What kind of volunteer work have you done to raise awareness of the respiratory field?

1. Volunteer for American Lung Association. This gives you the oportunity to meet people during their health fairs at various malls. I have also worked for their asthma camps and other such events.

2. Volunteer as a guest speaker at the local high school for their Pre-Medication field classes. these classes are usually Nurse driven. It is nice for the student to see other avenues that will work for them as well.

3. Do career day at your kids school

These are all things that I do in order to spread the field of Respiratory Therapy. I have been an educator in the past to further instill the love I have for the field.

I gave a few lectures at the local senior center.  We focused on basic lung health, simple respiratory exercises and general topics to do with encouraging better breathing by lowering allergen content (or at least being aware of allergens in our daily lives).  They all went over very well and the participants had fun (it helps to have a raffle, too!) 

While I haven't been able to do that in a while, I have some fond memories, including getting over mike fright.  After all, a room full of seniors who are waiting for the bus and want to know if they won the raffle can be a tough crowd.

 Cheryl