Job Description of a Respiratory Therapist

Many people are looking for a job description of a respiratory therapist because this career opportunity is taken off like a rocket.

But don't just take our word for it.

The highly acclaimed book "Best Jobs for the 21st Century" ranks Respiratory Therapy #223 out of "The 500 Best Jobs Overall."

This impressive ranking was derived from a combination of several factors, including: annual earnings, percent job growth, and annual openings.

Here are the figures for a respiratory therapist:

• Annual earnings: $39,370

• Percent Growth: $34,8%

• Annual Openings: 4,000

These are impressive numbers -- especially when you consider that to become a respiratory therapist requires only an Associate's degree (a 2 year degree).

Distance Learning Respiratory Therapy Associate Degree

Some people want to do distance learning respiratory therapy associate degree -- which is just a long way of saying they want to do most of the classes online.

Other people however want to attend most of the classes on a physical campus because they like the interactive environment of a class. It doesn't matter what you like, we will present to you the best schools for respiratory therapy.

However, before we get to the schools, let's talk about a job description of a respiratory therapist so you have an idea of what kinds of duties will be expected of you.

Job Description of a Respiratory Therapist

The following are some of the core duties of a respiratory therapist, and, therefore, may represent what a respiratory therapist will have to do during the course of a typical working day.

Conduct therapeutic procedures, care for and treat patients who have breathing disorders, operate and inspect medical equipment (such as ventilators), monitor patient's vital signs and physical responses to therapies (such as blood chemistry changes and arterial blood gases), performs pulmonary functions, maintains patient charts, helps patients with breathing exercises, supervises respiratory therapy technicians.

Respiratory therapists do even more than the above, but these kinds of tasks will give you a good idea of what you can expect. In short, it's a very important job and people's lives count on you. You should feel good about yourself if you choose to enter this profession.

Here are 4 essential skills you must have (or develop) to thrive as a respiratory therapist: strong reading comprehension (you'll be reading patient records, history, how to operate equipment); listening skills (you need to listen carefully to what your patient's are saying); monitoring (you need strong attention to detail); and critical thinking (you need to come up with the best solutions for given problems and think things through).

Top School Picks

Now that we've covered the job description of a respiratory therapist, let's talk about the schools.

To find out about each program, just click the link and visit each school...you can request information at no cost, so it's worth it to get info from each one before you make a decision.

Carrington College -- located in Arizona, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington, this recognized leader in education offers respiratory therapist associates degrees as well as medical assistant, technician and radiography courses.

Western School of Health & Business -- located in Pennsylvania, this highly-regarded institution offers respiratory therapy associates degrees as well as medical and dental assistant classes.

Both of these respiratory therapy schools will offer you a top-notch education, and give you the tools you need to succeed.

If you are interested in learning about other degrees, please visit our homepage by clicking the link below.

Much more than job description of a respiratory therapist back at Accredited Online University Home Page