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(This is the last part of comments started in the previous post. I apologize for being so wordy but I am sure my friends are not surprised he-he!)
Last but not least, I believe membership in your professional organization can provide you with opportunities for networking, sharing of information, and “calls for help” both in the professional and personal arena. The AARC website is a rich source of information with members having the ability to join special interest sections and various communities that allow for communication between therapists with similar ideas/needs/concerns. At http://www.aarc.org/resources you will find clinical practice guidelines, white papers, coding resources, and a variety of tools and manuals to help respiratory care departments do their work. The AARC also represents the interests of its members by providing representation and input to at least 15 different organizations including physician organizations, Joint Commission, patient advocacy groups, and international respiratory care organizations. A portion of your AARC membership dues is returned to the state affiliate where you live or work. In my own state, those funds are used primarily to provide state or local educational meetings and to fund state legislative activities. A good way to check what is happening in your own state is to check with your state affiliate. For you that would be at http://www.isrc.org
At the end of your post you have one final comment “pls. feel free to comment and help me understand why respiratory was and is an ideal career.” Perhaps the answer to this last part is more complex than a simple explanation of the AARC organization. Personally, I think healthcare is an ideal career and respiratory care originally appealed to me because it was new and innovative and took advantage of the newest technologies and brightest minds. I was excited to work with patients of all ages with both chronic and acute disease processes. The appeal of using high tech equipment was also high but I am still amazed when a little hands-on one-on-one care makes the biggest difference. I like to use all the most advanced tools and equipment as much as the next therapist but will admit that I still get immense satisfaction from providing a patient with an aerosolized bronchodilator. I joined the AARC many years ago when I finished my training in a large metropolitan city and made my plans to return to practice in a small community-based rural hospital. I wanted to make sure that I did not become stagnant in acquiring new knowledge or become bored with the routine care that sometimes becomes the mainstay of a therapist’s day in a small hospital. Networking with other like-minded therapists over the years and attending the many educational opportunities provided by the AARC has kept me motivated in my work and passionate about my choice of career. Chris, don’t discount the worth of validation by your peers to keep your interests high. If you are in an environment where you have the opportunity to interact with a number of other skilled and passionate therapists, your choice of career will be reinforced. For me, I found that nurturing environment within the membership of the AARC.
I wish you the best of luck and would love to see you and chat sometime at a conference.

Dear Chris,
Thank you for putting your thoughts and concerns together and posting your blog. It is never easy to be the first to ask a question, especially one that could raise a few eyebrows. I also want to thank you for being a member of the American Association of Respiratory Care (AARC) in spite of your concerns.
The AARC is a professional organization representing over 50,000 members nationwide. It is the professional organization advocating for respiratory therapists, the respiratory therapy profession, and ultimately for respiratory patients. I believe that individuals who join their professional organization are more likely to develop a strong commitment to their professions. I also believe the educational and networking opportunities available through professional membership can help influence one’s interest in continued education, skill enhancement, and long-term job commitment and satisfaction.
As a member of the AARC, you have access to state-of-the-art information and publications that can play a key role in increasing your knowledge base and skills. The AARC has two major publications, the AARC Times and the Respiratory Care Journal. The AARC Times is the more light hearted of the two though it does contain interesting, short clinical articles and important updates on general healthcare issues and legislative activity pertinent to the profession. The AARC Times is a good venue for the recognition of respiratory therapists serving the profession in a variety of local and national roles. The RC Journal by contrast is a scientific journal that is a wealth of information on current topics of interest and research to the medical community interested in respiratory care. Both of these fine periodicals are available to members as part of their membership dues though the simplest (and cheapest) membership level allows you to choose only one. It may be worthwhile for you to investigate receiving the Respiratory Care Journal if you are eager for more substantial articles reflecting the most current research and available information that influence the care we are able to provide for our patients. AARC members are eligible for discounted registration fees at continuing education opportunities. Members can also obtain free CRCE’s on current and relevant topics by participating in live and archived Web casts and webinars.
One of the most important roles that the AARC has undertaken is advocacy. It has committed much of its resources to the creation of a “presence and a voice” for respiratory therapists and our patients at government levels. The establishment and underwriting of the Political Action Contact Team (PACT) event held in Washington DC every March is just one example of the work that is being done on the legislative front for our profession. Several years of lobbying in Washington for reimbursement for pulmonary rehabilitation finally bore fruit and will result in better care options for some of our sickest patients. A PACT meeting is scheduled for March 8th and 9th of this year and AARC members from all states are in the process now of making appointments with their legislative representatives to discuss a proposed Medicare initiative that could pave the way for reimbursement of a respiratory therapist’s services outside of the hospital environment. I would encourage you to contact the PACT representatives from your state or the Illinois Society for Respiratory Care for more information or to explore ideas for how you can become involved. Washington DC is interested in numbers and sadly in their eyes, a membership of 50,000 is not a big player keeping in mind that there are approximately 130,000 therapists in the United States. For more information on AARC advocacy efforts, I would ask you to visit the AARC website at www.aarc.org
You can also view the list of PACT coordinators for each state at http://www.aarc.org/advocacy/pact/pact_leaders.asp

