Managing the patient-ventilator system: system checks and circuit changes

Checking and maintaining mechanical ventilators traditionally have been the responsibility of the respiratory care practitioner and among the many reasons that the need for the profession of respiratory care persists. The increasing complexity of the mechanical ventilator itself and the appropriate application and monitoring of the various modes available in a single device are such reasons. In addition, we must continually strive to be knowledgeable and skilled in the assessment and appropriate treatment of patients with respiratory diseases. The practice of respiratory care focuses on patient care, education and research. The perception of an institution's need for trained respiratory care specialists is affected by both the quality and quantity of service that each individual RCP offers to the care of patients. Our skills and performance should be patient-centered not device-centered so that our assessment and monitoring of patients includes more than just "writing down the numbers." Finally, respiratory care research must continue to subject the old dogma to rigorous scrutiny while searching for new and innovative ways to care for our patients.