The Path to Becoming a Respiratory Therapist
A Respiratory Therapist
The work of a respiratory therapist is to make a diagnosis, evaluate asses and offer treatment to individuals with cardiopulmonary system disorders (Respiratory Therapist Career. 2008). This is inclusive of any diseases or disorders which impact inhalation and lung capability of an individual. Respiratory therapy is an important part of patient care most especially because of the increasing occurrences of enduring lung disorders and ailments like enduring bronchitis, emphysema and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) (Respiratory Therapist Career. 2008). A respiratory therapist is hence a very important health care specialist, and becoming one requires meeting the set educational, certification and state licencing qualifications.
Education
The standard requirement for one to be a respiratory therapist is a university education in the area. All the states in the U.S. that licence respiratory therapists necessitate the applicants to have completed a respiratory health care accredited degree, which takes four years to complete. This is what is standard as illustrated by the Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (CoARC).
It is possible for a candidate to be certified as a respiratory caregiver if they have a junior or associate degree which includes the candidate having some clinical experience in the field and two full years of academic study (Respiratory Therapist Career. 2019). Bachelor’s degree has however gained so much popularity in almost every field to help meet the demands of most of the employers today, so many Respiratory therapist positions always prefer to have candidates that have advanced education . Respiratory therapists are today choosing to pursue the Registered Respiratory Therapist (RRT) certificate, which is a progressive level certificate in respiratory care (NOVA College Respiratory Therapy Catalogue. 2019). The RRT credentials are today becoming the standard for licencing and this is expected to be the trend in coming years.
To be admitted in Nova Community College for a respiratory therapy course, one is required to attend the respiratory therapy information session which is available online. One must also have a minimum curricular GPA of 2.5 from their previous school with at least 15 completed credits (NOVA College Respiratory Therapy Catalogue. 2019). One must also complete a college composition and a mathematics test and get acceptable scores to get admitted to the school for the course. If a student begins the course and unfortunately leaves before completion for any period up to two years, they can be re-enrolled (NOVA College Respiratory Therapy Catalogue. 2019). The students are required to demonstrate proficiency in all the previously enrolled skills courses before they re-enter the program. The students are given tests which include both written and practical exams which help to evaluate their proficiency (NOVA College Respiratory Therapy Catalogue. 2019).
All the CoARC attributed programs purpose to bring out candidates that are capable in; both spoken and inscribed communication abilities, respiratory health service, biomedical disciplines and social skills. The respiratory care curriculum covers the following areas; care of the adult, paediatric and new-born patients, community respiratory health, disease management, health promotion and endowment of healthcare amenities to individuals with communicable ailments among many others (NOVA College Respiratory Therapy Catalogue. 2019).
Licencing of respiratory therapists
Once a student has completed a CoARC approved respiratory care bachelor’s program, he or she is expected to take and ensure he passes the Therapist Multiple Choice (TMC) exam which earns them the Certified Respiratory Therapist (CRT) exam that consists of 160 multiple questions to be completed in three hours. The exam fee is $ 190; this is what is considered in licensing in almost all states (Respiratory Therapist Career. 2019). There are however, selected states where the candidates that have the associate level or the bachelor’s degrees, can acquire impermanent licensure which allows them to start working and they take the CRT exam later.
It is important for the people that are interested in the respiratory care career to understand that even though the licensing board only requires them to have the CRT credentials for licencing, times are changing and employers continue to choose advanced education and this is having RRT credentials. The RRT exam consists of 60 questions and an additional 10 questions section where one is expected to treat an imaginary patient’s condition. Most of the respiratory therapists in critical care settings are required to have the RRT credentials.
For the respiratory therapists that are practising within the U.S., it is a requirement to have state licensure (Respiratory Therapist Career. 2019). The licencing requirements are similar in almost all the states when it comes to matters of level of education and accreditation necessities. Some of the necessities for licensure in Virginia state for instance, comprise; a finalized, signed and authenticated solicitation for licensure, transcripts sent to the state licencing panel from the instructive institution, authentication of the identifications referred directly from the National Board for Respiratory Care (NBRC) to the state licensing panel, submission of fingerprints and payment of the licensing fee which in West Virginia is $ 200 (NOVA College Respiratory Therapy Catalogue. 2019). In order for respiratory therapists to maintain their licences, they are required to renew the licences after every three years and they renewal fee is $ 55 even renewed in November and $ 65 when renewed in December; this is to discourage people from rushing in during the last minute (NOVA College Respiratory Therapy Catalogue. 2019).
It is possible for a candidate that have been convicted of crime or any offences that are related to drug abuse or sale of controlled substances to be denied licensure. In Virginia for instance, the Virginia Board of Medicine reserves the right of giving or denying licensure to respiratory therapy candidates (NOVA College Respiratory Therapy Catalogue. 2019).
Finances
The Respiratory care course as earlier illustrated takes about four years, one is required to complete 71 credits. There are 15 credits for the prerequisites, 13 credits for the 1st semester, 15 credits for the 2nd semester, 4 credits for the 3rd semester, 12 credits for the 4th semester and 12 credits for the last semester (NOVA College Respiratory Therapy Catalogue. 2019).
