BACKGROUND: Neonatal/pediatric respiratory care is recognized as a unique and complex area of clinical practice. Despite the substantial effort and costs associated with orienting neonatal/pediatric practitioners, few data exist related to the process of training respiratory therapists (RTs) in the acute neonatal/pediatric environment. To gain insight into the adequacy of preparation of RTs entering the neonatal/pediatric environment, the length of orientation necessary to achieve a base level of competency, and the methods used to train new neonatal/pediatric practitioners, we surveyed neonatal/pediatric respiratory care educators and managers. METHODS: The invitation to participate in the survey was distributed via e-mail to 1,259 members of the AARC education specialty section and 1,828 members of the AARC managers specialty section.

1. Tips For Passing Nps Exam

NPS Exam Secrets Study Guide: NPS Test Review for the Neonatal/Pediatric Respiratory Care Specialty Examination 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings — published.

The survey included 15 questions (not including the demographics questions), scored on 5-point Likert scale, and asked about: what type of degree program (associate's degree or bachelor's degree) better prepares new RTs for the neonatal/pediatric environment; experience requirements for orientation of neonatal/pediatric RTs; the role of simulation in training neonatal/pediatric RTs; and whether the neonatal/pediatric specialty credentialing exam should be used as a method of competency testing. There were 4 questions regarding simulation (the use of interactive full-body manikins in a realistic patient care environment), orientation times based on experience, and where the majority of the orientation time was spent. RESULTS: We received 251 responses (response rate 8%). The majority of respondents were either affiliated with or worked for urban, not-for-profit, non-government organizations. Sixty-three percent disagreed that an associate's degree respiratory therapy program, and 42% disagreed that a bachelor's degree program adequately prepares a new RT to work in the neonatal/pediatric critical care environment immediately after graduation. Seventy-one percent strongly agreed that children's hospital respiratory care departments should have a dedicated respiratory therapy educator.

Seventy-six percent agreed that simulation is an effective tool for training RTs for neonatal/pediatric critical care. Sixty-five percent agreed that RTs should be required to take an exam at the end of the orientation period to verify competency. Fifty-nine percent strongly agreed that neonatal/pediatric RTs should have the National Board for Respiratory Care Registered Respiratory Therapist (RRT) credential. CONCLUSIONS: There appears to be a discrepancy in the educational preparation expected prior to entering the acute-care neonatal/pediatric environment and what training methods are most appropriate and cost-effective for orienting new RTs to this specialized environment. A dedicated respiratory therapy educator is valued. Simulation is considered an effective tool for training RTs and provides training opportunities that otherwise would not be available. The neonatal/pediatric specialty certification exam appears to be recognized as a valid method of determining mastery and verifying competence.

Introduction Neonatal/pediatric respiratory care is recognized as a unique and complex area of practice, as evidenced by the creation of the Neonatal/pediatric Specialty (NPS) examination and credential by the National Board for Respiratory Care (NBRC, ). Respiratory therapists (RTs) work in a growing number of pediatric facilities. The directory of the National Association of Children's Hospitals and Related Institutions lists 228 institutions in the United States that provide pediatric services, including free-standing children's hospitals, children's hospitals within hospitals, and other children's specialty hospitals. Additionally, RTs staff delivery rooms and neonatal intensive care units in 967 facilities.

While the number of practicing neonatal/pediatric RTs is currently unknown, the neonatal/pediatric section of the American Association for Respiratory Care (AARC) currently has over 2,000 members and approximately 3,110 practitioners hold the NPS credential (personal communication, 2010, Sherry Milligan, Associate Executive Director, AARC). Neonatal/pediatric respiratory care encompasses the treatment of a range of patients, from extremely-low-birth-weight premature newborns to adolescents with a wide range of cardiorespiratory diseases of diverse etiologies. The care of the neonatal/pediatric patient thus requires mastery of a wide range of knowledge of pediatric anatomy and physiology, disease etiology and pharmacology, and diagnostic and therapeutic equipment and procedures. Respiratory therapy education programs are required to cover basic neonatal/pediatric care, and neonatal/pediatric content is included on the NBRC entry-level and advanced practitioners credentialing exams.

Yet much of the training of neonatal/pediatric practitioners is done on the job. The variety and complexity of the neonatal/pediatric environment require substantial orientation of new staff to meet the requirements of basic competency: the delivery of care safely and effectively.

Institutions have developed programs such as internships and apprenticeships to help transition new staff to neonatal/pediatric practice. The training of any new staff, therefore, involves substantial costs, both in fiscal terms and in the strain on staff charged with orientation. Clinical training, both in schools and in the workplace, has traditionally relied on the apprenticeship model. However, a lack of available clinical sites is a major obstacle to training RTs, and this lack is all the more acute in neonatal/pediatric practice because of the relatively small number of pediatric care facilities and procedures. Moreover, practicing on patients without having achieved some minimal level of competency is no longer considered acceptable. Non-traditional methods of training, such as high-fidelity simulation (the use of interactive full-body manikins in a realistic patient care environment), are being proposed to increase training opportunities in pediatric care. Despite the substantial effort and costs associated with orienting neonatal/pediatric RTs, few data exist on the process of training RTs in the acute-care environment, and comparisons between institutions remain largely anecdotal.

