Pre-Hospital Ventilator Management Competency

It is the position of the American Association for Respiratory Care that all persons involved in the setup, initiation, application, and maintenance of mechanical ventilators in the pre-hospital setting be formally trained in both the clinical and disease-specific applications of mechanical ventilation. Pre-hospital care givers must be trained to understand the age-specific interactions that application of positive airway pressure has on the cardio-pulmonary system, as well as the mechanisms available for the monitoring of these interactions. The pre-hospital provider must also be familiar with proper assessment of the airway and the indications for changes in the settings of the mechanical ventilator.

Further, the American Association for Respiratory Care recommends that all pre-hospital providers of mechanical ventilation be required to demonstrate competence, at regular intervals, in the use and manipulation of all mechanical ventilators used by the pre-hospital provider during the transport of sick and injured patients.

Effective 12/07