For the sixth consecutive year, the Texas County Memorial Hospital Cardiopulmonary Department has earned Quality Respiratory Care Recognition (QRCR) under a national program aimed at helping patients and families make informed decisions about the quality of the respiratory care services available in hospitals.
Only about 700 hospitals – or 15 percent – in the United States have applied for and received this award.
The QRCR program was started by the American Association for Respiratory Care (AARC) in 2003 to help consumers identify those facilities using qualified respiratory therapists to provide respiratory care. Hospitals that receive the QRCR designation ensure patient safety by agreeing to adhere to a strict set of criteria governing their respiratory care services.
Texas County Memorial Hospital provided documentation showing that it complies with the following:
-All respiratory therapists employed by the hospital to deliver respiratory care hold respiratory therapy credentials.
-Respiratory therapists are available 24 hours a day.
-Personnel qualified to perform specific respiratory procedures, and the amount of supervision required to carry out specific procedures is designated in writing.
-A physician is designated as medical director of respiratory care services.
The AARC’s QRCR program grew out of growing concerns among healthcare leaders and the general public regarding the safety and quality of healthcare services provided to patients. Hospitals that meet the QRCR requirements provide a level of respiratory care consistent with national standards and guidelines.
The cardiopulmonary department at TCMH employs nine full-time certified respiratory therapists. They are on staff 24 hours a day. In 2008, the department performed 88,189 cardiopulmonary procedures.
Commonly treated breathing disorders at TCMH are emphysema, asthma, pneumonia, bronchitis and cystic fibrosis. The cardiopulmonary department assists with any trauma or “code” patients that arrive in the hospital’s emergency room. A respiratory therapist also assists physicians performing stress tests at the hospital as well as assisting patients in the TCMH Sleep Study Lab.