I typically wake up pretty early (around 3 a.m.) because I am working on my master’s in respiratory therapy. Between 4 a.m. and 5 a.m., I do my homework before getting ready for work. Usually, my shifts start at 7 a.m. When I work an 8-hour shift, I work from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., and when I work a 12-hour shift at the bedside, I work from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. 

 

During my 12-hour bedside shift at the hospital, the first thing that I do is get a report from the night shift therapist. My respiratory therapy shifts are very similar to those of nurses and physicians where there is someone working during the day for 12 hours and someone working during the night for 12 hours. After I get a report on the patients I will be seeing that day, I take some time to see what my day will look like and where the higher need patients are. I typically do therapies for a patient every 4 to 6 hours. For example, this can mean that I will need to see all of my patients in a certain time frame (like 7:00 a.m. to 8:30 a.m.) in order to administer treatments. 

 

When I am working in the ICU, I participate in something called rounds. I typically round on patients with a variety of healthcare providers, including nurses, pulmonary critical care doctors, anesthesiologists, residents, nurse practitioners (NPs), physician assistants (PAs), pharmacists, and nutritionists. By meeting together to round on the patients, we are all able to get an understanding of our plan for the day and how we can best help our patients.

 

After completing my initial rounds, I jump right into my 11:00 a.m. rounds. During this time, I check on every patient again and often complete procedures on them. One of the main procedures that I complete on patients during this time is known as a bronchoscopy. This is a procedure where I take a video scope and put it down patients’ endotracheal tubes/airways to better understand how I can help them. With these scopes, we can take pictures, clean mucus out, or even take a biopsy or mucus sample from patients’ lungs. Sometimes a patient will need to go on a scan, and if they are on a very high level of oxygen or needing any type of high respiratory support (including a mechanical ventilator), then the respiratory therapist will need to go with to monitor the patient, equipment, and assist in case there are any major emergencies during the scan. 

 

After my 11:00 a.m. round, I jump into my 3:00 p.m. round. This is my last set of rounds for the day, so everything is typically done by then. However, this can vary because sometimes patients are just getting admitted from surgery, they are coming from the Emergency Room, or they are getting transferred from another hospital. Every day can be a little different depending on the needs of patients. This can be a little tricky at the end of my shift because I also need to document my work from the day as well as prepare to give a high-quality report to the person coming on the night shift. 

 

In terms of work-life balance and the number of days a week that I work, there are a few different options. Respiratory therapists typically work every other or every third weekend. If you are working a weekend, then that means that you might have a few consecutive days off in a row, such as Monday through Wednesday. I used to only work 12-hour shifts, and I would work 3 days a week. I would definitely say that the stress level associated with this job can vary depending on if you are furthering your education and/or taking care of family. This job can be very physically demanding, so getting lots of rest is also important. It is also important to take care of yourself because this field can be mentally stressful. Although having multiple days off in a row can be very nice, having a 12-hour day can be a lot, especially considering that everyone will have different commute times to and from work.

 

I am currently working a job where I work 8-hour shifts 4 days a week, which is a little more steady. However, I still follow my same schedule where I wake up early to do my homework before going to work. Because I am working in pulmonary rehab, I am more commonly helping patients at the bedside. In the morning, I work with pulmonary rehab patients who have had surgery and are trying to work on sustaining their energy, lung function, and mobility. I also help patients who are waiting on a lung transplant or have recently received a lung transplant. With these rehab patients, it is important to get them moving, through education, physical activity, flexibility, and strength training. I would definitely say that the 8-hour shifts make it easier for me personally to maintain a good work-life balance.

 

In respiratory care, there are a wide variety of career paths you can pursue. This flexibility especially drew me to the field because you can work in in-patient, out-patient, educational, and research settings. These various options are very nice because they allow healthcare providers who work in respiratory care to be able to work in areas that allow them to have the work-life balance they desire. For example, you can always look for something in respiratory care with either an 8-hour schedule, 10-hour schedule, or 12-hour schedule.