Respiratory Therapists

Also called : Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation Respiratory Therapist, Certified Respiratory Therapist (CRT), Registered Respiratory Therapist (RRT), Respiratory Care Practitioner (RCP), Respiratory Therapist (RT), S

What they do

Assess, treat, and care for patients with breathing disorders. Assume primary responsibility for all respiratory care modalities, including the supervision of respiratory therapy technicians. Initiate and conduct therapeutic procedures; maintain patient records; and select, assemble, check, and operate equipment.

On the job, one would

KNOWLEDGE

Customer and Personal Service
Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

Medicine and Dentistry
Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.

English Language
Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

Education and Training
Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

SKILLS

Active Listening
Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Critical Thinking
Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.

Monitoring
Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.

Speaking
Talking to others to convey information effectively.

Active Learning
Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.

ABILITIES

Inductive Reasoning
The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).

Oral Expression
The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.

Problem Sensitivity
The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.

Deductive Reasoning
The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

Information Ordering
The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).

PERSONALITY

People interested in this work, will do well at jobs that need;

Cooperation
Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.

Concern for Others
Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job.

Attention to Detail
Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.

Dependability
Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.

Integrity
Job requires being honest and ethical.

Self-Control
Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.

Stress Tolerance
Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high-stress situations.

Adaptability/Flexibility
Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.

Analytical Thinking
Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.

Independence
Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.

Related Occupations

Cardiovascular Technologists and Technicians

Surgical Technologists

Radiation Therapists

Diagnostic Medical Sonographers

Radiologic Technologists and Technicians

Medical Appliance Technicians

TECHNOLOGY

Calendar and scheduling software

Data base user interface and query software

Electronic mail software

Medical software

Office suite software

Presentation software

Spreadsheet software

Word processing software

EDUCATION AND TRAINING

Preparation
Medium Preparation Needed
Education
Training in vocational schools or an Associate deg
Experience
Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations.
Jobtraining
Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers.