334.800. Title of act--definitions.
Title of act--definitions.
334.800. 1. Sections 334.800 to 334.930 shall be known and may becited as the "Respiratory Care Practice Act".
2. For the purposes of sections 334.800 to 334.930, the followingterms mean:
(1) "Board", the Missouri board for respiratory care, established insection 334.830;
(2) "Certified respiratory therapist" or "CRT", a person meetingentry-level qualifying educational requirements, having passed thecertification examination and having been certified by the certifyingentity;
(3) "Certifying entity", the cognitive competency testingorganization as authorized by the board;
(4) "Continuing education", the offering of instruction orinformation to license holders for the purpose of maintaining or increasingskills necessary for the safe and competent practice of respiratory care;
(5) "CRT" and "RRT", abbreviations for certified respiratorytherapist and registered respiratory therapist and are registeredtrademarks of a certifying entity of the National Board for RespiratoryCare but does not include certified clinical perfusionists;
(6) "Direct clinical supervision", availability of a licensedrespiratory care practitioner for purposes of immediate communication andconsultation with, and the assistance of, the permit holder;
(7) "Division", the division of professional registration;
(8) "Practice of respiratory care", as provided in section 334.810;
(9) "Protocol", a written agreement of medical care plan delegatingprofessional responsibilities to a person who is qualified by training,competency, experience or licensure to perform such responsibilities. Aprotocol is a defined response to a specific clinical situation and shallbe written, signed and dated by a physician prior to its implementation;
(10) "Registered respiratory therapist" or "RRT", a person meetingadvanced-level qualifying professional educational requirements, havingpassed the registry examination and having been registered by thecertifying entity;
(11) "Respiratory care", the allied health profession whosepractitioners function under the supervision of a physician or inaccordance with clinical protocols accepted by the physician in theadministration of pharmacologic, diagnostic and therapeutic agents relatedto respiratory care necessary to implement or modify diagnostic regimes,treatment, disease prevention or pulmonary rehabilitation of patients withdeficiencies and abnormalities associated with the cardiopulmonary system;
(12) "Respiratory care practitioner", a person:
(a) Duly licensed by the board;
(b) Employed in the practice of respiratory care who has theknowledge and skill necessary to administer respiratory care as defined inthis section;
(c) Who is able to function in situations of unsupervised patientcontact requiring individual judgment; and
(d) Who is capable of serving as a resource to the physician inrelation to the technical aspects of respiratory care as to safe andeffective methods for administering respiratory care modalities;
(13) "Special training":
(a) Is a deliberate systematic educational activity in the affective,psychomotor and cognitive domains;
(b) Is intended to develop new proficiencies with an application inmind;
(c) Is presented with an attention to needs, objectives, activitiesand a defined means of evaluation.
(L. 1996 H.B. 999 § 1, A.L. 1999 H.B. 343, A.L. 2008 S.B. 788)