POSITION
DESCRIPTION
POSITION TITLE: Registered Respiratory Therapist (RRT) JOB CODE: 195
THIS POSITION
REPORTS TO: The First Line Manager of
Unit to which assigned
SERVICE
AREA: Respiratory Care Services
POSITION
PURPOSE: The staff RRT is a professional
practitioner who functions as both a
care giver and care manager. In the care giver role, the RRT assumes
responsibility for a
group of patients for a designated time frame
implementing the Respiratory Care Process
and therapeutic use of self. In the dominant role of care manager, the RRT
directs and
oversees the care of other care givers (CRTTs) via delegation, coordination, supervision,
validation and evaluation.
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PRINCIPLE ACCOUNTABILITIES AND
ESSENTIAL DUTIES OF THE JOB:
* Respiratory Care Process
-
Performs assessments/data collection in an ongoing and systematic
manner,
focusing on
physiologic, psychologic and cognitive status.
-
Formulates or utilizes a predefined, goal-directed Standard of Care,
initiating
priority
Respiratory diagnoses/patient care problems and pre-established
physiologic,
psychologic and cognitive patient outcomes.
-
Implements care in a knowledgeable, skillful, consistent and continuous
manner
by
utilization of/adherence to pre-determined Procedures, Protocols and
Standards of Care.
- Evaluates effectiveness of
self, care given by all health care team members, and
contribution
of systems, environment, and instrumentation in progressing
patients
toward desired outcomes within a predefined LOS.
* Technical Skills
-
Demonstrates competency in selected psychomotor skills adhering to
predefined
written
Procedures.
* Patient Education
-
Identifies patient/SO learning needs, readiness for learning, and
implements
"Pt/SO Instruction" and
"Patient Teaching" in meeting patient self care needs as
defined in
Standards of Care and Patient Teaching Protocols.
* Documentation
-
Performs documentation responsibilities following all existing Structure
Standards and Guidelines for forms
used in the DON and specially assigned
clinical
area.
* Patient Rights
-
Demonstrates awareness of and sensitivity to patient/SO rights, as
identified
within the
institution.
* Safety
-
Functions with an awareness and application of safety requirements as
identified
in existing Standards.
* Emergency Situations
-
Performs efficiently in emergency patient situations following
established
Protocols,
remaining calm, informing appropriate persons and documenting events.
* Knowledge Base
-
Demonstrates applied knowledge base in areas of Structure Standards,
patient
care
resources/references, significant lab values as defined generically in the
DON and for the specific clinical
area where assigned.
* Professionalism
-
Demonstrates an awareness of self responsibility and accountability for
own
professional
practice.
* Teaching Others
-
Participates actively in staff development activities sharing knowledge
with
others and
using appropriate teaching/learning strategies to assist peers.
* Self Development
-
Demonstrates self-directed learning and participation in continuing
education
to meet own
professional development.
* Self Validation
-
Seeks validation of knowledge base, skill level, and decision making as
necessary
and assertively requests guidance in areas of question.
* Legal Issues
-
Demonstrates awareness of legal issues in all aspects of professional
practice
and patient
care and strives to manage situations in a reduced-risk manner.
* MBOs
-
Participates in development and attainment of unit and Department of
Nursing
MBOs.
* Standards Development
-
Participates in developing written Standards at both generic and
unit-specific
levels,
demonstrates an attitude of acceptance/importance of standards in all
professional
practice, strives to achieve minimum 90% compliance levels, and
uses
"professional modification" measures with sound clinical judgment.
* Quality Assessment
-
Actively involves self in quality assessment activities at the generic
and
unit levels
through use of data sources and compliance peer review monitoring.
* Delegation/Direction
-
Demonstrates appropriate delegation of patient care activities in the
direction of
health care team members and functions effectively to supervise
assigned
co-workers, implementing required validation techniques.
* Coordination
-
Demonstrates willingness and ability to effectively coordinate patient
care/unit
activities
among nursing peers and between nursing, physicians and support
services in
both a care manager and "shift leader" role.
* Organization/Priority Setting
-
Demonstrates effective organization and priority setting abilities in
using
self, human
and material resources in a time-oriented and cost-containment
manner.
*
Communication
-
Demonstrates effective verbal and written communication skills by
implementing
existing
communication methods (i.e., staff meetings, communication boards,
etc.) and always attempting to receive and give information in a
timely, concise
and positive
manner.
* Working Relationships
-
Formulates and uses effective working relationships with all health care
team
members,
patients and families.
* Lines of Authority
-
Demonstrates appropriate use of lines of authority in clinical and
operational
matters when
seeking direction, validating self decision making, and resolving
problematic
issues.
* Staffing/Flexibility
-
Remains flexible in staffing patterns and resolution of staffing
conflicts.
* Problem Solving/Decision Making
-
Demonstrates keen problem identification skills using existing QA
tools/methods;
demonstrates
sound clinical and operational decision making ability based on
current
Standards and resulting in prompt action/resolution.
* Research
-
Demonstrates an attitude of seeking knowledge and rationale for actions
and
shows
ability to apply theory/data to the clinical setting.