At the 108-bed hospital in Marysville, Ohio, as at many similar rural medical facilities, the functional of the respiratory therapists extend beyond the traditional bounds of this discipline. They include noninvasive cardiodiagnostic testing, stress testing, Holter monitoring, and pulmonary function testing.
On a Saturday evening last November, two well-known Los Angeles physicians who came to the aid of a cardiac-arrest victim in a Palm Springs hotel were arrested for interfering with an emergency medical rescue and resisting arrest. The incident triggered a shock wave that was felt throughout the California medical community and far beyond. Just what is the relationship between physicians and paramedics in such a situation? Who is authorized to take charge, and who is most qualified?
The equipment used in respiratory therapy can be the source of serious nosocomial infections unless close attention is given to appropriate sterilization, disinfection, and general measures that come under the heading of good housekeeping. And even the best of these measures will fail if therapists do not observe the cardinal rule of regular hand washing.
Neonatal respiratory therapy has emerged as a new specialization in recent years, owing to advances in medical knowledge such as those which have increased the survival rate for premature infants. Various factors define the scope of the neonatal respiratory therapist's role, which varies from one facility to another but can include involvement in delivery, transport, education, and research as well as ventilatory assistance and monitoring.
In California, legislation that would give respiratory therapists legal credentialing has a 50-50 chance of enactment, say proponents. Therapists in Michigan are pinning their hopes on title licensure. In Utah a licensing bill for RTs is being rewritten. Arguments by both sides of the issue are presented here.
In the past ten years, oxygen concentrators have grown in popularity and in the diversity of available models--but not in size. Miniaturization has been the major trend. Important factors in the choice and evaluation of oxygen concentrators are the size of the unit, concentrations and air flows delivered, reliability, and cost.
Effective management of a respiratory therapy department requires the determination of the relative effectiveness of the products used. It is important for the department manager to recognize how well the alternative products meet their intended purpose and at the same time to determine their actual cost. This article describes a method for analyzing both the clinical effectiveness and the cost-effectiveness of prefilled humidifiers.
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