Life of an RT A Respiratory therapist (RT) has a big role in the clinical setting. They were once called oxygen technicians in the 1940’s, but now they play a bigger part in patient care. Today’s RTs are health care professionals that aim to provide quality and evidence-based respiratory care while ensuring safety, maintaining communication, and keeping record of what goes on with their patients. The RTs must understand the respiratory and cardiovascular system in order to efficiently apply their skills in the clinical setting. The RTs knowledge of the functions and anatomy of the lungs and heart ensure that the assessing of the patient is accurate and treatment is best for the patient. With this knowledge the RT can assess the patient and
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Unlike MDIs and DPIs, nebulizers create aerosols pneumatically. The RT must select the appropriate medication for the patient and understand the patient’s needs and how they may react to the treatment. Before giving the breathing treatment, the RT would have to assess the patient’s vital signs, ensuring that they are ok to take the medication. Then they can begin to instruct the patient that they are to breath in the aerosolized medication so that it may be deposited in the lungs and airways. After the breathing treatment, the RT should record post vitals along with a peak flow meter to record if the treatment had any effect on the patient. The RT should know all of the side effects of the drug to prevent any complications with the patient. For example, the RT knows that a side effect of mucomist is bronchospasms. With that knowledge the RT will administer an albuterol treatment first, and then the mucomist treatment. The RT would administer the albuterol first to open up the airways, which will prevent the bronchospasm from occurring once the mucomist is administered. The RTs knowledge of the medications ensures that they are only there to care for the patient and not cause more problems for …show more content…
Some patients may have a disorder called sleep apnea. Sleep apnea is where a patient cannot sleep at night due to their inability to breath. Patients with sleep apnea cannot take an RT home with them, so it’s the RTs job to teach the patient how to sleep using a Bipap or Cpap machine. These machines can be used on patients with sleep apnea because they use positive airway pressure to help get the needed oxygen into the lungs. Cpap stands for continuous air way pressure. A Cpap machine works by delivering a slow and steady flow of air into the patient with a use of a mask. Bipap stands for Bilevel positive airway pressure, which is easier for patients because unlike a Cpap machine, a Bipap has individual settings for inspiration and exhalation. The Cpap is continuous which can make it hard for patients to exhale; this is why the Bipap is
Unlike MDIs and DPIs, nebulizers create aerosols pneumatically. The RT must select the appropriate medication for the patient and understand the patient’s needs and how they may react to the treatment. Before giving the breathing treatment, the RT would have to assess the patient’s vital signs, ensuring that they are ok to take the medication. Then they can begin to instruct the patient that they are to breath in the aerosolized medication so that it may be deposited in the lungs and airways. After the breathing treatment, the RT should record post vitals along with a peak flow meter to record if the treatment had any effect on the patient. The RT should know all of the side effects of the drug to prevent any complications with the patient. For example, the RT knows that a side effect of mucomist is bronchospasms. With that knowledge the RT will administer an albuterol treatment first, and then the mucomist treatment. The RT would administer the albuterol first to open up the airways, which will prevent the bronchospasm from occurring once the mucomist is administered. The RTs knowledge of the medications ensures that they are only there to care for the patient and not cause more problems for …show more content…
Some patients may have a disorder called sleep apnea. Sleep apnea is where a patient cannot sleep at night due to their inability to breath. Patients with sleep apnea cannot take an RT home with them, so it’s the RTs job to teach the patient how to sleep using a Bipap or Cpap machine. These machines can be used on patients with sleep apnea because they use positive airway pressure to help get the needed oxygen into the lungs. Cpap stands for continuous air way pressure. A Cpap machine works by delivering a slow and steady flow of air into the patient with a use of a mask. Bipap stands for Bilevel positive airway pressure, which is easier for patients because unlike a Cpap machine, a Bipap has individual settings for inspiration and exhalation. The Cpap is continuous which can make it hard for patients to exhale; this is why the Bipap is