REGISTERED RESPIRATORY THERAPIST

UNM Hospitals participates in the Clinical Advancement Program (CAP) and depending on your Education and National Certifications, you’ll work towards one of three CAP levels that offer increasing compensation. 

This position offers generous sign on bonus to external hires.

Department: Pulmonary Services

FTE: 0.75
Full Time
Shift: Days

Position Summary:
Provide clinical respiratory care. Access, evaluate and recommend intervention to obtain specific patient outcomes. Assemble, operate and troubleshoot various types of respiratory equipment used in diagnosis and treatment of respiratory disease, disability, impairment and illness. Ensure adherence to Hospital and Departmental Policies, Procedures and guidelines. Patient care assignment may include; Neonate, Pediatric, Adolescent, Adult and Geriatric age groups.

Detailed responsibilities:
* PATIENT CARE - Provide patients education and consultation on disease management
* CUSTOMER SERVICE - Ensure customer and patient satisfaction using scripting procedure
* ADMINISTER - Access patient, administer and evaluate appropriate respiratory therapy, including aerosolized medication delivery, chest physiotherapy, intermittent positive pressure breathing, oxygen supplementation, pulmonary hygiene, artificial airway care, tracheostomy care including patient education, incentive spirometry, non-invasive and invasive procedures
* PERFORM - Perform as a resource for certified respiratory therapy technicians and respiratory therapy assistants
* ASSIST - Assist healthcare team managing patients on mechanical ventilators, monitor patients requiring mechanical life support. Follow weaning guidelines/protocols to ensure appropriate duration of mechanical ventilation
* RECOMMEND - Recommend appropriate mode of ventilatory support to physicians. Participate with critical care team on patient rounds and teaching
* PARTICIPATE - Participate in Hospitals cardiopulmonary resuscitation team. Provide airway maintenance, manual resuscitation and chest compression during Dr Heart codes. Assist with endotracheal tube insertion, stabilization and continued ventilatory support
* PARTICIPATE - Participate with Hospitals trauma team. Respond to trauma pages. Assist with intubation, airway management and ventilator support. Assist with internal transport of ventilator and patient
* PARTICIPATE - Participate with Hospitals high-risk labor and delivery team. Respond to high-risk delivery pages and provide airway management, assist with intubation and stabilization of the endotracheal tube, administer surfactant if ordered by physician, provide ventilator support
* PERFORM - Perform arterial puncture for blood gas analysis. Run blood gas sample for analysis. Interpret arterial blood gas and electrolyte results
* PROVIDE - Provide recommendations for therapy and appropriate ventilation based on lab results
* PERFORM - Perform simple bedside pulmonary function tests on intubated and non-intubated patients. Make recommendations for therapy and ventilator support
* PERFORM - Perform oximetry for arterial oxygen saturation evaluation. Setup, evaluate and monitor ETCO2 and sleep study monitoring
* INITIATE - Receive and initiate physician's orders for respiratory care, including verbal orders under Hospitals policy
* PROVIDE - Provide patient clinical assessment; evaluate patient criteria for appropriateness of, and compliance with, therapeutic objectives
* ADMINISTER - Administer and monitor medical gases and environmental control systems including oxygen, compressed air, heliox, nitrogen, and nitric oxide. Participate in medical gas failure emergencies and planned outages
* ADMINISTER - Administers aerosolized pharmacological agents, calculate dosages for continuous aerosolized therapy. Transition patients from aerosol delivery to MDIs according to department guidelines
* ASSIST - Assist facility maintenance, maintain equipment, label and route malfunctioning equipment to appropriate location
* PATIENT CARE - Collaborate with healthcare team to implement and document in individual plan of care with age specific considerations. Include discharge plan and patient/family teaching
* PATIENT SAFETY 1 - Follow patient safety-related policies, procedures and protocols
* PATIENT SAFETY 2 - Demonstrate proactive approach to patient safety by seeking opportunities to improve patient safety through questioning of current policies and processes
* PATIENT SAFETY 3 - Identify and report/correct environmental conditions and/or situations that may put a patient at undue risk
* PATIENT SAFETY 4 - Report potential or actual patient safety concerns, medical errors and/or near misses in a timely manner
* PATIENT SAFETY 5 - Encourage patients to actively participate in their own care by asking questions and reporting treatment or situations that they don't understand or may "not seem right"

Qualifications

Education:
Essential:
* Associate Degree
Education specialization:
Essential:
* Related Discipline

Experience:
Essential:
Hospital respiratory therapy equipment - ability to operate Respiratory care therapy, applications and side effects comprehensive knowledge

Nonessential:
Bilingual English, Spanish, Keres, Tewa, Tiwa, Towa, Zuni, or Navajo 3 years directly related experience

Credentials:
Essential:
* CPR for Healthcare/BLS Prov or Prof Rescuers w/in 30 days
* Advanced Cardiac Life Support Certification w/in 1 year
* Respiratory Care Practitioner in NM
* Registered Respiratory Therapist

Physical Conditions:
Heavy Work: Exerting 50 to 100 pounds of force occasionally, and/or 25 to 50 pounds of force frequently, and/or 10 to 20 pounds of force constantly to move objects or people. Physical Demand requirements are in excess of those for Medium Work.

Working conditions:
Essential:
* Med Haz: Mod exposure to chemicals/dangerous equip/materials
* May perform subordinate tasks in high census/vol
* May be required or is required to perform on-call duties
* May work rotating shifts, holidays and weekends

Department: Clinical Care