Saturday, October 24, 2009

Weekend Rerun

In honor of National Respiratory Care Week, this week's Weekend Rerun will feature a return to a post I did about my profession after a particular grueling day at work when I worked with some very sick babies.  


Originally posted January 9, 2009


As many of you may know, I am a Registered Respiratory Therapist. I work in a 60 bed community hospital and am responsible for the respiratory care of a diverse patient population...from the preterm babies to the aged. This requires the ability to respond to intensive care, critical care, neonatal and pediatric emergencies where my role is, simply put, is to maintain the patient's airway through a variety of therapeutic modalities. Additionally, being part of a small, but state of the art facility, means there are only 2 of us scheduled for any given shift.


We are now in "respiratory" season. At this time of year there is an increase in admissions due to Community Acquired Pneumonia (CAP), Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV), Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), asthma exacerbation, etc. This makes for very busy shifts. This past weekend it appeared that every admission was one requiring the service and care our department provides. It's a good thing I enjoy my work!


RSV is a particularly vicious infection in the compromised patient population. This is especially true for premature infants. It is not uncommon to be called to the Emergency Department due to a "blue baby" in transport. These infants sometimes require intubation, respiratory resuscitation and transfer to a larger facility with a Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. The reason for this is that their airways are just too tiny and are easily occluded due to the amount of secretions this virus produces.


The above actually sums up what my day was like yesterday. Despite all of that, I love my job and feel God has put me exactly where I am needed: to provide compassionate care and prayers for the weak and infirm.




14 comments:

Widge said...

wow!! what a great thing to be doing a hob that you are obviously so passionate about and so fab that you are able to help them through physical needs and prayer as well. happy saturday sharefest from SITS :)

Widge said...

hob = job :)

Bibi @ Bibi's Culinary Journey said...

It is comforting to know that there are people like you who love there jobs and make difference in life of others despite putting themselves at risk,

Raoulysgirl said...

I think that you should commute to my local hospital. I would feel much better knowing that you were there...especially if my mom had to go in with COPD issues!!!

Jenn Erickson said...

Bless you Polly! The profession, the world, is very lucky to have you!

Jenn @ rookno17.blogspot.com

Kimberly said...

Yes, what a blessing you are to so many people. Peace be with you!

Warmest wishes,

Kimberly

Millennium Housewife said...

You know, breath is the gift of life, I am truly humbled by the work that you do. I meant to leave a bit of a funny comment, but I can't. Thankyou for what you do in the way that you do it. xx

Willoughby said...

The respiratory staff was wonderful when my daughter was in the NICU. They were so patient and explained everything to us multiple times when necessary. I'm convinced that it takes a very special person to do what you do!

Lissaloo said...

Good nurses that love their job are wonderful, the people where you work are very lucky to have you :)

Tracie said...

I'm so glad there are people like you (and others in your profession) out there helping people. I worked closely with respiratory therapists several years ago. I never met one that I didn't like.

Holly Lefevre said...

I am so glad there are people as wonderful as you to help take care of us.
Holly

Unknown said...

glad you are there to take care of those who need you!
Just dropped by from SITS to say hi; hope you'll do the same.

Millennium Housewife said...

Just over to say a massive thankyou for following my blog, it really made my morning to see you up there- cheers!

Lee said...

I need you here to help with my daughter when she gets her asthma! Can't tell you how many times we have had lung issues....

LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails