Become a Respiratory Nurse in 3 Steps

Nurse Types / Respiratory Nurse

If you’re looking for a nursing specialty that is challenging, and exciting, respiratory nursing could be the perfect fit. Respiratory nurses understand how to manage complex respiratory illnesses to prevent worsening problems due to acute or chronic breathing issues. These issues can include asthma, COPD, or pneumonia.

In this article, we’ll cover everything you need to know about becoming a respiratory nurse in 3 steps, including:

• What is a respiratory nurse?
• What do respiratory nurses do?
• Where do respiratory nurses work?
• What are specific types of respiratory nurses?
• How do you become a respiratory nurse in 3 steps?
• What are additional requirements of respiratory nurses?
• What are the salary and career outlooks for respiratory nurses?
• FAQs

What is a respiratory nurse?

Respiratory nurses, sometimes called pulmonary nurses, specialize in caring for patients diagnosed with a variety of respiratory illnesses. This can include acute illnesses such as pneumonia or COVID-19, or more chronic conditions like COPD and asthma.

Along with a focus on managing problems with the respiratory system, they may also choose to specialize in any age of patient from pediatric to geriatric. 

Qualities of a successful respiratory nurse

To treat patients with respiratory concerns, a respiratory nurse needs to possess excellent critical thinking skills and be able to think quickly in an emergency. They also need to be skilled at remaining calm in crisis, helping their patients feel safer and more in control. 

Respiratory nurses should also understand the complex interactions between the respiratory system and other health concerns. 

What do respiratory nurses do?

Respiratory nurses can provide critical care nursing in a respiratory crisis, but also are trained to manage ongoing respiratory illnesses. This can mean anything from treating patients who require a ventilator to breathe to helping someone with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) understand how to help control their condition and avoid exacerbations.

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A day in the life of a respiratory nurse

During each shift as a respiratory nurse, you may be tasked with a range of job duties, depending on the patients you are caring for. Some of these tasks include:

• Working with a team of nurses, doctors, respiratory therapists, to manage respiratory illnesses
• Administering medications
• Assisting with breathing treatments
• Performing tracheostomy care
• Monitoring ventilator settings 
• Assessing patients daily for changes, including monitoring vital signs
• Interviewing patients to understand past medical history and current concerns
• Educating patients on how to manage their respiratory condition
• Performing diagnostic testing and reporting results to physicians
• Titrating oxygen therapy appropriately 

Common conditions treated by respiratory nurses

The respiratory system can be affected by a spectrum of common conditions, with some causing acute illness and others causing chronic problems. 

Because respiratory illnesses have the potential to become severe and life-threatening, respiratory nurses must be experts in these common conditions, among others, to be able to address them:

• Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS)
• Acute chest syndrome
• Asbestosis
• Asthma
• Acute or chronic bronchitis
• COPD
• Black lung disease
• COVID-19
• Influenza
• Pneumonia
• Cystic fibrosis (CF)
• Emphysema
• E-cigarette or vaping use-associated lung injury (EVALI)
• Interstitial lung disease (IL)
• Lung cancer
• Pneumothorax
• Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH)
• Pulmonary embolism
• Pulmonary fibrosis

Where do respiratory nurses work?

Respiratory nurses can work in many settings, depending on the patient population they treat. This can include:

• Hospitals, both in critical care settings like ICUs and in respiratory care units
• Outpatient clinics
• Pediatric units
• Veterans Affairs (VA) facilities
• Skilled nursing facilities
• Sleep disorder centers

What are specific types of respiratory nurses? 

Respiratory nurses can further specialize their care focus by choosing to work in disciplines such as:

• Pediatrics
• Critical care
• Geriatrics
• Rehabilitation medicine

These nurses help their patients by having specialized goals, such as stabilizing critically ill patients in an ICU setting or helping patients in rehabilitation centers improve and manage their chronic respiratory problems.

Closely related fields 

Some job fields that are closely related to respiratory nursing include:

• Respiratory therapists
• Pulmonary function technologists
• Critical care nurses
• Critical care advanced practice nurses

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How do you become a respiratory nurse in 3 steps?

To become a respiratory nurse, there are some basic steps you’ll need to follow. If you’re a seasoned nurse with several years of experience, your path will be a little different from a new grad, but either way, it’s important to have a plan in mind to reach your goal. 

