Respiratory Therapists
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.
- O*NET-SOC code
29-1126.00 - Preparation Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed
Wages
Median annual wage, U.S.$82,280
Employment, U.S.139,790
Median hourly wage$39.56
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $63,660 | $74,520 | $82,280 | $98,730 | $118,050 |
By state (51)
| State | Employment | Median annual | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 2,350 | $66,150 | 1.24 |
| Alaska | 180 | $97,950 | 0.62 |
| Arizona | 3,500 | $79,780 | 1.20 |
| Arkansas | 1,400 | $73,870 | 1.19 |
| California | 18,650 | $104,820 | 1.14 |
| Colorado | 2,110 | $86,220 | 0.82 |
| Connecticut | 1,370 | $85,230 | 0.90 |
| Delaware | 500 | $91,080 | 1.15 |
| District of Columbia | 430 | $111,950 | 0.69 |
| Florida | 8,820 | $81,160 | 0.99 |
| Georgia | 5,150 | $83,700 | 1.17 |
| Hawaii | 510 | $94,210 | 0.91 |
| Idaho | 820 | $78,460 | 1.06 |
| Illinois | 4,880 | $84,090 | 0.89 |
| Indiana | 3,170 | $79,730 | 1.10 |
| Iowa | 910 | $74,760 | 0.65 |
| Kansas | 1,450 | $76,970 | 1.13 |
| Kentucky | 2,530 | $72,750 | 1.41 |
| Louisiana | 2,520 | $75,240 | 1.45 |
| Maine | 520 | $82,470 | 0.90 |
| Maryland | 1,800 | $88,960 | 0.72 |
| Massachusetts | 2,220 | $102,170 | 0.68 |
| Michigan | 4,520 | $79,850 | 1.14 |
| Minnesota | 1,250 | $98,710 | 0.47 |
| Mississippi | 1,670 | $63,270 | 1.60 |
| Missouri | 3,030 | $78,390 | 1.15 |
| Montana | 390 | $81,190 | 0.85 |
| Nebraska | 840 | $81,590 | 0.91 |
| Nevada | 1,270 | $85,480 | 0.91 |
| New Hampshire | 360 | $95,940 | 0.59 |
| New Jersey | 3,350 | $100,810 | 0.87 |
| New Mexico | 840 | $68,870 | 1.08 |
| New York | 7,010 | $107,810 | 0.81 |
| North Carolina | 4,630 | $80,090 | 1.04 |
| North Dakota | 270 | $81,230 | 0.71 |
| Ohio | 6,640 | $79,920 | 1.33 |
| Oklahoma | 2,000 | $78,800 | 1.30 |
| Oregon | 1,340 | $100,560 | 0.76 |
| Pennsylvania | 6,530 | $78,490 | 1.20 |
| Rhode Island | 260 | $86,900 | 0.57 |
| South Carolina | 1,960 | $77,740 | 0.94 |
| South Dakota | 430 | $68,240 | 1.04 |
| Tennessee | 3,440 | $72,140 | 1.17 |
| Texas | 12,130 | $79,540 | 0.96 |
| Utah | 1,170 | $80,650 | 0.75 |
| Vermont | 210 | $83,820 | 0.79 |
| Virginia | 3,340 | $82,910 | 0.90 |
| Washington | 1,860 | $101,130 | 0.58 |
| West Virginia | 1,140 | $68,670 | 1.80 |
| Wisconsin | 1,940 | $84,210 | 0.74 |
| Wyoming | 160 | $79,330 | 0.64 |
Similar occupations
Similarity is our measure: the cosine of importance x level over all 120 O*NET skills, knowledge areas and abilities. It is not an O*NET finding. More.
Circles are the 20 most similar occupations, coloured by Job Zone. Lines join pairs where one is among the other's 10 most similar; darker lines are pairs O*NET also lists as related. Drag a circle to move it out of the way; select one to open it.
| # | Occupation | Job Zone | Similarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nurse Anesthetists | 5 | 0.970 |
| 2 | Coroners | 3 | 0.960 |
| 3 | Radiologic Technologists and Technicians | 3 | 0.959 |
| 4 | Nuclear Medicine Technologists | 3 | 0.958 |
| 5 | Urologists | 5 | 0.954 |
| 6 | Critical Care Nurses | 4 | 0.952 |
| 7 | Radiation Therapists | 3 | 0.952 |
| 8 | Orthotists and Prosthetists | 5 | 0.951 |
| 9 | Neurodiagnostic Technologists | 3 | 0.951 |
| 10 | Chiropractors | 5 | 0.947 |
One skill away
Among the 50 occupations most similar to Respiratory Therapists, those at the same Job Zone or lower, where exactly one skill rated at least 3 in importance needs a level more than 0.75 points higher (on O*NET's 0-7 level scale). Our definition. Change the thresholds.
