Entry Level Qualification 

12

Career Fields 

Medical Services

For Specially Abled 

Career Entrance Exam 

NEET UG, NEET PG

About Career 

1. Respiratory Therapists are specialized healthcare professionals who provide respiratory care to patients suffering from breathing problems and other pulmonary (lung) diseases.

2. Respiratory Therapists help doctors (such as Chest Medicine / Pulmonary Medicine/ Respiratory Medicine Specialist Physicians and Consultants) to diagnose, treat and prevent respiratory or pulmonary diseases such as asthma, sleep apnoea (sleep apnoea is a sleeping disorder that blocks the normal breathing flow of a person), bronchitis, pneumonia, cardiac failure, lung cancer, emphysema (lung tissue damage), etc.

3. Respiratory Therapists work with a team of chest medicine specialists/ pulmonary medicine specialists and other consultants in respiratory care. The Respiratory Therapists assist these doctors/consultants in the diagnosis and treatment of respiratory or pulmonary diseases.

Key Roles and Responsibilities

As a Respiratory Therapist, you will be engaged with one or more of the following roles and responsibilities:

1. You would be involved in providing emergency care, such as artificial respiration, external cardiac massage, or assistance with cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

2. You would work with patients in areas such as the emergency room, neonatal/pediatric intensive care, and surgical intensive care, treating conditions including emphysema (a condition of lung tissue damage), chronic bronchitis, asthma, cystic fibrosis (a type of persistent lung infection), and pneumonia.

3. You would monitor patients during treatment and report any unusual reactions to the respiratory therapist.

4. You would be involved in using ventilators and various oxygen devices and aerosol and breathing treatments in the provision of respiratory therapy.

5. You would monitor the patient's physiological responses to therapy, such as vital signs, arterial blood gases, or blood chemistry changes, and consult with a physician if adverse reactions occur

6. You would prepare and test devices such as mechanical ventilators, therapeutic gas administration apparatus, environmental control systems, aerosol generators, and EKG machines.

7. You would assess patients' response to treatments and modify treatments according to protocol if necessary.

Career Entry Pathway 

Class 10 all subjects as per the scheme of studies – Class 11-12 Physics, Chemistry, and Biology along with any other subject as per the scheme of studies - B.Sc. in Respiratory Care Technology/ Respiratory Therapy – Become a Respiratory Therapist / Respiratory Therapy Technologist.

After completing Class 11-12 Physics, Chemistry, and Biology along with any other subject as per the scheme of studies you can go for a B.Sc. in Respiratory Care Technology/ Respiratory Therapy. After completing graduation, you can directly start working as a Respiratory Therapist / Respiratory Therapy Technologist.

This career entry pathway is for those students who wish to pursue higher studies after graduation. After completing Class 11-12 Physics, Chemistry, and Biology along with any other subject as per the scheme of studies you can go for a B.Sc. in Respiratory Care Technology/ Respiratory Therapy. After completing graduation, you can go for an M.Sc. in Respiratory Care Technology/ Respiratory Therapy and then start working as a Respiratory Therapist / Respiratory Therapy Technologist.

This career entry pathway is for those students who want to start working directly after completing higher secondary education. After completing Class 11-12 Physics, Chemistry, and Biology along with any other subject as per the scheme of studies you can go for a Diploma in Respiratory Care Technology/ Respiratory Therapy. To become a Respiratory Therapist, you would need to have 8-10 years of work experience after completing your diploma. A better option would be to complete a Bachelor’s degree in Respiratory Therapy/ Respiratory Therapy Technology/ similar field.

Required Qualification & Competencies 

1. After completing higher secondary education, you can pursue B.Sc. in Respiratory Care Technology/ Respiratory Therapy or similar field and then start working directly as a Respiratory Therapist / Respiratory Therapy Technologist

2. After completing higher secondary education, you can pursue a diploma in Respiratory Care Technology/ Respiratory Therapy. After completing a diploma, you must work for at least 8-10 years to become as Respiratory Therapist / Respiratory Therapy Technologist. Better option would be to complete a Bachelor’s degree.

Competencies Required

Interest

1. Enterprising: You should have an interest in Enterprising Occupations. Enterprising occupations involve taking initiative, initiating actions, and planning to achieve goals, often business goals. These involve gathering resources and leading people to get things done. These require decision-making, risk-taking, and action orientation.

2. Realistic: You should have an interest in Realistic Occupations. Realistic occupations involve more practical and hands-on activities than paperwork or office work. Realistic occupations often involve physical activities for getting things done using various tools and equipment. 

3. Conventional: You should have interests in Conventional Occupations. Conventional occupations involve repetitive and routine tasks as well as fixed processes or procedures for getting things done. These occupations involve working more with data, systems, and procedures and less with ideas or creativity.

Knowledge

1. Biological Sciences: Knowledge of plants and animals, their anatomical structure, cell structure, tissues, physiological functions, evolution, and all other related aspects.

2. Healthcare Science and Services: Knowledge of different fields that are related to offering various types of healthcare services to people; assisting physicians and surgeons to carry out diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of human diseases, ailments, and disorders. This includes knowledge of different practices apart from medicine which are used to treat and prevent human diseases or to provide holistic healthcare and wellness. This also includes knowledge about drugs and medicines.

Skills

1. Active Listening: Giving full attention to what other people are saying, understanding the points being made by others, asking questions, etc.

2. Coordination: Skills in working together with other people to get things done.

3. Critical Thinking: Skills in the analysis of complex situations, using logic and reasoning to understand the situations and take appropriate actions or make interpretations and inferences.

4. Judgment and Decision Making: Skills in considering the pros and cons of various decision alternatives; considering costs and benefits; and making appropriate and suitable decisions.

