Respiratory therapists provide crucial medical care to people who have breathing or cardiopulmonary disorders. Working under a doctor’s supervision, they interview patients and assess their medical conditions. They run diagnostic tests, diagnose respiratory conditions, and prepare treatment plans. They may do all of this, and more, before lunchtime in the hospitals and doctor’s offices in which most of them work.

But not all respiratory therapists work in medical facilities. There are a growing number of respiratory therapists, in fact, whose workplaces change daily. They are called traveling respiratory therapists.

Who Employs Traveling Respiratory Therapists?

Traveling respiratory therapists usually provide respiratory care in patent’s homes or in nursing homes. They may work for:

• Agencies that dispatch them to their daily job destinations
• Hospice care agencies
• Respiratory rental equipment companies

Working as a traveling respiratory therapist allows you the freedom to travel and meet new people while responding to continuously changing routines and patient needs.

How do I Become a Traveling Respiratory Therapist?

Like all respiratory therapists, you need a minimum of a 2-year associate’s degree to work as a traveling respiratory therapist. But you can also obtain advanced degrees—such as a bachelor’s and a master’s—in respiratory therapy. Many community colleges, universities, medical schools, and technical schools offer respiratory therapist training programs.

Before you choose a respiratory training program, however, make sure that it is accredited by either of these two agencies:

• The Committee on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (CoArc)
• The Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP)

This is important because if you don’t graduate from a respiratory therapist-training program that has been accredited by at least one of these two agencies, you will be unable to become a licensed respiratory therapist. (All states except Alaska and Hawaii have licensing requirements for their respiratory therapists).

What will I Study?

As long as your respiratory training program is accredited by either the CoARC or by the CAAHEP, you can be sure that you will receive a quality education that meets (or exceeds) industry standards.

Some of the subjects that you will study in respiratory therapy school include:

• Microbiology
• Chemistry
• Mathematics
• Medical Equipment Usage
• Patient diagnostic procedures
• Diagnostic testing procedures
• Human Anatomy
• Physiology
• Pharmacology
• Patient care outside of hospitals
• Respiratory therapy health promotion
• Cardiopulmonary resuscitation

After Graduation

After graduation, you must obtain a Certified Respiratory Therapist (CRT) credential. The National Board for Registry Care (NBRC) administers the written examination that you need to take to become licenses.

You are eligible to take this exam if you have graduated from a respiratory therapist program that has been accredited by the CoAEC or by the CAAHEP.

To apply to take the exam you must submit an application and an application fee to NBRC. You can find complete information about the CRT test, as well as instructions on scheduling the exam, on NBRCs website.

After you obtain your CRT, you can either start working at a medical facility, or you can submit your application to work for an agency that employs traveling respiratory therapists.