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Home > Respiratory Therapy |
 
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 You can live without food for a few weeks. You can live without water for few days. But if you are deprived of air, you will die within minutes. In terms of survival, breathing is your most immediate need.
Most people take breathing for granted. It's second nature, an involuntary reflex. Yet for millions of Americans who suffer from breathing problems, each breath is a major accomplishment. Those people include patients with chronic lung problems, such as asthma, bronchitis and emphysema, yet may also include heart attack and accident victims; and premature infants.
Respiratory therapists work with physicians and allied health professionals to diagnose and treat patients with disorders associated with the respiratory and cardiovascular systems. Therapists may be required to exercise considerable independent clinical judgment under the direct or indirect supervision of a physician. They are trained to act as technical resource persons for both physicians and other health care professionals. Respiratory therapists are members of the response teams that handle patient emergencies in the hospital.
The practice of respiratory care requires extensive knowledge of many technical and physiological concepts. Therapists administer many medical gases and cardiorespiratory drugs. Respiratory care practitioners are often responsible for the evaluation of patients and often assist in the development of the respiratory care plan. Respiratory therapists are trained to perform and evaluate the results of diagnostic tests such as arterial blood gases and pulmonary function studies. The maintenance of mechanical ventilation for critically ill patients is a major task the therapist is expected to perform. Therapists often assist physicians with procedures such as bronchoscopies, arterial cannula insertions, and heart catheterizations.
Respiratory care is a dynamic and exciting health profession with a large number of job opportunities in Virginia, as well as, all the other States in the USA, Canada, Mexico, Japan, and other countries around the world. Some employers are offering very lucrative incentive packages to our students, including assistance with tuition and textbook costs, and relocation packages once they have graduated.
Our graduates are prepared to function as extremely knowledgeable and highly skilled professional clinicians who have problem-solving and decision-making skills. They will perform a vital role as a member of the health care delivery team.
The student to faculty ratio is one professor to twenty-five students in the classroom, one to twelve in the laboratory and one to two in the clinical setting.
Our program stands apart because we have experienced faculty who have been teaching in the field of respiratory therapy for many years. Our faculty have brought to our program experience teaching in respiratory therapy programs in California, Colorado, Pennsylvania, Maine, Georgia, North Carolina, and New York. International opportunities abound for this emerging field.
If you would like to speak with the program director for respiratory therapy, please call Sharon Hatfield at 540-985-8263 or email shatfield@jchs.edu. |
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History
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The field of respiratory care is relatively young. It started in the early 1950s when therapists were called Inhalation Therapists. Their main job was providing oxygen to patients in the hospital. The field has expanded into management of computerized mechanical ventilators which provide life support for the patients, and understanding and monitoring the heart and its hemodynamics. One might say that we are now considered cardio-pulmonary (heart/lung) therapists. Many therapists are now performing echocardiography and neurodiagnostics.
Statistics say our population is aging, so not only will RTs always have work, but also advancement opportunities as the baby boomers (the largest population demographic in the U.S.) begin to retire (and then become your patients). Obviously, RTs will be in demand for a long time. And we all know what happens to wages when demand exceeds supply.
Approximately 110,000 respiratory therapists are employed today. Respiratory Care is considered to be one of the hottest jobs, with projected need for 123,000 more therapists by the year 2008. The respiratory care profession has a bright future with a great deal of job security and opportunity for advancement. . The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a need for 42.6 percent more respiratory therapists through 2008, and salaries are competitive with other health professions.
Once you enter the profession, you may wish to specialize in an area such as neonatal care, critical care, helicopter transport, rehabilitation, education, cardiopulmonary diagnostics or management. The U.S. Occupational Outlook Handbook might be helpful to you as you choose your future. It provides government projections for the profession, a description of the field, working conditions, employment, job outlook and earnings. |
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What Students Learn
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 Diagnostic Procedures:
· Draw and analyze blood samples to determine the levels of oxygen and carbon dioxide and other gases in order to assess the best course of treatment for a patient
· Measure the capacity and efficiency of a patient's lungs to determine if there is impaired function.
· Perform stress tests and other studies of the cardiopulmonary system.
· Study disorders of people with disruptive sleep patterns.
· Obtain and analyze sputum and breath specimens.
· Read and analyze chest x-rays and electrocardiograms
Treatment:
· Operate and maintain various types of highly sophisticated equipment to administer oxygen or to assist with breathing.
· Employ mechanical ventilation for treating patients who cannot breathe adequately on their own.
· Monitor and manage therapy that will help a patient recover lung function.
· Administer medications in aerosol form to help alleviate breathing problems and to help prevent respiratory infections.
· Monitor equipment and patient response to therapy
· Conduct rehabilitation activities, such as low-impact aerobic exercise classes to help patients who suffer from chronic lung problems.
· Maintain a patient's artificial airway, one that may be in place to help the patient who can not breathe through normal means.
· Stand by in labor and delivery rooms to monitor and treat pre-mature infants who have difficulty in breathing on their own
· Conduct smoking cessation programs for the hospital patients and other patients in the community who want to kick the tobacco habit. (Young teens to adult to elderly population.) |
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Respiratory Therapists At Work
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Many respiratory therapists work in hospitals, which operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week and 365 days a year. Most therapists work in intensive care units, where they treat critically ill infants, children, or adults. Some therapists work in the general care areas of the hospital giving basic respiratory care. However, there are career opportunities in nursing homes, home health agencies, pulmonary rehabilitation, sleep study centers, flight transport, medical equipment supply companies and in physician offices. Many therapists work in diagnostic laboratories performing pulmonary function tests, cardiovascular studies, and some neurological diagnostic procedures.
Of the nearly 83,000 RTs working in the U.S. half of them earned over $48,000 in 2001. The field is expected to grow not just faster than average over the next ten years, but at a rate of twice the average growth of most other occupations.
To watch a video exploring more about respiratory therapy, go to the American Association of Respiratory Care website and view the "Life and Breath" presentation. |
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Community Outreach
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| We reach out to our community by participating with the Respiratory Therapy departments of our local hospitals in health fairs, American Lung Association activities, and asthma camps. Our students and graduates participate in activities leading to awareness of the causes and prevention of pulmonary disease and the problems associated with the cardiopulmonary system. They support the development and promotion of pulmonary disease awareness programs, to include smoking cessation programs, pulmonary function screenings, air pollution monitoring, allergy warnings, and other public education programs.
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Professional Organizations
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The American Association for Respiratory Care (AARC)
The AARC is the professional association representing respiratory therapists, physicians, and other health care professionals who are interested in respiratory care. For information on respiratory care, visit the AARC website at www.aarc.org.
We are also members of:
Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs
American Association for Respiratory Care
Committee on Accreditation for Respiratory Care
Virginia Society for Respiratory Care
National Board for Respiratory Care |
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