Respiratory Therapist/FT/36 hours per week/day shift with weekend requirements

At Bristol Health, we begin each day caring today for your tomorrow. We have been an integral part of our community for the past 100 years. We are dedicated to providing the best possible care and service to our patients, residents and families. We are committed to provide compassionate, quality care at all times and to uphold our values of Communication, Accountability, Respect and Empathy (C.A.R.E.). We are Magnet ® and received the 2020 Press Ganey Leading Innovator award for our rapid adoption and implementation of healthcare solutions during the COVID-19 pandemic. Use your expertise, compassion, and kindness to transform the patient experience. Make a difference. Make Bristol Health your choice.

Provides respiratory care according to established plan of care, including complex treatments, procedures and assessments requiring professional judgment and initiative, as well as routine respiratory therapy. Activities include such things as suctioning, administering prescribed medications during respiratory therapy, chest percussion, postural drainage, and incentive spirometry.

Essential Job Functions and Responsibilities:

Provides clinical care in a manner consistent with patient focused care concepts.

• Performs patient assessments using chart review, history, bedside spirometry, and clinical examination, using invasive or non invasive respiratory monitoring as indicated.
• Demonstrates clinical problem solving by identifying/validating the problem, assisting with clinical pathway, and evaluating patient/family outcomes.
• Uses appropriate respiratory and technical skills to deliver care to patients.
• Monitors patients for any variance in the clinical component of the clinical pathway.
• Routinely exercises sound judgment based on policies, procedures and accepted standards of care.
• Applies clinical knowledge to complex patient care situations to resolve care issues, and establishes patient priorities for delivering care. Applies teaching and learning concepts to patients and families, evaluates patient and family progress, and initiates respiratory care education.
• Regularly assists with daily living activities.

Documents all care appropriately and consistently.

• Documents respiratory care and other cross trained activities in a clear, concise and timely fashion.
• Provides information in accordance with JCAHO and State of Connecticut requirements.
• Documents patient outcomes on clinical pathways and other required formats, noting patient variances as they occur.

Collaborates with other health care team members.

• Collaborates with team members to plan, implement and evaluate interventions on the clinical pathway.
• Communicates therapeutic regime and patient outcomes and variances to the case manager in a timely manner.
• Confers regularly with physicians and writes verbal and telephone orders.
• Seeks and uses colleagues ideas and knowledge in delivering patient care.

Acts as a resource person to colleagues and new employees.

• Precepts fellow employees and assists in orientation of new employees.
• Communicates information obtained from off site educational opportunities, and provides educational and clinical guidance in respiratory matters to fellow employees.
• Assists co-workers and other respiratory care people in clinical problem solving and in troubleshooting of respiratory equipment.

Participates in the development, revision and implementation of policies and procedures.

• Supports patient focused care and adheres to unit policies and procedures.
• Participates in the development of policies and procedures and clinical pathways.
• Evaluates and makes recommendations regarding introduction of new respiratory technology.
• Participates in quality improvement activities, including indicator development, chart review, patient intervention and quality improvement, implementation and evaluation.
• Participates on hospital/unit committees and communicates important committee activity information to fellow employees.

Seeks direction and maintains responsibility for own professional growth and development.

• Regularly evaluates professional areas of strength and weakness, and seeks opportun