Career Opportunities after B.Sc Respiratory Therapy

Have you completed your B.Sc Respiratory Therapy degree?

Are you worried about the job opportunities available after B.Sc Respiratory Therapy?

Read this article until the end to understand the career opportunities after B.Sc Respiratory Therapy

What is B.Sc Respiratory Therapy?

The B.Sc. Respiratory Therapy is the 3-year degree programme that can be done after the completion of the class 12th. The students who have completed PUC/12th or equivalent with physics, chemistry and biology as subjects of 12th can join the B.Sc Respiratory Therapy programme. Respiratory Therapy is one of the numerous careers that are chosen by many students in recent years. The demand for Respiratory Therapists has seen an increase in demand in today’s world, especially as the course got its importance during the last decade.

The main role of the Respiratory Therapists is to assist the physicians to evaluate, diagnose and treat the people suffering from respiratory disorders. Respiratory Therapy is a combination of technology and patient interaction. Respiratory therapy professionals work in patients suffering from acute and chronic respiratory disorders. They are usually seen working in critical care units of the hospitals.

Duties of the Respiratory Therapists

The B.Sc Respiratory Therapy students are mainly seen working in respiratory care labs where the breathing equipment is placed. The respiratory therapists are responsible for the diagnosis, monitoring and treating of the patients; suffering from health care issues that affect the cardiopulmonary systems. They will be treating the patients suffering from asthma, emphysema, pneumonia, cardiovascular disorders and trauma. The respiratory therapists work in multi-tasks in their job roles.

Some of the duties performed by respiratory therapists are:

• They are responsible to examine and interview the patients with breathing or cardiopulmonary problems
• They are responsible to conduct diagnostic tests
• They are responsible to develop a treatment programme for the patients after the directions of the certified physicians
• They are responsible to implement the treatment programmes effectively and report the progress of the patients with respiratory disorders
• They are required to monitor and keep the records of the patients
• They should manage and guide the respiratory therapy technicians when they implement tests and evaluate the findings
• They are responsible to provide emergency treatments and keep the patients in stable condition
• They are required to diagnose lung and breathing disorders and recommend the correct treatments
• Interview the patients and perform chest physical exams to determine the kind of therapy is the best for the patients
• They are required to analyse the breath tissue, blood specimens to determine levels of the oxygen requirement to the patients
• They are essential to maintain and handle the ventilators, artificial airway devices for patients suffering from breathing problems
• They educate the patients and their family members about the lung diseases and help them to get fast recovery
• They assist the patients in breathing exercises that are prescribed by the certified physicians

Job Roles available for the B.Sc Respiratory Therapists

The B.Sc Respiratory Therapists are hired in different positions in the healthcare sectors. They are usually hired in hospitals especially in intensive care units (ICU), critical care units (CCU), trauma care units, neonatal intensive care units (NICU), maternity intensive care units (MICU) etc.

Some of the job roles available for B.Sc Respiratory Therapists are:

Registered Respiratory Therapists (RRS)

The registered respiratory therapists are qualified professionals for performing respiratory therapy on patients suffering from respiratory diseases across the globe. They are mainly trained to handle respiratory equipment in hospitals and health care centres. They will be given the training to connect the lobes and tubes to the patients. They also monitor the readings from the machine and adjust the machine according to the patient's requirements under the proper guidance of the certified physician

Adult Critical Care Specialists

The adult critical care specialists are seen working in intensive care units (ICU) and critical care units (CCU) in hospitals. They connect the ventilators and other respiratory equipment to critically ill patients. They are also responsible for monitoring the readings of the patients through the respiratory equipment. They constantly generate reports about the progress of the patients and make them available for the physicians and assist them to decide proper treatments that are to be given for the patients with respiratory disorders.

Registered Pulmonary Function Technologists (RPFT)

The increase in the lifespan of the people and changed the lifestyle of the people has created more job opportunities for the registered pulmonary function technologists. Today the majority of respiratory problems are seen in the people with smoking habits. The increased impurities in the air we breathe has also been a major cause for people to develop respiratory disorders today. The registered pulmonary function technologists can choose to work in hospitals or the pulmonary labs, diagnostic centres etc. They perform regular treatments for the people with respiratory disorders and also serve the terminally ill patients

Neonatal Respiratory Care Specialists

Neonatal respiratory care specialists will be working in paediatric care centres and hospitals. They work in neonatal intensive care units (NICU) in hospitals. They are specialized professionals who are given the training to take care of premature babies, infants with respiratory disorders, infants suffering from abnormal lung developments. They help in supporting the toddlers and infants with respiratory equipment and provide treatments to save lives of new- borns

Respiratory Therapists

The respiratory therapists are responsible for performing bronchopulmonary drainage. They assist the patients and help them to carry our breathing exercises. They are also responsible to monitor psychological responses to therapy such as vital signs, arterial blood gases, blood chemistry changes etc.

Clinical Application Therapist

The Clinical application therapists are responsible to counsel the individuals or group of individuals regarding the respiratory disorders and preventive measures that should be taken by the individuals. They also provide moral support for patients suffering from respiratory disorders.

Consultant Pulmonologist

The consultant pulmonologists are responsible to specialize in prevention, evaluation, diagnosis and treatment of the diseases related to the respiratory system. They also handle the ventilators and connect them to the critically ill patients and maintain a constant vigil of the progress of the patients. They record the readings regularly and inform the concerned physicians in case of emergency. They are mainly seen working in intensive care units (ICU), critical care units (CCU), Neonatal intensive care units (NICU), maternity intensive care units (MICU) in the hospitals.

Placement Opportunities

B.Sc Respiratory Therapy students are usually hired in hospitals and health care units. They usually work in critical care units of the hospitals where the critically ill patients are treated. Some of the top recruiters for B.Sc Respiratory Therapy students are:

• Apollo Hospitals
• Max Hospitals
• Metro Hospitals
• Columbia Asia Hospitals
• Rainbow Hospitals
• Fortes Healthcare
• Aster Hospitals
• Medanta Health City

Conclusion

B.Sc Respiratory therapy students can easily find jobs in the medical fields. They usually find job positions in allied health sciences. The allied health science is fast gaining popularity among many students in today’s world. Allied health science may be the next new norm in the medical field. The doctors with MBBS degrees and the professionals with allied health sciences degrees will work in tandem in coming days as the medical field is vast exploring into new and advanced areas related to medicine. Similarly, the allied health science field is also growing along with the medical field and creating many avenues for students with allied health degrees.

So, the demand for students with allied health sciences will see an increase in demand in the next few years. The B.Sc Respiratory Therapy field is gaining importance among the students who are service-oriented and treating the patients who are battling their lives with many respiratory disorders. The candidates who feel that they are capable of handling the critical situations arising in the treatment procedures that are conducted on the patients with respiratory problems can choose to join B.Sc Respiratory Therapy programme and land in excellent careers and experience a good career growth in the field.