Tuition fee for the respiratory care therapy course in Nova Community College for instance varies depending on type of students. The out of state students pay the most tuition fee per credit followed by the business contract students and then the military out of state contract students (NOVA College Tuition Rates. 2019). All other students including the state residents, veterans and those that are dual enrolled pay the least tuition per credit.
Table showing tuition fee for Nova Community College
|
|
Residents students |
Martial students from other states |
Martial veterans and those on active duty students |
Dual enrolled students |
Corporate contract students |
Students from other states |
|
Tuition in $ |
180.40 |
180.40 |
180.40 |
180.40 |
240.40 |
369.65 |
|
Capital Fee in $ |
0.00 |
23.50 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
23.50 |
23.50 |
|
Student Activities Fee in $ |
4.60
|
4.60
|
4.60
|
4.60
|
4.60
|
4.60
|
|
Parking infrastructure Fee in $ |
2.00 |
2.00 |
2.00 |
2.00 |
2.00 |
2.00 |
|
Price Per credit hour in $ |
187.00 |
210.50 |
187.00 |
187.00 |
270.50 |
389.75 |
It is important to note that Nova Community College does not offer housing for students so it is important to consider housing and food costs while taking the course there NOVA College Tuition Rates. (2019).
Career development
It is important for the therapists to continue with respiratory care education to help them keep updated with new developments in the field. Staying updated helps the respiratory therapists to always offer the highest quality respiratory care services. Continued education for respiratory therapists allows them to be familiar with latest information, in regard to healing and analytical methods which permits them to always offer the benign and most actual respiratory care to their patients (Respiratory Therapist Career. 2008). This continued education can either be learner directed or provider directed given that there are many courses that are available online.
Most of the states necessitate the respiratory therapists to have completed a series of their obligated on-going education hours, medical integrities or even the lawful facets of the healthcare (Respiratory Therapist Career. 2019). The accepted on-going education sources can differ depending on the state, but the licensing board recognizes some providers like NBRC Advanced certification, Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education, American Academy for Cardiology, American Nurse Association and American Lung Association among others in offering continuing education for respiratory therapists.
One way that respiratory therapists can advance their skills is through specialization in their area of clinical practice. For instance, a respiratory therapist can choose to work with patients in the paediatric unit, the critically ill adults or the patients suffering from heart conditions (Respiratory Therapist Career. 2008). Specialization is important because it allows the respiratory therapist to focus on one area and perfect in it thus helping him or her to give offer the best care to their patients. NBRC encourages specialization and it offers speciality authorizations in adult acute care, new-borns and paediatric care, sleep disarrays and therapeutic intercessions (Respiratory Therapist Career. 2019). Certifications in respiratory occupation technology are also presented in two stages, there is the certified respiratory function technician and there is the registered respiratory function technician.
A respiratory therapist can also advance their expertise by taking up managerial roles in the health care unit. One can choose to become a supervisor, the head of the department or even an administrator in the hospital. The American Association for Respiratory Care (AARC) encourages therapists to become coordinators of clinical education or director of clinical studies in the hospitals that they work in (Respiratory Therapist Career. 2008). To get such promotions, therapists need to increase their education qualification levels by maybe completing their bachelors and even acquiring a post graduate degree in the respiratory care field.
Respiratory therapists who have enough experience of may be ten years and above can also start their own home care service companies which is allowed by AARC (Respiratory Therapist Career. 2008). Home care services are becoming very common in the society today, as people prefer to have their own care givers that they can access any time they want. A respiratory therapist with a home care service will be able to attend to many patients who find it troublesome to visit general health facilities.
It is also possible for some respiratory therapists to find advancement as product agents or even marketing consultants in respiratory apparatus industrialists (Respiratory Therapist Career. 2019). The need for respiratory care demands for some machineries and also medications which opens up more opportunities for respiratory care specialists. It is an equally important area in respiratory care which ensures that the rights apparatus and medical products that aid in respiratory therapy are manufactured (Respiratory Therapist Career. 2019). Having the right experts in the area can ensure that this medical field always get the best products to help provide the best care to patients.
Respiratory therapists can also advance their careers by taking up roles in the education sector. They can specialize as researchers in respiratory care where they seek to look into the best strategies to deal with issues in respiratory care units (Respiratory Therapist Career. 2008). Respiratory care research is important in helping understand new trends in the field and best strategies to incorporate these trends to ensure best care delivery for patients. Therapists can also become teachers and trainers in colleges and universities where they train new respiratory therapists in the field (Respiratory Therapist Career. 2019). This are positions that require a therapist to have a master’s degree to qualify hence further emphasising the need for continued education for respiratory therapists.
Respiratory therapy is a career that has developed greatly and it is expected to continue growing in the years to come. This means that respiratory therapy jobs will increase which is an advantage for people that chose this course as their area of specialization.
References
NOVA College Respiratory Therapy Catalog. (2019). Retrieved from
https://catalog.nvcc.edu/preview_program.php?catoid=2&poid=158&returnto=96
NOVA College Tuition Rates. (2019). Retrieved from
https://www.nvcc.edu/tuition/index.html
Respiratory Therapist Career. (2019). Retrieved from
https://explorehealthcareers.org/career/allied-health-professions/respiratory-therapist/
Respiratory Therapists. (2008). Occupational Outlook Handbook, 1–3. Retrieved from
http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=28094689&site=ehost-live