| Occupation | Skill to build | Level gap | Similarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Facilities Managers | Management of Personnel Resources | 0.87 | 0.940 |
Software to learn next
Software used by at least 3 of the 20 occupations most similar to Respiratory Therapists, excluding software Respiratory Therapists already lists and any you named. Ranked by how many of them use it, weighted by how much more common it is among them than across all occupations (lift). Our ranking.
| Software | Similar jobs using it | Lift |
|---|---|---|
| MicroFour PracticeStudio.NET EMR | 5 of 20 | 28.8x |
| GE Healthcare Centricity EMR | 6 of 20 | 12.6x |
| Amkai AmkaiCharts | 4 of 20 | 26.4x |
| Medscribbler Enterprise | 4 of 20 | 26.4x |
| StatCom Patient Flow Logistics Enterprise Suite | 4 of 20 | 26.4x |
| Bizmatics PrognoCIS EMR | 5 of 20 | 12.8x |
| Texas Medical Software SpringCharts EMR | 4 of 20 | 23.1x |
| Cerner Millennium | 4 of 20 | 20.5x |
| SynaMed EMR | 4 of 20 | 20.5x |
| NextGen Healthcare Information Systems EMR | 4 of 20 | 18.5x |
Skills
From O*NET data. Importance is rated 1 to 5 and level 0 to 7.
| Skill | Type | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Active Listening | Essential skill | 4.00 | 4.00 |
| Critical Thinking | Essential skill | 4.00 | 4.00 |
| Monitoring | Essential skill | 4.00 | 4.00 |
| Reading Comprehension | Essential skill | 3.88 | 4.12 |
| Social Perceptiveness | Transferable skill | 3.88 | 4.12 |
| Speaking | Essential skill | 3.88 | 4.12 |
| Service Orientation | Transferable skill | 3.75 | 3.88 |
| Complex Problem Solving | Transferable skill | 3.62 | 3.25 |
| Active Learning | Essential skill | 3.38 | 3.88 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | Transferable skill | 3.38 | 3.50 |
| Writing | Essential skill | 3.25 | 3.38 |
| Coordination | Transferable skill | 3.25 | 3.12 |
| Instructing | Transferable skill | 3.12 | 3.25 |
| Learning Strategies | Essential skill | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Operations Monitoring | Transferable skill | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Quality Control Analysis | Transferable skill | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Operation and Control | Transferable skill | 3.12 | 3.00 |
| Science | Essential skill | 3.00 | 3.38 |
| Persuasion | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 3.12 |
| Time Management | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Systems Analysis | Transferable skill | 2.88 | 2.88 |
| Systems Evaluation | Transferable skill | 2.88 | 2.88 |
| Mathematics | Essential skill | 2.75 | 3.00 |
| Negotiation | Transferable skill | 2.75 | 2.88 |
| Management of Personnel Resources | Transferable skill | 2.75 | 2.75 |
| Equipment Selection | Transferable skill | 2.38 | 2.12 |
| Troubleshooting | Transferable skill | 2.38 | 2.12 |
| Equipment Maintenance | Transferable skill | 2.12 | 2.12 |
| Repairing | Transferable skill | 2.00 | 1.88 |
| Operations Analysis | Transferable skill | 1.75 | 1.50 |
| Management of Material Resources | Transferable skill | 1.75 | 1.38 |
| Technology Design | Transferable skill | 1.62 | 1.25 |
| Management of Financial Resources | Transferable skill | 1.62 | 0.75 |
| Programming | Transferable skill | 1.25 | not rated |
| Installation | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
Knowledge (33) and abilities (52)
| Name | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Customer and Personal Service | 4.71 | 6.37 |
| Medicine and Dentistry | 4.38 | 5.30 |
| Public Safety and Security | 4.19 | 4.34 |
| English Language | 4.05 | 4.45 |
| Psychology | 3.88 | 5.24 |
| Mechanical | 3.85 | 5.00 |
| Biology | 3.81 | 5.08 |
| Administration and Management | 3.64 | 4.63 |
| Computers and Electronics | 3.56 | 4.05 |
| Physics | 3.54 | 4.26 |
| Education and Training | 3.48 | 4.49 |
| Chemistry | 3.42 | 4.40 |
| Administrative | 3.37 | 4.19 |
| Sociology and Anthropology | 3.23 | 3.72 |
| Law and Government | 3.23 | 3.51 |
| Mathematics | 3.21 | 4.08 |
