Respiratory Therapist jobs
Respiratory Therapists (RTs) are highly trained health care professionals that provide therapeutic, diagnostic and educational respiratory services to various patients in different hospital and community settings.
Respiratory Therapists work collaboratively with an interprofessional team of doctors, nurses, and other allied health practitioners to improve health outcomes for people with sudden or long-term lung disorders. They operate different types of specialty equipment like Pulmonary Function testing equipment in diagnostic labs, and mechanical ventilators in critical care units.
As an RT at VCH, you will work collaboratively with an interprofessional team and operate different types of specialty equipment to improve health outcomes for people with sudden or long-term lung disorders.
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Where you may work
With opportunities to work in community outreach and pulmonary function labs, to high acuity and critical care units, the diversity of clinical experience offered to RTs working at VCH is unparalleled.
Whether you prefer working on a trauma response team, in the emergency department, on an outreach team on the downtown eastside, or performing intubations and highly skilled interventions in the Intensive Care Unit, VCH has options available to suit your preferences.
At VCH interdisciplinary team support and collaboration is part of our culture. Here, you are surrounded by other talented healthcare professionals, working together to achieve the best patient outcomes.
Some interventions you will be involved with are NAVA, EBM, ECLS, NIV, Nitric Oxide. In collaboration with the care team, you will provide ventilator and tracheostomy management for diverse and complex patient populations such as TBI, spinal cord injuries, lung transplants, multi-trauma, and burn injuries.
Why join Vancouver Coastal Health?
- Onboarding and ongoing support
- Mentorship program to help with your role transition
- Career advancement and line sharing opportunities
- Comprehensive health benefits, work-life balance and wellness support
- Career growth with access to education reimbursements and paid educational leave
- Eligibility for financial relocation assistance of up to $5,000
Meet our team
"At VGH, I found not only new colleagues but a new family. Everyone is so supportive, helpful, and approachable."
Kathleen Sagum, Respiratory Therapist
Meet KathleenSetting Respiratory Therapists up for success
VCH staff has defined our core values as: We Care for Everyone, We Are Always Learning and We Strive for Better Results. It is with these values in mind that we offer onboarding and ongoing support for Respiratory Therapists.
VCH has a mentorship program to support you as you transition to become part of our talented team. We have valued Respiratory Equipment Assistants who perform cleaning, restocking, and maintenance of respiratory equipment, this allows our RTs to focus their time on face-to-face patient care.
Career advancement opportunities for RTs at VCH are abundant! You can be a preceptor supporting clinical placement students, and advance your career as part of the Critical Care Outreach Team, Charge RT, Educator, Clinical Site Coordinator, Clinical Resource Therapist, or Professional Practice Leader!
Line sharing is available between VCH locations to allow you to gain more experience working in different care centers like the VCH rehabilitation center GF Strong, or at Richmond or UBC Hospitals. Each site has unique patient populations and offers different clinical experiences.
Respiratory Therapist New Grad Program
We offer a flexible extensive orientation schedule and formal mentorship program for newly graduated RTs to enhance your confidence and competence as you transition to independent practice. You will have supernumerary buddy shifts with a graduated workload and tailored support to meet your learning needs.
With solid communication lines across our region, RTs at all our sites, whether in urban areas or rural communities, can reach out 24/7 for assistance.
Our support team for new graduates includes access to a dedicated New Grad RT Educator, the RT manager, RT practice leaders, staff educators, charge Respiratory Therapists, peer mentors and, of course, your co-workers.
The New Grad RT Educator provides tailored support to new grads, including:
- On-call support with clinical skills and decision-making, resource finding, and emotional well-being
- Hands-on assistance with direct patient care
- Education on RT foundational skills
- Booked time to review clinical questions
VCH’s New Grad Program includes:
- Up to five classroom days upon hire
- Up to 140 supernumerary hours to supplement classroom learning and enable consolidation of knowledge
- Access to a site-specific Educator at Vancouver General Hospital to assist with ongoing learning
- Access to Clinical Resource Therapist at Vancouver General Hospital to support complex discharges
- Access to Professional Practice support
- Access to Charge Therapists for 24/7 clinical support
- Access to regional RT educators to support onboarding, orientation, and continued education
- New Grad Community of Practice
Employed Student Respiratory Therapist Program (ESRT)
The ESRT program is a unique employment opportunity for respiratory therapy students. These supernumerary positions provide ESRTs with paid work experience to learn in a real-life healthcare environment, share their knowledge with different healthcare team members, and bring new energy to all the areas participating in the program.