We conducted a survey of respiratory therapy educators and managers in order to gain insight into the adequacy of preparation of RTs entering the neonatal/pediatric environment, the length of orientation necessary to achieve a base level of competency, and the methods used to train new neonatal/pediatric RTs. Methods We surveyed respiratory therapy educators in academic institutions and educators and managers in hospital-based respiratory care departments. We developed a 15-question (excluding demographics), internet-based survey that was approved by the AARC Board of Directors and the Children's Hospital Boston Institutional Review Board. The questionnaire addressed topics and issues that we and RTs in our institutions identified as having national applicability, based on our review of our own experience with orienting new RTs and feedback from the AARC Board of Directors.

The questionnaire underwent one round of pilot testing with 5 RTs and a feedback session with us. The invitation to participate in the survey was distributed via e-mail to 1,259 members of the AARC education specialty section and 1,828 members of the AARC managers specialty section. The invitation e-mail included a link to the web-based survey,. The survey was available for the 3-week period prior to the AARC Summer Forum.

Tips For Passing Nps Exam

The purpose of the survey was to characterize the respondents' opinions of what types of education programs, education methods, and length of orientation adequately prepare a new RT for the neonatal/pediatric environment. The survey had 3 sections:. Respondent demographic and professional data, including size, location, affiliation, and type of hospital, and number of full-time employees in the respondent's respiratory therapy department. Level of agreement (measured on a 5-point Likert scale of 1 strongly disagree to 5 strongly agree) with 13 statements about neonatal/pediatric RT education. Four multiple-choice questions on medical simulation, time required for neonatal/pediatric RT orientation, and on what subjects the majority of the RT's orientation time is spent: aerosol/drug therapy, anatomy and physiology, mechanical ventilation, or airway management. Demographics We received 251 responses (8% response rate), of which 85% were from respiratory care hospital department managers. The majority of the respondents were either affiliated with or worked for urban, not-for-profit, non-government organizations.

Forty-eight percent of the respondents were affiliated with a medical school. Eighty-three percent of the hospitals were not considered primary children's hospitals. The respondents' average hospital size was 427 beds, with an average daily census of 342 patients. Fifty-two percent of the respondent departments had a full-time employee count greater than 50. Educational Preparation. Sixty-three percent of respondents disagreed that an associate degree respiratory therapy program adequately prepares the student to work in the neonatal/pediatric critical care environment immediately after graduation, whereas 42% disagreed that a bachelor's degree program adequately prepares the student to work in neonatal/pediatrics, and 36% agreed, and 22% were neutral.

Ninety-three percent agreed, and 71% strongly agreed, that respiratory therapy bachelor's degree programs should offer a neonatal/pediatric specialty track. Seventy-one percent strongly agreed that a children's hospital respiratory care department should have a dedicated RT educator.

Seventy-one percent somewhat or strongly agreed that a respiratory care department in a non-children's hospital that has a neonatal and/or pediatric ICU should have a dedicated pediatric RT educator. Only 46% somewhat or strongly agreed that the RT-education functions of a children's hospital respiratory care department are best performed by supervisors and senior staff. Forty-nine percent of respondents felt that the average length of orientation for RTs without neonatal/pediatric experience should be ≥ 4 months, where as 69% of respondents felt that RTs with previous neonatal/pediatric experience require ≤ 2 months of orientation. During orientation the majority of time was dedicated to mechanical ventilation (79%), followed by airway management (13%), anatomy and physiology (5%), and aerosol or drug therapy (3%). High-Fidelity Medical Simulation.

Seventy-six percent of the respondents agreed that high-fidelity simulation is an effective tool for training RTs for neonatal/pediatric critical care, but the majority of the respondents were neutral when asked if the associated cost outweighs the benefits. Seventy-five percent agreed that simulation offers training opportunities that otherwise would not be available to RTs, but 66% were not using high-fidelity simulation in the training of neonatal/pediatric RTs. Sixty-five percent agreed that RTs should be required to take an exam at the end of neonatal/pediatric orientation to be deemed competent. Fifty-nine percent strongly agreed that neonatal/pediatric RTs should have the Registered Respiratory Therapist (RRT) credential from the NBRC. Seventy percent agreed that the NBRC NPS credential could be used to validate achievement of the basic core competencies after the orientation period. Eighty-six percent agreed, and 61% strongly agreed, that neonatal/pediatric RTs should become NPS credentialed. Conclusions It is clear that the need for qualified and competent RTs in the neonatal/pediatric arena is growing.

Solutions manual to accompany experimental stress analysis /​ James W. Dally, William F. Dally, James William. Other Authors. Riley, William F. Solutions Manual to Accompany Experimental Stress Analysis has 6 ratings and 3 reviews: Published 1977 by McGraw-Hill, 213 pages, Unknown Binding. Solutions manual to accompany experimental stress analysis. Get this from a library! Solutions manual to accompany experimental stress analysis. [James W Dally; William F Riley]. Solutions manual to accompany experimental stress analysis [James W Dally] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers.

Yet our survey suggests that newly graduated RTs are generally considered inadequately prepared to immediately begin working in this unique and complex environment, that considerable resources are being devoted to the training of neonatal/pediatric RTs in the workplace, and that dedicated neonatal/pediatric respiratory care educators are warranted. Our data suggest that alterations at the respiratory therapy program level, including the creation of a neonatal/pediatric specialty track, may be needed to adequately prepare the 21st century neonatal/pediatric RT and help offset the specialty education that is occurring at the institutions of employment. While our respondents recognize high-fidelity simulation as an effective tool for training and for increasing training opportunities, this tool does not appear to be widely utilized for neonatal/pediatric training or competency assessment. At the same time, traditional testing, including the NPS credentialing exam, is considered a valid method of determining core understanding and competency after orientation.