1.Activities of Breathing Care Team Led by Certified Respiratory Therapists in Our Hospital and Future Problems
Keisuke YASUMOTO ; Koji MIYAWAKI ; Hideki MINAMI ; Keiko IZUMI ; Koushou TANAKA ; Takashi KANEYUKI
Journal of the Japanese Association of Rural Medicine 2013;62(4):618-621
Introduction: Reimbursement for breathing care services was started with the revision of the nation's medical service fee system in 2010. Our hospital was not properly equipped in the light of certain standards governing facilities. Nonetheless, we started giving instructions to nurses on how to check the respirator at work. In addition to the on-the-job training, we are engaged in educational activity and information gathering. Out team comprises clinical engineers, physical therapists and registered nurses. They are all certified respiratory therapists. We hereby report our activities and refer to future problems. Activities: 1. Safety checks of respirators while in use. 2. Respiratory rehabilitation during hemodialysis. 3. Respirator-related workshops. 4. Review of accidents. Results: 1. It has become easier to discover potential problems and meet them at once. This is because our team is made up of different specialists, each used to looking at things differently. 2. Being constantly on the alert for any indication of a trouble ensures safety during breathing rehabilitation. 3. The number of accidents during 2012 decreased from 2011. Future: We think that since “safety management” is the center piece of our activity, our team ought to be recognized as an official organization of the hospital.