by John Lane Posey at RCSW.org
The 43rd annual RCSW conference had a great turn out this year in Spokane, Washington, with over 400 attendees. As a respiratory student, I was surprised to find such a large amount of knowledge and experience all packed under one roof.
A highlight for students was the student section on Tuesday. The way that Jennifer Armstrong ran the section worked well as she encouraged a lot of audience participation with the speakers. For me, it was great to hear the perspective of respiratory care department managers on the interview process. The insight on commonly asked interview questions was very helpful. As a student looking for a job, the interviews may be one of the most stressful situations that some of us may face in the hiring process. The experiences and knowledge shared with the students provided a good idea of what it is they need to work on.
RT Grads: This is How You Get from Application to Interview
Jon Jahns, RCSW President, and Tom Kallstrom, Executive Director of the AARC
As a whole, the conference was amazing and has more than fueled my desire to become a part of the respiratory care profession. Topics discussed hit very close to home for me. I currently live in and came from a rural area that is more than an hour from any advanced care units that will be lifesaving to my father and many other family members diagnosed with COPD. This is all the more reason to have better home RT care, continued disease management counseling, and pulmonary rehab. I see the need for a system such as telehealth to help lower readmission rates and provide my family and our patients with the best possible care that we humanly can. This is the future of health care. As a new age of RT is being trained, this is the direction that we are needing to go.
Honorable RT
Also featured in the photo with Earl Moore is her longtime friend and former instructor when she attended RT school at SCC, Dee Arkell, BSRT-ACCS. She has been an inspirational teacher for many Respiratory students for more than thirty years, and continues to do so for the graduating class of 2016; however, this is her last year as a teacher. Anyone that knows Dee will say that she will never stop inspiring her students to be their best long after they have moved on into a career. Thank Dee Arkell (Mama) for being a compassionate, patient, and inspiring teacher to all of us for all these years, and may you enjoy a long retirement as well!
Gary Wickman, BA RRT FAARC
Jessica Chang, a junior in the respiratory care program at Seattle Central College, was looking forward to the conference since the beginning of the year. For her, the lectures demonstrated how dynamic the respiratory care field currently is, and encouraged her to do more research on certain areas, such as Inter-facility transport and ECMO.
Another great experience for Jessica was being able to participate in the Sputum bowl. “While it was a nerve-racking moment, our class had fun in the process and we got a chance to meet Respiratory Care students from other institutions and talk about their programs. “
For Jessica, the conference left her with a bit more insight as well. “I got to witness how influential and significant the RCSW was. To see the differences this organization was making motivates me to become a great respiratory therapist and an advocate for our profession. This conference was a great way to communicate with fellow students and Respiratory therapists all across Washington State. I … am looking forward to next year’s conference in Sea-Tac." 
Future Tech.
The vender hall was amazing with more than forty booths this year. I had the chance to see some of the lastest models and designs of homecare products, hemoximeters, and ventilators. It was all good and we enjoyed a little cheese with our wine.
This picture shows a ventilator that incorporates bedside calorimetry into its everyday use. With this ventilator it is preforming the study the entire time the patient is on the vent. This is among many features that make this vent stand out as one of the next big things for ventilated patients in the ICU.
Thanks to all the speakers, the conference coordinators - Christian Striggow and Jennifer Armstrong - and all the amazing volunteers for helping put on a great conference.
John Lane Posey is a student in the RC program at Spokane Community College in Spokane, WA.