Well, well let me tell you that I've been an AARC International Fellow in 1996 from Argentina. Also worked there as a mixture of PT and RT after a 5 years university. While in Argentina always been looking for the best way to advance my career and do better things. I didn't have anybody to teach me how to work with vents so I came to the USA to study. When suscribed to the AARC still as student you don't imagine the pleasure I had when I read the Respiratoty Care Journal and all the knowledge included in it ... The AARC Times is more a social magazine mixed with useful information but if you look for information that is not the most useful place...go to the RCJournal... While studyng at college I realize how important is the AARC in this profession and all the thing they have achieved for all of us. Many countries are trying to copy the American system, the AARC, maybe you have to see it from outside to see the great work the AARC has done for all of us.
We are what we are thanks to the work done by the AARC !!! no question about that!!!...AARC times is just a social magazine of course you are going to see social events !!!
Also you can address Marsha Cathcart the editor of the AARC times and she can clarify what is the goal of the AARC Times.
You guys don't imagine what it is not having any organization at all....I knew about it, but thanks to the AARC efforts things have changed in other countries and now they do have them.
We have freedom of speach so your comment don't offend me at all. Glad you say what you think and respect you for doing so although don't share it. Good luck !!!

Hi Chris.
Your post asked what the AARC actually does for the profession. I'm glad you posted this because if you're wondering about this, I'm sure others are as well!
Throughout my 20+ year career I've worked in pretty much every area of Respiratory Care (except home care and peds!). I've been a staff therapist, diagnostic therapist, RT department manager, and clinical specialist at hospitals both small and large. I've also been an educator teach basic and advanced mechanical ventilation in an RT program for the past 10+ years. In addition, I have also volunteered and served on my state society's Board of Directors including 8 years as our state Delegate in the AARC House of Delegates.
Throughout the various changes in jobs in my career, I must say the one constant has been the AARC. When working as a staff therapist, I have found articles in both the AARC Times and RC Journal to be invaluable in helping me bring information to my manager or medical director to update and change how we treat our patients. When I worked as a department manager, I found the vast majority of the information I needed to prove my department and staff's value to the "higher ups" was available through the AARC website, communication paths (i.e. the new AARConnect), and publications.
In your blog, you stated you read the AARC Times from cover to cover every month. BRAVO! I wish others were interested enough to read it that way as well. However, while the AARC Times always contains some useful information, it really is NOT intended to distribute a lot of educational and scientific information. It's main purpose, at least to me, is to keep you up to date on what's going on in other states and at the AARC national level.
I'm curious to know if you read (or receive for that matter) the RC Journal (the "blue & white" journal). This important journal has been recognized around the WORLD as one of the leading providers of scientific information on Respiratory Care practice. Unfortunately, it IS scientific and many RTs don't want to read through the scientific jargon contained in the research articles published in that journal. This is a shame because it is precisely THAT information that we all need to be reading!
Above all else, I believe one of the MOST important "things" the AARC does is to provide you, me and every other RT with representation to both the federal and state governments. I'm sure you don't have the time to keep on top of all the proposed legislation that is put forth almost weekly (if not more often) that could have a tremendous effect on what we do as RTs. Since we don't have time to monitor these proposed laws, how are we going to respond and argue against those that would hurt our profession and/or our patients OR support those that would help those groups?
The answer is that we simply couldn't do it. On the other hand, the AARC employ's Cheryl West who works full time (and that's about 60 hours a week...) as our Director of Governmental Affairs and she's assisted by Miriam O'Day and Anne Marie Hummel. These three ladies serve as our "watchdogs" and without them, I fear where our profession would currently be and where it would be in the future.
Although the page is aimed at new members (to introduce them to the AARC) I urge you to take a look at the LONG list of benefits and services offered by the AARC. Go to http://www.aarc.org/member_services/benefits/ and you'll see links that cover much of what the AARC provides.
Once again thanks, Chris, for posting this AND for being an AARC member!

Hi Chris,
I wanted to clarify that the AARC is not a committee. This is our national professional organization that represents all the Respiratory Therapists in the country. We also have the international AARC which supports Respiratory Therapists in other countries around the world.
After reading your blog I pulled a couple issues of the AARC times. I just am shocked that all you and your colleagues got from the magazine is that it just gives awards.... In fact there are numerous articles that educate the Respiratory Therapist on a wide variety of issues that affect their profession. These are things that affect the RT at the bedside or issues in Washington DC that impact the profession at the legislative level. Who do you think is in Washington DC lobbying for your job and every other RT in the country? That would be the AARC.... The AARC has paid lobbyists, Anne Marie Hummel, Chery West and Mirium O'Day. They alert the AARC when an issue comes up at the state and national level that may have a impact on our profession and meet with our legislators to stand up for us and our jobs. They are our watch dogs.... If you have not heard of them , I would recommend reading some of the articles in the AARC times or google them....
You ask , " what are the higher up doing for us" ? Your state society should be keeping you updated on the news that affects your profession? They send representatives to the National House of Delegates meetings twice a year where they get the up to date information. They then share it with the RT's in their respective states. It could be in the form of a newsletter, general meeting, website updates or emails to name a few. How do you get involved with your state society to stay connected ?
The bottom line Chris is you need to get involved with your professional organization. When was the last time you were on the AARC website? You might want to check it out.