How Do You Define an RT?

Those of you who attended the Leadership meeting in March remember that Sam
Giordano discussed how to describe respiratory therapists. The following
definition is for your use in describing your profession to your family and
friends, the press, the general public, patients, legislators, students of
all ages, and others who are interested in the profession of respiratory
therapy:

"Respiratory therapists are the only health care professionals who receive
formal education (minimum associates degree) and validated competency
testing in respiratory care. RTs are licensed in almost all states (42
licensed, 2 registered). There are about 120,000 RTs in the U.S. RTs work
in all care settings, but the majority is currently employed by hospitals.
They are salaried as regular employees. Their clinical duties range from
ventilator patient support in ICUs to chronic disease management such as
asthma and COPD. RTs assist physicians and nurses by providing assessment
and treatment of pulmonary patients and are considered experts in the
specialty. Pulmonary patients do not have adequate access to these experts
in all care settings because of limitations in the current
Medicare/Medicaid system. Yet, there is a growing need for RTs across the
spectrum given the rising incidence of pulmonary disease, i.e., COPD is the
fourth leading cause of death among chronic diseases) and the trend, since
the implementation of prospective payment system, to discharge hospital
patients, 'quicker and sicker.'"