Respritory therapy

airis · Nov 7, 2006

Has anyone thought about the respiratory therapy program instead of nursing? If so why? Is it a big difference between nursing,and what's the difference?
lbowknee

I did and I went for RT. I regret it so bad. I had 5 months to graduate and I quit. I couldnt stand RT. As an RT your the first person to be called when there is a code blue(someone is dying). You will give CPR!!! AGGHHH bagging or compressions. You will experience people die on you almost everyday while you're giving CPR. You deal with a lot of phlegm!!!!! Sometimes I think they should change RT name to Mucus therapy because thats all RT do suction suction suction. Well, thats their basic and everyday job. When you hear a patients trach full with mucus RT is on the way to suction it!!! EWWW... It stink and its nasty. What turned me off the most was when I suctioned a guy that had a gunshot in his head(comatus) and as soon as I started suctioning him he started flipping and his eyes was rolling like hell. So scary. The worse part was I had to suction him from his nose, I had to put a long tube inside his nose all the way down down down. It was scary. Then I had to change trach. Pull a 9 inches tube from this guy's hole in the neck it was filled with mucus and blood kept dripping... The guy seemed like he was choking as i was taking the tube out. SO scary. The only good thing about RT is less paperwork than nursing but aside from that the nature of the job is the same, fluid contact, body contact, the stinkiness, the diseases you encounter, all the same. The only good thing about nursing is that you have more option, RT's dont. Nursing also has more jobs because there are more nurses in a hospital than RT's.

Pay is higher also for nurses!!! But if you ask me I wont go for any of those field.. Too scary for me. Thats why I am taking Radiology TEchnology. Pay is high and the work is not scary. If you have the passion of handling blood, mucus, patient care and if you are not scared of someone dying in your hands then go for RT but if you are scared of people dying in your hands but still have the passion to do patient care, deal with patient fluids/diseases than go for nursing.

Hope this helps.

Goodluck!

marcieg · Nov 7, 2006

Airis, I wonder-did you have any healthcare experience before you went into the RT program? It's sounds like radiology will work out better for you.

I have worked in hospice as an aide for 4 years now, and ALL my patients die, it would be nice to see some people get better. I am just tired of poop, poop, poop, and all the other bodily fluids that are collected in various tubes and bags (usually poop related, lol). Good luck on your new program.

kharing · Nov 8, 2006

Time depends on the school you choose. The program I am in is five semesters of clinicals - not including pre/co requisite requirements and is considered an Associates Degree.

airis · Nov 8, 2006

Airis, I wonder-did you have any healthcare experience before you went into the RT program? It's sounds like radiology will work out better for you.
I have worked in hospice as an aide for 4 years now, and ALL my patients die, it would be nice to see some people get better. I am just tired of poop, poop, poop, and all the other bodily fluids that are collected in various tubes and bags (usually poop related, lol). Good luck on your new program.

No, I did not have healthcare experience but so were my classmates. Maybe its just not what I really wanted to do. I do have a lot of family that are in the medical field. My husband is an RN, my sister is an RN, my brother is an RadTech, my younger brother is an LVN, my dad is a retired doctor, my cousins are like all RN'S. Dont get me wrong I love studying about the respiratory system, ventilators, PFT, trach, etc. When I was at school I loved it! I was learning so much and everything I learned was something I really love!!!Everything was going fine until I started doing my clinicals. Everything just went dark and I lost my motivation to finish RT. So, I stopped eventhough I only had like 5 months to graduate. I wasnt happy at my clinical. The RT staff was super nice. ALthough I didnt like my classmate I was with during clinical, she was trying too hard to impress everyone in the hospital, pissed me off. She would command me, tell me what to do and tell me what i did wrong infront of the RT supervisor. It really pissed me off because she was only a student just like me. The RT wasnt even telling me what I did wrong my classmate WAS!!!!!!! AGGH. ALso, i would go for a 35 mins lunch instead of 30 mins and she was telling everyone I take longer lunch.SHe timed me everytime i take breaks. When I suctioned a patient she was always looking at me waiting for me to make mistakes so she can tell the supervisor. Everytime i see her I hear " thats not how u do it, you should do like this and that,this and this and that. ANyway, I really did like studying for RT but the clinicals turned me off.

kharing · Nov 8, 2006

No, I did not have healthcare experience but so were my classmates. Maybe its just not what I really wanted to do. I do have a lot of family that are in the medical field. My husband is an RN, my sister is an RN, my brother is an RadTech, my younger brother is an LVN, my dad is a retired doctor, my cousins are like all RN'S. Dont get me wrong I love studying about the respiratory system, ventilators, PFT, trach, etc. When I was at school I loved it! I was learning so much and everything I learned was something I really love!!!Everything was going fine until I started doing my clinicals. Everything just went dark and I lost my motivation to finish RT. So, I stopped eventhough I only had like 5 months to graduate. I wasnt happy at my clinical. The RT staff was super nice. ALthough I didnt like my classmate I was with during clinical, she was trying too hard to impress everyone in the hospital, pissed me off. She would command me, tell me what to do and tell me what i did wrong infront of the RT supervisor. It really pissed me off because she was only a student just like me. The RT wasnt even telling me what I did wrong my classmate WAS!!!!!!! AGGH. ALso, i would go for a 35 mins lunch instead of 30 mins and she was telling everyone I take longer lunch.SHe timed me everytime i take breaks. When I suctioned a patient she was always looking at me waiting for me to make mistakes so she can tell the supervisor. Everytime i see her I hear " thats not how u do it, you should do like this and that,this and this and that. ANyway, I really did like studying for RT but the clinicals turned me off.

There's ALWAYS a student or two in every class that falls into that category regardless of the program! I just ignore them - but also make it clear that I am NOT one to be played with. I set boundaries and focus on the patient and my instructors - negative/distractive students are par for the course!

For your next program, the things you experienced as an RT student will give you an edge. You now know what you will tolerate - and will be a better professional because of it!