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Respiratory Therapist

Healthcare

Assess, treat, and care for patients with breathing disorders. Assume primary responsibility for all respiratory care modalities, including the supervision of respiratory therapy technicians. Initiate and conduct therapeutic procedures; maintain patient records; and select, assemble, check, and operate equipment.

You can enter this career straight after SPM. A degree is optional, not required.

Allied Health

What you'd do all day

The tasks that matter most in this job, most important first.

  1. 1Perform endotracheal intubation to maintain open airways for patients who are unable to breathe on their own.
  2. 2Provide emergency care, such as artificial respiration, external cardiac massage, or assistance with cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
  3. 3Monitor patient's physiological responses to therapy, such as vital signs, arterial blood gases, or blood chemistry changes, and consult with physician if adverse reactions occur.
  4. 4Set up and operate devices, such as mechanical ventilators, therapeutic gas administration apparatus, environmental control systems, or aerosol generators, following specified parameters of treatment.
  5. 5Work as part of a team of physicians, nurses, or other healthcare professionals to manage patient care by assisting with medical procedures or related duties.
  6. 6Maintain charts that contain patients' pertinent identification and therapy information.
  7. 7Read prescription, measure arterial blood gases, and review patient information to assess patient condition.
  8. 8Relay blood analysis results to a physician.
  9. 9Inspect, clean, test, and maintain respiratory therapy equipment to ensure equipment is functioning safely and efficiently, ordering repairs when necessary.
  10. 10Explain treatment procedures to patients to gain cooperation and allay fears.
  11. 11Make emergency visits to resolve equipment problems.
  12. 12Determine requirements for treatment, such as type, method and duration of therapy, precautions to be taken, or medication and dosages, compatible with physicians' orders.
  13. 13Enforce safety rules and ensure careful adherence to physicians' orders.
  14. 14Educate patients and their families about their conditions and teach appropriate disease management techniques, such as breathing exercises or the use of medications or respiratory equipment.
  15. 15Perform bronchopulmonary drainage and assist or instruct patients in performance of breathing exercises.
  16. 16Conduct tests, such as electrocardiograms (EKGs), stress testing, or lung capacity tests, to evaluate patients' cardiopulmonary functions.
  17. 17Perform pulmonary function and adjust equipment to obtain optimum results in therapy.
  18. 18Demonstrate respiratory care procedures to trainees or other healthcare personnel.
  19. 19Use a variety of testing techniques to assist doctors in cardiac or pulmonary research or to diagnose disorders.
  20. 20Transport patients to the hospital or within the hospital.
  21. 21Teach, train, supervise, or use the assistance of students, respiratory therapy technicians, or assistants.
  22. 22Monitor cardiac patients, using electrocardiography devices, such as a holter monitor.

Also known as

What this job is called on JobStreet, LinkedIn and in job ads. Search these too.

  • RT
  • CRT
  • RCP
  • RRT
  • Travel RRT
  • Staff Therapist
  • Oxygen Therapist
  • Inhalation Therapist
  • Respiratory Therapists
  • NICU Respiratory Therapist

How far is this from you?

Roughly how much preparation this job usually takes. In Malaysia your UPU route and the programme's syarat still decide entry, so treat this as a guide, not a gate.

  1. 1

    Entry straight after SPM

  2. 2

    SPM + sijil / short TVET course

  3. Typical entry

    Diploma / TVET (sijil–diploma)

  4. 4

    Degree (ijazah sarjana muda)

  5. 5

    Postgrad (sarjana / PhD) or professional route

Typical educationAssociate's degree

Subjects that matter here

The SPM subjects worth your effort for this career, with the reason for each.

BiologyDraws directly on Medicine and Dentistry — a top knowledge area for this role (O*NET).
ChemistryDraws directly on Medicine and Dentistry — a top knowledge area for this role (O*NET).
EnglishDraws directly on English Language — a top knowledge area for this role (O*NET).
Additional ScienceDraws directly on Biology — a top knowledge area for this role (O*NET).
Computer Science / ICTDraws directly on Computers and Electronics — a top knowledge area for this role (O*NET).

What you'd need to know

The subject areas this job leans on most, and the SPM subjects that build them.

  • Customer and Personal Service87%
  • Medicine and Dentistry86%

    BiologyChemistry

  • English Language78%

    English

  • Education and Training74%
  • Psychology68%
  • Biology65%

    BiologyAdditional Science

Tools you'd use

Software and equipment that show up in this job, worth learning early.

Where to learn these, free

Scholarships & funding

What the work feels like

Day-to-day working conditions, so you can tell whether the job suits how you like to work.

  • Face-to-face discussionsEvery day
  • Contact with other peopleConstant contact
  • Dealing with customers or the publicVery high
  • Leading or coordinating othersVery high
  • Handling conflict situationsOften
  • Indoors, air-conditionedEvery day
  • Outdoors, in all weatherAlmost never
  • Noisy environmentAlmost never

Where this job is heading

Newer tasks O*NET has flagged for this occupation, a hint at how the role is changing.

  • Attend high-risk and caesarian section infant deliveries to provide neonatal respiratory care as needed.

AI and demand for this job

A few real, dated data points — not a single score. AI making some tasks faster usually means a job changes, not that it disappears.

10%

Share of everyday tasks today's AI can already help with (2023)

This estimate is from 2023 — already out of date, since AI moves fast. Treat it as a rough, aging starting point, not the current picture.

Growing role in the US

US Bureau of Labor Statistics data, not Malaysian. Shown because it's the only forward-looking demand estimate we have for this job.

Pay in Malaysia

We don't have a sourced Malaysian salary range for this job yet, and we'd rather show nothing than a number we can't stand behind.

Where to check:

  • JobStreet and Hiredly job ads for this title
  • DOSM Salaries & Wages Survey
  • SSPA scheme tables, if you're aiming for a government post
See pay for a related career: Physiotherapist

Check what you may qualify for

Enter your SPM grades and see which routes and programmes you may qualify for. An estimate to plan with, not an offer.

Check my eligibility Not sure yet? Take the quiz

How to get here

Post-SPM pathways with programmes in this career's fields. Tap one to see real programmes and entry requirements.

Asasi / Foundation

One-year runway into a specific university: public via UPU or private direct entry.

12 months

Diploma

Skill-first qualification. Work after, or enter degree Year 2. Polytechnics keep it affordable.

2.5–3 years

Related careers

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About this information

This describes what the job involves. Pay, demand and entry routes differ in Malaysia, so check the Pathways and Programmes pages for local requirements.

O*NET occupation: Respiratory Therapists

Job responsibilities, knowledge areas and work context from O*NET 30.3, US Department of Labor, used under CC BY 4.0. onetcenter.org