Current state of respiratory physiotherapy in intensive care units of three ministry of public health hospitals in the city of quito, ecuador

Gabriela Tonato

Universidad de Salamanca, Spain

Biography :

Gabriela Tonato, PT, holds a de­gree in Physical Therapy from the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador and a Master’s in Re­spiratory and Cardiac Physiother­apy from the Universidad Autóno­ma de Madrid. She is a specialist in respiratory rehabilitation at the Hospital de Especialidades Eu­genio. With over five years of ex­perience in critical care, research, and teaching, she actively trains future respiratory physiothera­pists at leading universities in Ec­uador, promoting the application of evidence-based techniques. Her career combines innovative research, advanced clinical prac­tice, and continuous education, leading to scientific publications aimed at optimizing outcomes for critically ill patients and strength­ening the skills of healthcare pro­fessionals

Abstract :

Introduction: Respiratory therapy is essential for the man­agement of critically ill patients in intensive care units. De­spite the increase in the training of respiratory physiothera­pists and the growing availability of hospital beds, the lack of official data makes it difficult to assess its development and compare current clinical practice with evidence-based rec­ommendations issued by international organizations.

Objective: To analyze the current state of respiratory physio­therapy in the intensive care units of three hospitals belonging to the Ministry of Public Health, considering the availability of human and physical resources, the techniques employed, and the implementation of clinical protocols.

Methodology: This is an observational, cross-sectional, and descriptive study. The study population consists of respira­tory physiotherapists working in the intensive care units of three Ministry of Public Health hospitals in Quito, Ecuador. The project was conducted through the application of two surveys, whose content validity was approved by a panel of experts. The first survey evaluates the Descriptive and Func­tions dimension, while the second evaluates the Academic and Labor dimension.

Expected results: It is expected to identify deficiencies that affect the performance of respiratory physiotherapists by evaluating the relationship between their number and the number of patients treated, as well as the techniques and procedures applied. This analysis will help identify areas re­quiring updates or additional training and, by comparing clinical practice with national and international standards, propose strategies to optimize care and improve clinical per­formance quality.

Keywords: respiratory therapy, hospital respiratory therapy service, respiratory physiotherapy, intensive care unit, ICU