Respiratory Therapist - Cardiopulmonary
Bethel, Alaska
Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta Regional Hospital

Respiratory Therapist – Cardiopulmonary (Contract)

Location: Bethel, Alaska
Contract Length: 26 weeks (approximately 6 months)
Shift: Day or Night
Hours per Week: 32

Job Summary

Provide full scope cardiopulmonary services to patients of all ages, ensuring care respects patient rights and dignity. Assist in problem-solving all aspects of patient care related to respiratory therapy.

Required Qualifications

• Associate’s Degree in Respiratory Therapy from an AMA-accredited program or equivalent, approved by the National Board for Respiratory Care.
• Minimum 1 year of recent clinical experience as a Respiratory Therapist within the last year.
• Current Basic Life Support (BLS) certification.
• Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) certification.

Skills and Knowledge

• Ability to read and interpret physician orders, technical manuals, and hospital policies.
• Effective communication with physicians, managers, patients, and the public.
• Ability to explain respiratory treatment modalities to patients and determine when interpreter assistance is needed.
• Accurate documentation of therapies and assistance with procedure manual revisions.
• Mathematical skills including basic arithmetic and interpretation of graphs.
• Strong reasoning skills to define problems, collect data, and draw conclusions.

Cardiopulmonary Technical Skills

• Airway management, CPR, intubation assistance, ventilator operation and management.
• Arterial blood gas (ABG) procurement and analysis.
• Chest physiotherapy and patient suctioning techniques.
• Procurement of RSV and AFB samples.
• Knowledge of respiratory therapy medications, delivery methods, indications, and contraindications.
• Pulmonary function testing (PFT).

Equipment Experience

• Adult, pediatric, and infant ventilators.
• Bag valve masks, pulse oximeters, suction equipment.
• Oxygen cylinders and concentrators, nebulizers, supplemental oxygen delivery devices.
• Pulmonary function equipment, treadmill/stress testing equipment.
• EKG machines, Holter and event monitors.
• ISTAT arterial blood gas analyzer.

Additional Information

• Orientation week may have reduced guaranteed hours if scheduled for 40 hours/week.
• Prior travel experience is not specified as required.