.: Emerg/Wards :.
The Emergency Department at St. Paul’s Hospital provides services to the downtown core of Vancouver. Our patient population is quite diverse, ranging from cruise ship passengers and other tourists to penetrating traumas.
Respiratory therapists are members of the cardiac arrest and trauma teams and respond to all patients in jeopardy. The Emergency Trauma Room is fully equipped and any ventilated patient receives optimal respiratory support through departmental protocols.
The respiratory therapist’s role on the medical/surgical wards is quite varied. We provide vital support to the nursing and medical staff plus we are routinely called upon for crisis intervention. Our assessment skills and recommendations are frequently sought and therefore, it is helpful if the therapist has proficient time management abilities.
Some of the responsibilities of the ward therapist include:
• sleep screening
• nocturnal oximetry studies
• CPAP/BiPAP set-ups
• arterial blood gas punctures
• high flow oxygen administration
• airway management
• home ventilation support
• home oxygen assessment
• discharge planning
• staff education