Respiratory Therapist (Registered)

Summary

This position is located in the Critical Care Therapy and Respiratory Care Section of the Critical Care Medicine Department, Clinical Center. This section is currently seeking an exceptionally talented Registered Respiratory Therapist to add to their team. Ensure to describe your experience in your resume.

Duties

• Interpreting physician orders, providing specialized therapy to critically ill patients that usually require adaptation of established technical procedures. Participating with the physician in planning, instituting, evaluating and devising a patient care plan for pulmonary hygiene. Assisting the physician in determining therapeutic objectives/goals of respiratory treatments/therapy and evaluating the physician order for appropriateness and adjusts the order if necessary. Administering various specialized modes of ventilation to patients with endotracheal tubes and tracheotomies and other complex medical problems requiring frequent adjustments in ventilator parameters based on patient response. Observing the patient closely during treatments/procedures, and, as required, takes blood pressure, pulse, obtains blood gas samples reporting vital signs and obvious changes in patient condition. Processing specimens using equipment, instruments, or techniques that are necessary to prepare them for specific analysis (pH, hematocrit, oxygen saturations, etc.). Assisting in the examination and observation of patients by performing such duties as taking diagnostic histories, conducting physical examinations, and performing diagnostic screening tests, i.e., ventilatory mechanics and obtaining blood gases.

Qualifications

A. You must have successfully completed two years of graduate education that is directly related to the work of the position. OR B. You qualify at the GS-08 level, if you meet one of the following basic qualification requirements: One year of general experience equivalent to the GS-07 grade level in the Federal service that demonstrates your ability to independently perform the following types of tasks: 1.) administering complex respiratory therapy treatment/procedures (e.g. performing arterial puncture, venipuncture, nasotracheal or orotracheal suctioning, and delivering Nitric Oxide and Heliox therapy; 2.) performing respiratory therapy ventilation procedures, including endotracheal intubation, tracheal lavage, and tracheotomy care; 3.) assessing the respiratory status of patients using data acquired through physical observation and clinical analysis of blood gas data, chest x-rays, and electrocardiogram to determine the effectiveness of therapy being administered; 4.) and making recommendations to physicians regarding changes in treatment. OR C. A combination of post baccalaureate education and experience that meets 100% of the qualification requirements for this position. In addition to the previous requirements, you must demonstrate possession of the following selective factor to qualify for the position: Selective Factor(s): In order to meet minimum qualification requirements you must demonstrate possession of the selective factor(s) of this position. Selective factor(s) include(s): You must possess the required certificate as a Registered Respiratory Therapist (RPT) from the National Board for Respiratory Care (NBRC) and a registry number, or a certificate from another body which the NBRC recognizes as its credentialing equivalent. You will receive credit for all experience material to the position, including experience gained in religious, civic, welfare, service, and organizational activities, regardless of whether you received pay. Do not copy and paste the duties or specialized experience from this announcement into your resume as that will not be considered a demonstration of your qualifications for this position. We may verify or assess your qualifications at any time. Inflated or unsupported qualifications may affect your rating. Any misrepresentation or material omission of facts may be sufficient cause to end further consideration of your candidacy. Persons listed as knowing your past accomplishments or experience in your application may be contacted for verification purposes at any time. Verification may, but need not, begin before receiving an offer. Preview application questionnaire before you apply: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13027292

Education

If you qualify based on education in lieu of specialized experience, you are strongly encouraged to submit a copy of your transcripts or a list of your courses including titles, credit hours completed and grades. Unofficial transcripts will be accepted in the application packages. Official transcripts will be required from all selectees prior to receiving an official offer. Click here for information on Foreign Education.

How to apply

Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply and be considered for this position, you must complete and submit all required questionnaires, assessments, and required documentation as specified in the How to Apply and Required Documents sections. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on the closing date of the announcement to receive consideration. The application process is as follows: Click Apply Online button. Follow the prompts to select your resume and/or other supporting documents to be included with your application package. See the "Required Documents" section for any additional forms and/or supplemental materials required. Read all Eligibility questions and respond accordingly to any Eligibility you wish to claim. You will only be considered for those Eligibility questions (Veteran, Schedule A, etc.) you respond in the affirmative to, regardless of what documentation you submit. We cannot assume you intended to respond differently to a question based on other information in your application package. Complete the application questionnaire. Applicants are asked all questions regardless of their consideration preferences. We will only consider you for the grades, series, locations, specialties, and other considerations that you self-identify as being qualified for or interested in. Preview application questionnaire before you apply: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13027292 After submitting an online application, you will be notified whether or not you are required to take additional online assessments through the USA Hire Competency Based Assessment system. This message will be delivered to you via email notification. The email may be routed to your "Spam" or "Junk" folder. If you are required to complete any USA Hire Assessments, you will be notified after submitting your application. The notification will be provided in your application submission screen and via email. The notification will include your unique assessment access link to the USA Hire system and the completion deadline. Additionally, in USAJOBS you can click "Track this application" to return to your assessment completion notice. Access USA Hire using your unique assessment link. Access is granted through your USAJOBS login credentials. Review all instructions prior to beginning your assessments. You will have the opportunity to request a testing accommodation before beginning the assessments should you have a disability covered under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended. Set aside about 2 hours to take the USA Hire assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue later, you can re-use your unique assessment link. Your responses to the USA Hire Assessments will be reused for one year (in most cases) from the date you complete an assessment. If future applications you submit require completion of the same assessments, your responses will be automatically reused. Verify all required documentation is included in your application package, review your responses to the application questionnaire for accuracy, and then submit your application. Visit the USA Hire Applicant Resource Center for practice assessments and assessment preparation resources at https://support-usahire.opm.gov/hc/en-us. In addition to the required documents, we encourage you to submit a cover letter, copy of your transcripts, and any applicable certifications or licenses. Even though this information is not required at the time of application, we may request this information later. We cannot assume responsibility or grant extensions for personal issues (e.g., troubles navigating the application process, loss of internet, not understanding a question) when applying to our announcements. For technical difficulties, contact HR Systems Support between 8:00 AM and 4:30 PM ET Monday through Friday at [email protected]. For reasonable accommodations not related to USA Hire, please contact NIH HR Service Desk Branch E at [email protected]. Requests for reasonable accommodations must be made before the announcement closing date. Visit our site for information on NIH's EEO program, Reasonable accommodation procedures, laws, policy statements, and the operation of the EEO complaint process.