Step 1 – Become a registered nurse

To become a respiratory nurse, the very first thing you’ll need is your nursing license. Whether nursing is your first degree or a second career, there are some common steps to follow.

Earn a degree

The best path to the nursing specialty of your choice is a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree. Although nurses who earn an Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) enjoy many nursing positions, earning a bachelor’s degree typically provides greater job mobility as BSN nurses are more highly sought by employers. 

Along with earning a traditional bachelor’s degree, there are two other pathways to earn your degree:

• RN-BSN: Nurses who already hold an ADN degree can more easily advance to a BSN with this choice.
• ABSN: For aspiring nurses who already hold a bachelor’s degree in another field, the Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing accelerates the completion process of the nursing program with transfer credits.

Pass the NCLEX exam

After graduating from an accredited nursing program, you’ll need to pass the NCLEX exam to earn your license. State boards of nursing consider the results of this exam to be proof of entry-level competency in the practice of nursing.

Step 2 – Accumulate experience

With your new nursing license in hand, the next important step is to build practical experience in the field. Not only will this continue to build on the critical thinking skills you learned in nursing school, but it also helps you find out where your passions in the field lie. This can lead you to specialties like respiratory nursing.

Helpful skills and experience

To become a respiratory nurse, there are some particular skills and experiences that will benefit you:

• Critical care nursing
• Tracheostomy care
• Managing ventilated patients
• Assessments of the respiratory system
• Experience with patient education and care planning
• Caring for patients with respiratory illnesses

Changing specialty to a respiratory nurse 

Nurses that already work in another specialty will find the transition to a respiratory nurse easier thanks to experience that already touches on the kinds of patients respiratory nurses see.

For example, nurses that work in med-surg will at times care for patients with COPD, pneumonia, or other common respiratory concerns. Learning to observe these patients for early warning signs of serious complications is a skill that transfers perfectly to the respiratory nurse role.

Step 3 – Obtain certifications

Although there are not any certifications specific to respiratory nursing, nurses who wish to pursue this specialty may benefit from other related advanced certifications, such as:

• CCRN: Nurses who care for critically or acutely ill adult patients across many settings can choose this certification to enhance their practice.
• Certified Asthma Educator (AE-C): This offers nurses the opportunity to advance their expertise as an asthma specialist and to provide patients with high-quality education on managing asthma.

What are additional requirements of respiratory nurses? 

A respiratory nurse can expect a minimum continuing education unit (CEU) requirement to renew their license. They also need to learn new technology and care techniques as the field of medicine continues to advance.

Each state board of nursing has its own requirements for license renewal. This includes mandatory courses specific to each state’s regulations. You can also expect to complete a minimum number of CEUs related to how many hours you’ve been actively practicing as a nurse since your last renewal. 

What are the salary and career outlooks for respiratory nurses? 

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, a registered nurse can expect a mean annual salary of $82,750. 

Respiratory Nurse salaries currently range between $67,000 (25th percentile) to $147,000 (75th percentile) with top earners (90th percentile) making $162,500 annually. 

These salaries are affected by geographic location, with nurses in some states earning higher than average salaries. Nurses in major metropolitan cities also typically see higher wages. No matter where you live, the overall job outlook for nurses continues to be robust, with high demand projected through 2030 and beyond.

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Job satisfaction

One question you may have about being a respiratory nurse is whether it’s a rewarding career choice. Respiratory nursing offers challenging and interesting job. The best way to know if that translates to high job satisfaction is to hear directly from nurses already in the specialty. 

Many hospitals have a dedicated respiratory care unit for patients who are being treated for respiratory conditions but aren’t critically ill. If you have the opportunity to talk to a nurse there, or nurses working in the ICU, you can gain their impressions of the field. 

Next steps

Once you’ve completed these 3 steps, you’re ready to launch your career and find a job as a respiratory nurse. But the path doesn’t have to end with this specialty: many nurses who care for this patient population go on to advance their careers in respiratory care. 

For example, Pulmonary Nurse Practitioners are advanced practice nurses who specialize in managing patients with serious and chronic lung diseases. Or, you can branch out into general practice as a critical care nurse or nurse practitioner. Becoming a respiratory nurse is only the first stop on an amazing career journey!

FAQs

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