Respiratory Therapy (RRT to BSRT)

Facilities & Technology

The Respiratory Therapy program is located in the O’Neill Center for Healthy Families . The state-of-the-art facility includes spacious labs with equipment that will be seen in the clinical setting. Students simulate many therapies and use different types of equipment to build confidence before going into the clinical setting. All Respiratory Therapy majors are required to achieve competence in the lab in a controlled environment before going out to the clinical sites with patients. Students perform real simulation situations and activities in the lab, so they will have an understanding of therapeutic concepts and how they are applied in real patient care settings. The simulations prepare our students to treat patients as they begin the clinical portion of the program.

Scholarships

Morris K. Udall Scholarship

The Udall Foundation seeks future leaders across a wide spectrum of environmental fields, including policy, engineering, science, education, urban planning and renewal, business, health, justice, and economics. The Foundation also seeks future Native American and Alaska Native leaders in public and community health care, tribal government, and public policy affecting Native American communities, including land and resource management, economic development, and education.

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Faculty

Courses & Curriculum (30 Total Credits + Transfer Credits)

Students must show successful completion of RRT credential in order to graduate from this program.

Student Resources

Clinical Requirements

The following must be completed after a respiratory therapy major has been selected for, but prior to their start in the clinical portion of the program and are also requirements for continuation:

• Physical examination and required immunizations

• Background checks (Pennsylvania Child Abuse History Clearance, FBI fingerprint check, and PA State Police Criminal Record Check)

• Drug screens

The student should consider these factors before enrolling in this program. If the student has any questions regarding this, he or she should contact the program director.

In addition to tuition and fees, students must purchase uniforms, supplies, liability insurance, testing, and clinical parking fees.  Students will be assigned computer simulations that will be completed throughout the program. This will prepare students to sit for the National Board of Respiratory Care (NBRC) exams when they have graduated.

Students will also be required to help within the community and gain knowledge outside of the classroom setting by acquiring Professional Development credits. These outside credits could include volunteering at American Lung Association events, attending informational sessions within the community that teach different types of cardio pulmonary disorders and diseases.

Membership in the American Association for Respiratory Care (AARC) is required  by the start of the second semester of the clinical portion of Respiratory Therapist program.

Graduation Requirements
Graduation requirements for a Bachelor of Science in Respiratory Therapy include current Certification in American Heart Association BLS (CPR), American Heart Association Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) certification, American Heart Association Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) certification, professional development credits, and satisfactory performance on comprehensive written, laboratory, simulation, and oral exit examinations.

Acquiring Core Skills
In addition to the clinical skills that students will learn as part of their curriculum, the BSRT program incorporates core skills training into the program that will benefit all Respiratory Therapy students in their careers.

1. Writing in the Profession
   Students will demonstrate the ability to write effectively in the profession. Elements include the ability to organize an argument, support the argument with high quality relevant evidence, deliver it with good sentence structure and grammar, and cite and reference appropriately.

2. Oral Communication/Consultative Function/Knowledge
   Students will deliver a consultative presentation with recommendations that reflect the knowledge gained through courses in this program.

3. Critical Inquiry/Evidence-based Medicine
   Students will demonstrate the ability to formulate a clinical question, search the medical literature, and assess the collected literature for quality, relevance and limitations.

4. Teamwork/Interprofessional Cooperation
   Students will demonstrate collaboration in interprofessional teams to accomplish a common goal.

5. Ethical Leadership
   Students will demonstrate effectively the ability to lead a group of professionals in an ethical manner promoting patient advocacy.

6. Teaching Patients and Healthcare Professionals
   Students will demonstrate the ability to educate patients, their families, and healthcare professionals.

Graduation Requirements
Graduation requirements include current Certification in American Heart Association BLS (CPR), American Heart Association Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) certification, American Heart Association Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) certification, professional development credits, and satisfactory performance on comprehensive written, laboratory, simulation, and oral exit examinations.

Membership in the American Association for Respiratory Care (AARC) is required by the start of the second semester of the clinical portion of Respiratory Therapist program.

Career Settings

Respiratory therapists provide the hands-on care that helps people recover from a wide range of medical conditions. Therapists get to know their patients, and their patients’ families, and have the opportunity to help them through trying times. Whenever breathing is an issue, they are there.

• In hospitals, giving breathing treatments to people with asthma and other respiratory conditions.

• In intensive care units, managing ventilators that keep the critically ill alive.

• In emergency rooms, delivering life-saving treatments.

• In newborn and pediatric units, helping kids with conditions ranging from premature birth to cystic fibrosis.

• In operating rooms, working with anesthesiologists to monitor patients’ breathing during surgery.

• In patients’ homes, providing regular check-ups and making sure people have what they need to stay out of the hospital.

• In sleep laboratories, helping to diagnose disorders like sleep apnea.

• In skilled nursing facilities and pulmonary rehabilitation programs, helping older people breathe easier and get more out of life.

• In doctors’ offices, conducting pulmonary function tests and providing patient education.

• In asthma education programs, helping kids and adults alike learn how to cope with the condition.

• In smoking cessation programs, assisting those who want to kick the habit for good.

• In air transport and ambulance programs, rushing to rescue people in need of immediate medical attention.

• In case management programs, helping devise long-term care plans for patients.

Respiratory Therapist Job Duties

Here is a list of tasks that Respiratory Therapists do every day.

• Monitor patient’s physiological responses to therapy, such as vital signs, arterial blood gases, or blood chemistry changes, and consult with physician if adverse reactions occur.

• Set up and operate devices such as mechanical ventilators, high flow oxygen, aerosol generators, nitric oxide gas inhalation therapy, and BiPAP/CPAP machines

• Work as part of a team of physicians, nurses, or other healthcare professionals to manage patient care by assisting with medical procedures or related duties.

• Maintain charts that contain patients’ pertinent identification and therapy information.

• Read prescription, measure arterial blood gases, and review patient information to assess patient condition

• Perform arterial blood gas punctures and analyze results

• Are first line responders to emergency situations such as cardiac arrest and code blue situations performing manual ventilation and assist/perform intubations on patients

Ideal Skills for a Respiratory Therapist

Like most jobs in the healthcare profession, respiratory therapists need to have a unique skill set that allows them to multitask while remaining hyper-focused on the needs and conditions of their patients. All respiratory therapists should have the following skills:

• Verbal communication skills

• Calm bedside manner

• Compassion

• Deep understanding of infectious control

• Ability to work with a medical team

• Good judgment and quick decision-making ability

• Time management skills

• Physiological knowledge

• Patience and ability to teach and train patients

• Detail oriented

• Science and math skills