Registered Respiratory Therapist

Registered Respiratory Therapist

Join our team at Cleveland Clinic Indian River Hospital and experience world-class healthcare at its best. Indian River Hospital is in sunny Florida's Treasure Coast where it is committed to providing optimal family-centric and community-focused care. At Indian River Hospital, you will be part of a collaborative, compassionate, and innovative team of caregivers. You will work with state-of-the-art technology and will build a rewarding career with one of the most respected healthcare organizations in the world.

As a Respiratory Therapist, you will support a diverse patient population, with many managing chronic respiratory disorders, critical illnesses and related symptoms. In this role, combining your skills with a compassionate attitude and outlook can make a difference in the lives of patients and their families. All the while, you will gain extensive hands-on experience in cardiopulmonary assessments, arterial blood gas analysis, oxygenation studies and more. You can also explore the numerous professional development resources offered by Cleveland Clinic, potentially expanding into higher positions and roles within the hospital.

A PRN caregiver in this position works varying shifts from 7:00AM – 7:00PM or 7:00PM – 7:00AM.

A caregiver who excels in this role will:

• Provide assessment, treatment, care and evaluation for patients of all ages with respiratory insufficiencies.
• Perform cardiopulmonary assessment to evaluate respiratory status.
• Perform physical exams to assess breath sounds, work of breathing and airway patency.
• Review records, reports and results such as radiologic tests, blood gases, hemodynamic monitoring and pulmonary function tests.
• Collaborate closely with physicians, nurses and interdisciplinary team members to optimize patient outcomes and ensure continuity of care.
• Administer medical gases (oxygen, nitric oxide), aerosolized medications, bronchial hygiene and lung re-inflation techniques.
• Follow established protocols, procedures and practices for therapeutic procedures.
• Perform blood gas sampling and arterial line insertion.
• Perform tracheostomy tube changes as directed.
• Manage invasive and non-invasive mechanical ventilators and artificial airways.
• Perform blood gas puncture and analysis, pulse oximetry and bedside pulmonary function testing.
• Assist with bronchoscopy procedures.
• Respond to medical emergencies, participate in trauma and resuscitation procedures and assist with patient transport.
• Assess for age-appropriate educational needs and provide patient and family education about the illness and care plan.
• Serve as a preceptor for new employees and students enrolled in an accredited Respiratory Care program.
• Record the care and treatment provided following established procedures.

Minimum qualifications for the ideal future caregiver include:

• Graduate from an accredited Respiratory Care Program
• Diploma and/or transcripts must be provided for validation
• Registered Respiratory Therapist (RRT) credential from the National Board for Respiratory Care (NBRC)
• State of Florida Department of Health Licensed Registered Respiratory Therapist (RRT)
• Neonatal Pediatric Specialist (NPS) credential from the National Board for Respiratory Care (NBRC) as appropriate for site
• Basic Life Support (BLS) certification through the American Heart Association (AHA) or American Red Cross
• Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS), Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) and Neonatal Resuscitation Program (NRP) certifications as appropriate for site

Preferred qualifications for the ideal future caregiver include:

• Bachelor's Degree
• Prior experience in critical care
• Neonatal/pediatric experience
• Prior experience performing invasive procedures

Physical Requirements

• Good manual dexterity and hand-eye coordination.
• Normal hearing and vision or corrected to normal range.
• May require sitting, standing and walking for extended periods of time.
• Medium Work - Exerting 20 to 50 pounds of force occasionally, and/or 10 to 25 pounds of force frequently, and/or greater than negligible up to 10 pounds of force constantly to move objects.
• Physical Demand requirements are more than those for Light Work.

Personal Protective Equipment

• Follow standard precautions using personal protective equipment as required.

The policy of Cleveland Clinic Health System and its system hospitals (Cleveland Clinic Health System) is to provide equal opportunity to all of our caregivers and applicants for employment in our drug free environment. All offers of employment are followed by testing for controlled substances.

Cleveland Clinic Health System administers an influenza prevention program. You will be required to comply with this program, which will include obtaining an influenza vaccination on an annual basis or obtaining an approved exemption.

Decisions concerning employment, transfers and promotions are made upon the basis of the best qualified candidate without regard to color, race, religion, national origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, ancestry, status as a disabled or Vietnam era veteran or any other characteristic protected by law. Information provided on this application may be shared with any Cleveland Clinic Health System facility.

If applying for a Florida position, please see the following website for more information on the background screening requirements required by the Agency of Health Care Administration:

Please review the Equal Employment Opportunity poster.

Cleveland Clinic is pleased to be an equal employment opportunity employer.