| Therapy and Counseling | 3.11 | 3.56 |
| Personnel and Human Resources | 3.09 | 3.41 |
| Telecommunications | 3.06 | 2.99 |
| Transportation | 3.04 | 2.89 |
| Production and Processing | 2.81 | 3.12 |
| Engineering and Technology | 2.77 | 2.74 |
| Philosophy and Theology | 2.67 | 3.50 |
| Communications and Media | 2.61 | 2.56 |
| Economics and Accounting | 2.53 | 2.48 |
| Geography | 2.43 | 2.49 |
| Sales and Marketing | 2.43 | 2.46 |
| Foreign Language | 2.38 | 2.48 |
| Building and Construction | 2.32 | 2.07 |
| Design | 2.14 | 2.38 |
| Food Production | 1.99 | not rated |
| History and Archeology | 1.82 | 1.30 |
| Fine Arts | 1.78 | 1.22 |
| Name | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Problem Sensitivity | 4.25 | 4.38 |
| Inductive Reasoning | 4.12 | 4.25 |
| Deductive Reasoning | 4.00 | 4.25 |
| Oral Comprehension | 4.00 | 4.25 |
| Oral Expression | 4.00 | 4.25 |
| Written Comprehension | 4.00 | 4.12 |
| Information Ordering | 4.00 | 4.00 |
| Near Vision | 3.88 | 3.88 |
| Written Expression | 3.75 | 3.75 |
| Speech Clarity | 3.62 | 3.25 |
| Category Flexibility | 3.25 | 3.25 |
| Speech Recognition | 3.25 | 3.12 |
| Perceptual Speed | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Arm-Hand Steadiness | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Control Precision | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Flexibility of Closure | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Manual Dexterity | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Number Facility | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Selective Attention | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Finger Dexterity | 2.88 | 3.12 |
| Fluency of Ideas | 2.88 | 3.00 |
| Multilimb Coordination | 2.88 | 2.88 |
| Trunk Strength | 2.88 | 2.38 |
| Mathematical Reasoning | 2.75 | 3.12 |
| Memorization | 2.75 | 3.00 |
| Originality | 2.75 | 3.00 |
| Far Vision | 2.75 | 2.88 |
| Speed of Closure | 2.75 | 2.88 |
| Time Sharing | 2.75 | 2.88 |
| Extent Flexibility | 2.75 | 2.62 |
| Visual Color Discrimination | 2.62 | 2.62 |
| Auditory Attention | 2.50 | 2.50 |
| Hearing Sensitivity | 2.50 | 2.25 |
| Reaction Time | 2.38 | 2.25 |
| Static Strength | 2.25 | 2.25 |
| Visualization | 2.25 | 2.25 |
| Rate Control | 2.12 | 2.00 |
| Stamina | 2.12 | 1.88 |
| Dynamic Strength | 2.12 | 1.62 |
| Depth Perception | 2.00 | 1.75 |
| Gross Body Coordination | 2.00 | 1.75 |
| Wrist-Finger Speed | 2.00 | 1.75 |
| Response Orientation | 1.88 | 1.75 |
| Gross Body Equilibrium | 1.75 | 1.25 |
| Speed of Limb Movement | 1.62 | 1.12 |
| Peripheral Vision | 1.62 | 0.88 |
| Sound Localization | 1.50 | 0.75 |
| Spatial Orientation | 1.50 | 0.62 |
| Explosive Strength | 1.25 | not rated |
| Glare Sensitivity | 1.25 | not rated |
| Night Vision | 1.25 | not rated |
| Dynamic Flexibility | 1.00 | not rated |
Software used
Examples from O*NET data. "Hot" and "in demand" are O*NET flags for technologies often listed in job postings.
- MEDITECH software hot
- Microsoft Excel hot
- Microsoft Office software hot
- Microsoft Outlook hot
- Microsoft PowerPoint hot
- Microsoft Word hot
- eClinicalWorks EHR software hot
- Database software
- Electronic medical record EMR software
- HMS
Where it concentrates
Metro areas ranked by BLS location quotient: the occupation's share of the area's jobs divided by its share of all US jobs. Above 1 means more concentrated than the nation. Metros employing fewer than 100 are left out.
| Metro area | Employment | Location quotient | Median annual |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rome, GA | 120 | 2.90 | $98,720 |
| Slidell-Mandeville-Covington, LA | 230 | 2.62 | $76,680 |
| Tyler, TX | 250 | 2.44 | $76,800 |
| Charleston, WV | 220 | 2.36 | $68,670 |
| Winston-Salem, NC | 530 | 2.15 | $80,250 |
| Macon-Bibb County, GA | 180 | 2.14 | $80,730 |
| Greenville, NC | 150 | 2.11 | $69,310 |
| Alexandria, LA | 110 | 2.10 | $71,140 |
| Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH | 270 | 2.10 | $66,040 |
| Jackson, MS | 510 | 2.10 | $67,500 |