GilaRRT

As others have said, being older is often not a problem. I was nineteen when I started nursing school, but was thirty when I started respiratory school. There are many what some would call nontraditional students entering nursing as a second or third career or simply starting later on in life.

April, 2011 is the publish date of the current book. You can go to many places like Amazon to buy the book. Make sure you buy a book that has the cards because the cards will be very helpful.

I completed the RN to BSN programme about a year ago. I had to complete 44 units. Was able to complete 26 units the first term, then completed the final 18 units the second term. It's actually a pretty straight foreword experience. Most of the classes will have you do a project or series of projects that you turn in for grading. It's pretty much pass or fail but the rubric is very specific and if you follow it you will likely succeed. A few of the classes mandate that you take an exam that you will have to set up through an approved site, or you can take at home, but somebody watches you through a webcam. The general flow is as much or as little as you make it. You have to complete 12 units a term to stay in good standing however. I would recommend going all out if possible, because you pay by the term and not per credit/unit. I was told most people take about three terms to complete, but going hard can be the difference between a $6,000 degree and a $9,000 degree. Additionally, you will be talking to your mentor quite frequently during the first month or so during the first term, but that will eventually die down to once every week or two as long as you are making satisfactory progress. I would strongly recommend you make sure that you are very comfortable writing papers using APA format because you will spend a good portion of your time writing papers. All in all, it was a fairly painless experience. Do not expect to have significant freedom in how you will do your assignments and what topics to choose, particularly when you are doing the nursing courses. There is a formula for success and you would do well to stick with it even though it does tend to limit creativity and out of the box thinking.

The Servo-i, Evita XL and the PB 840 are three of the most common ventilators in the United States. However, you may run into many different types throughout the United States including older types such as the PB 7200. What do you mean by having no use of the Drager? The Evita XL is a fine ventilator with many pros, especially when it comes to monitoring lung mechanics IMHO. The flow sensor is prone to breaking if not handled properly, but that's the only clear pitfall I can appreciate.

No horn tooting here. I happen to have a good appreciation of these particular topics because I am both a respiratory therapist and registered nurse, therefore I think I have something to offer. However, you will not often find me posting on threads that deal with mother/baby issues because I'm probably too busy appreciating the information that some of the "experts" in that area are presenting. Believe me, my credentials are probably not going to impress any seasoned nurse, but hopefully the information I present can be helpful.

My problem with this Oxygen business are nurses who are practicing that truly believe any patient with COPD who receives more than 2 LPM via NC will spontaneously combust as their head pops of and rolls down the hallway. Perhaps not so dramatic, but the hypoxic drive is one of the biggest scarecrows in nursing. If a patient needs Oxygen, give them Oxygen. Yes, high FiO2's can be problematic. However, Oxygen can be a problem for everybody and not typically because of this hypoxic drive business. You put me with my healthy lungs in a very high FiO2 environment and it will eventually ghost me.

Yeah, pH is such a complex "doctor" concept. It's not like we are calculating pKa values for carbonic acid or anything exceedingly complex on this thread. I would agree with your point if we were calculating wavefunction solutions or having in-depth discussions about the intermediate molecules of the Cori cycle. I promise, the chemistry and pathophysiology discussed thus far has been very basic.

Yes, pH change is going to be the primary stimulus.

There exists a very important point that most people do not consider. Carbon dioxide by its self does not really effect breathing. Our primary stimulus to breath is not based on CO2 levels. In fact, pH change is our primary stimulus to breath. Central chemoreceptors in the brain monitor CSF pH and send this information to breathing centres in the brain.An example to illustrate this point is a DKA patient. They typically have very low CO2's, yet hyperventilate. A concerning dichotomy if we think CO2 is the primary stimulus to breath; however, it makes perfect sense from a pH context. Another example would include a COPD patient who has chronically elevated CO2 levels. We can look to a scarecrow explanation such as the hypoxic drive, or realise that chronic CO2 retention results in renal compensation and a relatively normal pH in spite of an elevated CO2. Again, it's all about the pH.

Pretty harsh comments directed at somebody who is probably ignorant about what we do. I assume many of us are ignorant about what other professionals do in their day to day work. I've even experienced ignorance among different health care providers. Nurses making assumptions about respiratory and radiology and visa versa. Some of the things we do are shocking to the general public.

Same here. Nothing personal; however, I want a physician directing my care and I want a physician providing my anaesthesia.

Actually, the American Academy of Pediatrics is changing the way NRP will be completed. Everybody will have to do the online component and then have a period of time to find an instructor for skills validation. As a NRP instructor, I recently completed the transition package for the online rollout. All new courses that my employer sponsors are online with a day long skills validation component. You can access and pay for online access through the AAP website. I believe the online exam is a bit under $30.00; however, instructors may charge for their portion.

Challenge NREMT? I'm an RN, RRT and NREMT-I/85 and I've just been notified by the NREMT that I must take the entire NREMT exam over in addition to taking a transition class just to maintain AEMT credentials. If not, I loose and will be demoted to EMT regardless of my other credentials. Your state may have an approved bridge programme that will allow for NREMT eligibility however. I've heard good things about Creighton, but I'm always skepticle about taking the path of least resistance. I didn't "pull rank" with my RN when I looked at respiratory school and I do not intend to do so regarding EMS. Your personal mileage may vary however and I'm not here to pass judgement. Edit: Also, pay close attention to the pre-requirements for the Creighton programme. You will need at least two years of experience & ACLS before you can apply.

I'm sorry the RT sandbagged on you. I also wanted to clarify that RT's can have misconceptions about RN scope of practice. One thing I see frequently are RT's that believe nurses cannot look at a ventilator. Unfortunately, we are often ignorant about the role of providers other than ourselves, their education, scope of practice and facility policy. As a nurse I had no real idea about the RT role, history or scope of practice. This also applies to physical therapists, radiologic technologists and other providers. I didn't mean to insinuate that misunderstandings were strictly a nurse problem.

Actually, in my area of the country a registered respiratory therapist is a licensed provider with a minimum of an associate degree just like a nurse. The RRT is in fact well within their scope to obtain orders from the physician. Also, the RT is ultimately responsible for the delivery of respiratory interventions and the cardiopulmonary departments bill these interventions as such. Your situation may be different but thoughout my area of the sand box, a RRT is a licensed respiratory care practitioner with a well developed scope of practice. Mileage may vary according to facility policy as always.