5. Problem Solving: Skills in analysis and understanding of problems, evaluating various options to solve the problems, and using the best option to solve the problems.

6. Technical: Skills in using various technologies and technical methods to get things done or solve problems.

7. Time Management: Skills in prioritizing work, and managing time effectively.

8. Troubleshooting: Skills in determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it

Abilities

1. Abstract Reasoning: The ability to understand ideas that are not expressed in words or numbers; the ability to understand concepts that are not clearly expressed verbally or otherwise.

2. Deductive Reasoning: The ability to apply general rules and common logic to specific problems to produce answers that are logical and make sense. For example, understanding the reasons behind an event or a situation using general rules and common logic

3. Inductive Reasoning: The ability to combine pieces of information from various sources, concepts, and theories to form general rules or conclusions. For example, analyzing various events or situations to come out with a set of rules or conclusions

4. Inter-Personal: The ability to build and maintain good relationships with others at workplaces and elsewhere.

5. Oral Comprehension: The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

6. Oral Expression: The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.

7. Problem Sensitivity: The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.

8. Verbal Reasoning: The ability to think and reason with words; the ability to reason out ideas expressed in words.

Personality

1. You are always or mostly organized in your day-to-day life and activities.

2. You are always calm or generally remain calm in most situations.

3. You always feel secure in your surroundings and most situations.

4. You are a soft-hearted person sometimes.

5. You trust others sometimes but not always.

6. You are helpful to others sometimes.

7. You act independently sometimes but do not do so at some other times.

8. You are friendly and outgoing sometimes, but not always. You prefer the company of people sometimes but not always.

9. You are always practical in most situations.

Career - Job Opportunities & Profiles 

After completing the required education and training, as a Respiratory Therapist / Respiratory Therapy Technologist you may find work in:

1. Chest Medicine/ Respiratory Medicine/ Pulmonary Medicine departments of multi-specialty hospitals such as Apollo Hospitals, Max Super Specialty Hospital, Nanavati Hospital, Fortis Hospital, BLK Super Specialty Hospital, Artemis, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Safdarjung Hospital, etc.

2. Speciality chest clinics (which could be stand-alone clinics or inside a hospital).

3. Speciality chest clinics set up by practicing chest specialists/ pulmonary medicine specialists and consultants.

​​​​​​​Career Growth

1. After completing a diploma in Respiratory Therapy, you may begin as a:

Respiratory Therapy Technician

2. After completing a bachelor’s degree in Respiratory Care Technology/ Respiratory Therapy and a few years of work experience in this field, your career may progress as:

Respiratory Therapist – Senior Respiratory Therapist

Salary Offered  

1. As a Technician at Entry level, you may earn around Rs. 10,000 to Rs. 18,000 per month.

2. At Junior-level with an experience of 1- 4 years you may earn around Rs. 12,000 – 20,000 or more.

3. At Mid-level with an experience of 5-12 years you may earn around Rs. 25,000 – 65,000 per month or even more.

4. At Senior-level with an experience of 12-20 years you may earn around Rs. 35,000 – 85,000 per month or even more.

5. Please note that higher salaries are offered at the Government hospitals.

Monthly Earnings In Indian Rupee

1. Entry level: 0 - 2 years of work experience

2. Junior Level: From 1 to 12 years of work experience

3. Mid Level: From 5 to 20+ years of work experience

4. Senior Level: From 10 to 25+ years of work experience (there could be exceptions in some high-end technical, financial, engineering, creative, management, sports, and other careers; also in the near future, people will reach these levels much faster in many careers and in some careers, these levels will have no meaning as those careers will be completely tech skill driven such as even now, there is almost no level in a Cyber Security Expert’s job)

Famous Personalities 

Not Available

Work Activities 

1. Addressing grievances and resolving conflicts: Handling complaints and grievances to resolve; resolving conflicts among co-workers or others at the workplace or outside of your work.

2. Assisting and caring for people: Assisting people in availing of services; taking care of people in different situations; offering help and services to others.

3. Providing advice and consultation to others: Giving advice or consultation to others about various issues, conceptual matters, know-how, scientific matters, products, or services.

4. Analyzing and interpreting data and information: Analysis of data and information to find facts, trends, reasons behind situations, etc.; interpretation of data to aid in decision-making.

5. Communicating with co-workers and others: Communicating with people in writing, verbally or otherwise inside your workplace and various other people who have professional relationships with your place of work including vendors, government officials, etc., or with people at large

6. Decision-making and problem-solving: Analysis of data and information; evaluation of alternative decisions and results of decisions; making the right decisions and solving problems.

7. Developing and maintaining interpersonal relationships: Developing professional relationships with co-workers and others outside organizations and maintaining good relationships.

8. Getting Information and learning: Observing, hearing, reading, using computers, or otherwise obtaining information and learning from it.

9. Handling administrative activities: Handling various administrative tasks and managing day-to-day operations.

10. Inspecting equipment, systems, structures, and materials: Inspecting equipment, systems, structures, and materials to ascertain quality, performance, defects, causes of errors, etc.

11. Inspecting situations, events, and people: Inspecting situations, events, and people to understand the reasons and causes for the situation or events to happen; inspecting people to understand reasons behind their behavior and actions.

12. Managing and supervising: Managing and supervising the work of others; setting goals; giving instructions; monitoring work performance, etc.

13. Updating and using relevant knowledge: Keeping updated with the latest knowledge relevant to your fields of work and use of the relevant knowledge in getting things done.

14. Using computers for work: Using computers for day-to-day office work; using computer software for various applications in day-to-day professional work; entering data and processing information; for writing.

15. Working in a team: Working in a team of people; developing a team; and maintaining professional relationships among team members.