath specimens. They also take blood specimens and analyze them to determine levels of oxygen, carbon dioxide, and other gases.
• Interpreting the data obtained from these specimens.
• Measuring the capacity of a patient's lungs to determine if there is impaired function.
• Performing stress tests and other studies of the cardiopulmonary system.
• Studying disorders of people with disruptive sleep patterns.

• Operating and maintaining various types of highly sophisticated equipment to administer oxygen or to assist with breathing.
• Employing mechanical ventilation for treating patients who cannot breathe adequately on their own.
• Monitoring and managing therapy that will help a patient recover lung function.
• Administering medications in aerosol form to help alleviate breathing problems and to help prevent respiratory infections.
• Monitoring equipment and patient responses to therapy.
• Conducting rehabilitation activities, such as low-impact aerobic exercise classes, to help patients who suffer from chronic lung problems.
• Maintaining a patient's artificial airway, one that may be in place to help the patient who can't breathe through normal means.
• Conducting smoking cessation programs for both hospital patients and others in the community who want to kick the tobacco habit.

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Respiratory Therapist Employment
Respiratory therapists held about 122,000 jobs in 2006. About 79 percent of jobs were in hospitals, mainly in departments of respiratory care, anesthesiology, or pulmonary medicine. Most of the remaining jobs were in offices of physicians or other health practitioners, consumer-goods rental firms that supply respiratory equipment for home use, nursing care facilities, and home health care services.

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Respiratory Therapist Career Outlook
Faster-than-average employment growth is projected for respiratory therapists. Job opportunities should be very good, especially for respiratory therapists with cardiopulmonary care skills or experience working with infants.

According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of respiratory therapists is expected to grow 23 percent from 2006 to 2016, faster than the average for all occupations. The increasing demand will come from substantial growth in the middle-aged and elderly population—a development that will heighten the incidence of cardiopulmonary disease. Growth in demand also will result from the expanding role of respiratory therapists in case management, disease prevention, emergency care, and the early detection of pulmonary disorders.

Older Americans suffer most from respiratory ailments and cardiopulmonary diseases such as pneumonia, chronic bronchitis, emphysema, and heart disease. As their numbers increase, the need for respiratory therapists is expected to increase as well. In addition, advances in inhalable medications and in the treatment of lung transplant patients, heart attack and accident victims, and premature infants (many of whom are dependent on a ventilator during part of their treatment) will increase the demand for the services of respiratory care practitioners.

Job opportunities are expected to be very good. The vast majority of job openings will continue to be in hospitals. However, a growing number of openings are expected to be outside of hospitals, especially in home health care services, offices of physicians or other health practitioners, consumer-goods rental firms, or in the employment services industry as a temporary worker in various settings.

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Respiratory Therapist Salary
With demand for RTs on the rise, salaries are following suit. According to the 2005 Human Resources study from the American Association of Respiratory Care (AARC), the projected average annual earnings of RTs working in the U.S. is $56,222. In this study, therapist just beginning their careers reported average annual earnings of $41,538.

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Respiratory Therapist Education and Training
An associate degree is required to become a respiratory therapist. Training is offered at the postsecondary level by colleges and universities, medical schools, vocational-technical institutes, and the Armed Forces. Most programs award associate or bachelor's degree and prepare graduates for jobs as advanced respiratory therapists. A limited number of associate degree programs lead to jobs as entry-level respiratory therapists.

Among the areas of study in respiratory therapy programs are human anatomy and physiology, pathophysiology, chemistry, physics, microbiology, pharmacology, and mathematics. Other courses deal with therapeutic and diagnostic procedures and tests, equipment, patient assessment, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, the application of clinical practice guidelines, patient care outside of hospitals, cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation, respiratory health promotion and disease prevention, and medical recordkeeping and reimbursement.

High school students interested in applying to respiratory therapy programs should take courses in health, biology, mathematics, chemistry, and physics. Respiratory care involves basic mathematical problem solving and an understanding of chemical and physical principles. For example, respiratory care workers must be able to compute dosages of medication and calculate gas concentrations.

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Licensure, Certification, and Career Advancement
A license is required to practice as a respiratory therapist, except in Alaska and Hawaii. Also, most employers require respiratory therapists to maintain a cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) certification.

Licensure is usually based, in large part, on meeting the requirements for certification from the National Board for Respiratory Care (NBRC). The board offers the Certified Respiratory Therapist (CRT) credential to those who graduate from entry-level or advanced programs accredited by CAAHEP or the Committee on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (CoARC) and who also pass an exam.

The board also awards the Registered Respiratory Therapist (RRT) to CRTs who have graduated from advanced programs and pass two separate examinations. Supervisory positions and intensive-care specialties usually require the RRT.

Respiratory therapists advance in clinical practice by moving from general care to the care of critically ill patients who have significant problems in other organ systems, such as the heart or kidneys. Respiratory therapists, especially those with a bachelor's or master's degree, also may advance to supervisory or managerial positions in a respiratory therapy department. Respiratory therapists in home health care and equipment rental firms may become branch managers. Some respiratory therapists advance by moving into teaching positions. Some others use the knowledge gained as a respiratory therapist to work in another industry, such as developing, marketing, or selling pharmaceuticals and medical devices.

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The Professional Association
A number of respiratory therapists are members of their national organization, the American Association for Respiratory Care (AARC). The AARC has more than 35,000 members in 50 state chapters and three international ones.

The Association is primarily responsible for developing educational opportunities for its members and ensuring that the standards of care and practice in the profession are developed and maintained. One ongoing project of the Association is to develop and upgrade written clinical practice guidelines, or standards, for the respiratory care profession as well as for use by government agencies and other health groups. In addition, the AARC develops materials that members can use in their community health promotion and disease prevention activities.

The AARC monitors both federal and state legislative and regulatory activity that might affect the health and health care of this nation, such as issues related to Medicare, smoking, or hiring practices of health care workers.