March 27, 2020
Dear Respiratory Therapists of BC
Re: COVID-19
In these uncertain times, it is humbling and gratifying to see the response of respiratory therapists across the province. Many of you have responded to this crisis with ingenuity, innovation and determination. The board of directors of the BCSRT thanks each and every one of you for your dedication, hard work and commitment to patient care.
In times of emergency, communication and planning is coordinated at the highest levels of the Health Authorities through the Emergency Operations Centres. Our resources, equipment and staffing needs are being assessed at the highest level. Collaboration is taking place across the province. As you all know, this situation is dynamic and information changes hourly.
There have been offers of support and collaboration between RTs in the public and private sectors and offers of RTs coming out of retirement temporarily. We ask that RTs who are interested in coming out of retirement or RTs who are temporarily off work in private care to submit an “expression of interest” at BCSRT.com. We are compiling a database in the event more RTs are needed to provide support for acute care.
As respiratory therapists, we are vital members of the healthcare team. We thank you all so much for your service and dedication to patient care. Let’s do our best to promote social distancing, staying home, hand-washing and “flattening the curve”. We are fiercely proud of all of you. We know that we as respiratory therapists will get together and “get it done” no matter what obstacles we face. In this difficult and stressful time we must treat ourselves with the same compassion and care that we provide for our patients. Take care of yourselves and stay safe.
Our heartfelt thanks to each and every one of you,
BCSRT Board of Directors