With the challenges of planning for and working during a pandemic event, the benefits of such a challenge are often lost on health care givers in the moment. Join the presenter as she outlines benefits both locally and federally where the respiratory care professional role has been expanded and highlighted. The presenter will share templates, outlined processes and strategic planning for leaders to get themselves invited to the table and further the profession. There will be a call for pandemic surge planning documents and processes to be shared in the Leadership/Management Section library on AARConnect.

Join this respiratory care manager and respiratory equipment and supply team leader of a large health care corporation as he describes the need for equipment and supply standardization both normally and for COVID-19 pandemic strategic planning. He will share the ventilator tracking report that is being used among the organization’s 23 acute care hospitals to report to Vice President Mike Pence’s office per regulation. Join him as he shares the process by which he has assisted in the creation of a unique position within the organization’s supply chain organization. He will further share the value of cost savings in terms of equipment/supply standardization and understand the role this shares in promoting the value of respiratory care.

Join this digital health policy expert as she reviews the legislative and regulatory changes affecting provision of care and payment for telehealth services, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Ms. Yeager-McSwain will also discuss the resulting impact on the delivery of health care, at large — and the possible implications for health care delivery — post-pandemic. Additionally, she will explore the potential for strategically positioning RTs to fill the role of telehealth consultants as well as the unique adaptations that may be required during a pandemic surge.

For the profession of respiratory care, sustainable results depend upon the degree to which an organization’s culture is aligned to specific guiding principles rather than depending solely on tools, programs or initiatives. Culture becomes of paramount importance during times of pandemic surge. This lecture provides a framework that will guide collaboration between academia and health care employers which can facilitate alignment and a roadmap for how educators and managers can design systems to achieve sustainable results. Some feel entry into any health care profession may drop due to the COVID-19 pandemic; however, a positive culture with collaboration between hospitals and educational institutions can assist in mitigation of this perception.