AARC Election 2025 — Kevin McQueen

AARC Activities:

• Patient Safety Movement – AARC Liaison/Representative – appointed 2021 – present
• Current member of the Vaping education project team- appointed by Karen Schell, President in 2020
• AARC Times article reviewer 2017, 2019
• Member of the Billing Codes Committee 2019
• Patient Safety Roundtable Co-Chair 5 years
• AARC Leadership Institute application reviewer
• AARC APEX application reviewer

HOD Activities:

• Delegate, Colorado Respiratory Care Society (CRCS) 2023 – present

Affiliate Activities:

• Delegate for Colorado Respiratory Care Society (CRCS) 2023-Present
• CRCS Immediate Past President – 2022-2023
• CRCS President 2020-2022
• CRCS President-Elect 2019-2020
• Colorado Society for Respiratory Care (CSRC) Southern Chapter President 2018-2019 (previous name of state society)

Related Organizations:

• American Society for Professionals in Patient Safety (ASPPS) – Active Member – Board Certified in Patient Safety (CPPS)
• American Society for Healthcare Risk Management (ASHRM) – Former Member – 6 years
• American Lung Association for San Diego & Imperial County – Chair – Adult COPD Education Committee 2000-2001

Education:

• Master’s Healthcare Administration (MHA) – Colorado State University GC, 2014
• Bachelor’s Healthcare Management (BA/HCM) – Ottawa University, 2012
• RRT Program – California College for Health Sciences, 1990

Publications:

• Prevention and Treatment of Device-Related Hospital-Acquired Pressure Injuries. American Journal of Critical Care, Mar. 2020 (Am J Crit Care (2020) 29 (2):150-154 (Co-author)
• Achieving zero avoidable deaths by 2020. Journal of Health Management.org, Winning practices, Feb. 2019 (Author)
• Reducing Harm from Respiratory Depression in Non-ICU Patients. California Hospital Quality Institute (HQI), Nov 2017 (Facilitator, primary co-author)
• Respiratory Monitoring of Patients Outside of the ICU. San Diego Patient Safety Council toolkit, June 2014 (contributing author)

Elections Committee Questions:

What do you see as the biggest challenge facing the AARC, and what do you recommend to address it?

There are significant challenges around ensuring there are enough respiratory therapists to meet the increasing demands across the nation. Following the COVID pandemic, several RT schools have experienced declining enrollment, and coupled with the increased numbers of RTs retiring or leaving the profession staffing issues will continue to be front and center.

Continue the efforts to promote the profession at local, state, and national levels. Working closely with high schools, community colleges, universities, and organizations such as HOSA to educate students on RT as a career field.

Healthcare is changing more rapidly than ever. What ideas do you have to help today’s respiratory therapist meet these changes?

Healthcare is progressing rapidly and it is essential for respiratory therapists to advance their education to meet the demands. As a profession we need to work together towards the goal of having the bachelor’s degree be the minimal degree requirement. Continued efforts to expand the Advance Practice Respiratory Therapist (APRT) Master’s degree programs and state licensure are also key to the future of the profession.

Your role as Director-at Large is to represent the general AARC membership. If given the opportunity to represent, what will be your strategy in advocating for the everyday respiratory care professional?

I am an extremely proud Respiratory Therapist and I have promoted our profession every chance I get. I have been involved at both the state and national levels, including building a completely new state respiratory society non-profit 501(c)(6). I have worked closely with Colorado’s legislative committees to complete a formal licensure Sunset review and testified in front of the Colorado House and Human Services Committee in support of the over 3800 RTs in Colorado. I regularly speak at local, state, and national conferences on respiratory therapy and patient safety topics.