‘WE’RE IN HIGH DEMAND’ No shortage of available jobs for students majoring in respiratory care Kaleigh Kittrell discovered early on what her field of study would be. “I had a family friend who worked in respiratory care,” Kittrell said. “I jobshadowed with her and found that it was my passion.” A senior in the Respiratory Care program at Missouri Southern, she’s already working for Integris Health in Miami, Okla. “I’m helping out with basic respiratory care duties and helping with critical patients … most of them with COVID,” she said. “We’re in high demand right now.” Kittrell isn’t alone when it comes to having already landed a job in her field. With the pandemic numbers still high, there is an increasing demand for students who are ready to put their classroom training to work. “At this point, the entire class of 10 is employed,” said Dr. Sherry Whiteman, chair of the Respiratory Care Department. “If we had a full cohort (of 24), I know they’d all already have jobs. (Pre-COVID), it might have only one or two who had positions about now.” In addition to Mercy and Freeman hospitals in Joplin, students are working for hospitals in Miami, Grove and Tulsa, Okla. Whiteman said she’s had inquiries about the availability of students from Springfield, Mo., as well. While students may not be able to perform ventilations and other advanced care techniques yet, Whiteman said being on the job allows them to get exposure to advanced concepts earlier than they normally would in the classroom. “The hospitals know our students are well trained, and that they can send them out to do the work,” she said.
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