Children's National Hospital logo
Children's National Hospital
Washington, District of Columbia

Respiratory Therapist II PRN

Respiratory TherapistPer Diem

Listed compensation

$35.19-$58.64/hr

The week · per this posting

Ask the employer about the work setting, call expectations, weekend coverage and time off.

Posted 17m ago · Verified live

Job Description

1731 Bunker Hill Road NE Washington, DC 20017

Kids Are Our Everything.

Department: 10533 RSC - Respiratory Therapy

Pay Range

$35.19 - $58.64

Shifts: 7am-7pm or 7pm-7am

Who We Are

Children’s National Rehabilitation and Specialized Care Center (RSC) provides family-centered medical and therapy services for children from infancy through age 21 with complex medical conditions.

Our inpatient programs deliver transitional medical care and rehabilitation, helping children safely move from acute care settings to home. Our outpatient services extend this care through ongoing, individualized medical and therapy support in a family-focused environment.

At RSC, you’ll be part of an interdisciplinary team of highly skilled and compassionate professionals who are committed to making a meaningful difference. Our clinicians collaborate closely to deliver innovative, personalized care and the most advanced rehabilitation services in the region. We invite you to grow your career with us while helping children reach their fullest potential.

What You’ll Do

As a Respiratory Therapist at RSC, you will play a vital role in supporting children with a wide range of respiratory conditions and care needs. In this role, you will provide comprehensive respiratory care, including airway management (suctioning and tracheostomy care), administration of inhaled medications, bronchopulmonary hygiene, and management of mechanical ventilation.

You will also serve as a key educator, guiding patients and their families on respiratory conditions, disease management, and the safe and effective use of medications and equipment—both during their stay and as they prepare for a successful transition home.

In addition to providing care on our transitional nursing unit, you will collaborate with interdisciplinary teams to support the safe transport of mechanically ventilated patients within and outside the organization as needed.

What You'll Need

Minimum Education

  • Graduate of a Committee on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (CoARC) approved program for respiratory care.
  • Associate degree or bachelor's degree (Preferred)

Minimum Work Experience

  • Six months post-graduate experience in all aspects of respiratory care, including critical care background (Required)
  • Neonatal/pediatric experience (Preferred)
  • Required Licenses and Certifications
  • Must meet DC licensure requirements. (Required)
  • Registered (R.R.T.) by the NBRC. (Required)
  • BLS certification. (Required)
  • PALS certification. (Required)
  • ACLS, NPS, NRP (Preferred)

Required Skills/Knowledge

  • Demonstration of proficient skills for ventilator management required.
  • Clinical evaluation skills required.
  • Strong communication skills required.
  • Ability to handle stressful situation.
  • Good time management skills required.
  • Active member of the AARC, and AARC state affiliation preferred.
  • Participation in activities which further professional growth for self and the department is preferred.

Functional Accountabilities

Operate various types of mechanical ventilators, airway management (suctioning and tracheostomy trach care and change) and administering medical gas therapy as needed.

Administers respiratory therapy inhaled medications, bronchopulmonary hygiene/drainage; assisting with breathing exercises; monitoring physiological responses to therapy, such as vital signs, adverse reactions and capillary/arterial blood gases.

Evaluate the effects to respiratory therapy treatments by observing, noting, and evaluating patient's progress; recommending adjustments and modifications.

Educate patients and their families about their conditions and teach appropriate disease management techniques, such as breathing exercises and the use of medications and respiratory equipment

Transports mechanically ventilated patients internally within the organization and externally outside the organization.

Maintains professional and technical knowledge by attending continuing education workshops;

Documents patient care services received in MedHost the Electronic Medical Record.

Inspect, clean, test and maintain respiratory therapy equipment to ensure equipment is functioning safely and efficiently.

What You'll Receive

Benefits That Support You

  • Comprehensive health coverage, including medical, prescription, infertility, and transgender health services.
  • Generous paid time off, including vacation accrual from day one, sick leave, holidays, and a personal day.
  • Financial wellness support, including a 401(k) plan and healthcare and dependent care spending accounts.
  • Employer-paid life, AD&D, and long-term disability coverage, with optional supplemental plans.

Additional perks, including tuition assistance, fitness resources, employee assistance, commuter benefits, and more.

Why Join Us

Nationally Recognized Excellence – Consistently ranked among the Top 10 Children’s Hospitals in the nation by U.S. News & World Report.

Leading Pediatric Care – One of the largest and most comprehensive children’s hospitals in the country, offering nationally ranked specialties and cutting-edge treatments.

Innovation & Research – A premier academic medical center with a strong commitment to pediatric research, education, and advancing the future of child health.

Mission-Driven Culture – Dedicated to providing family-centered care while fostering a collaborative, supportive environment for clinical teams.

The disclosed salary range includes the minimum and maximum rates within which Children’s National believes an individual’s base pay rate will fall for this position. It is not typical for an individual to be hired at or near the maximum of the pay range.

The exact pay rate for this position will be based on a variety of factors in alignment with the Children’s National compensation philosophy.

These factors are legitimate and non-discriminatory including, but not limited to, the current market conditions; organizational needs; the individual’s combination of prior work experience, level of education, knowledge, skills, and other qualifications.

Children’s National is committed to providing a fair and competitive total rewards package to each of our employees. This base salary range does not include our comprehensive benefits package or any additional compensation for which this position may be eligible.

Childrens National Hospital is an equal opportunity employer that evaluates qualified applicants without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sex, age, marital status, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender, identity, or other characteristics protected by law. The “Know Your Rights” poster is available here: and the pay transparency policy is available here: Know Your RightsPay Transparency Nondiscrimination Poster.

Please note that it is the policy of Children's National Hospital to ensure a “drug-free” work environment: a workplace free from the illegal use, possession or distribution of controlled substances (as defined in the Controlled Substances Act), or the misuse of legal substances, by all staff (management, employees and contractors). Though recreational and medical marijuana are now legal in the District of Columbia, Children's National and its affiliates maintain the right, in accordance with our policy, to enforce a drug-free workplace, including prohibiting recreational or prescribed marijuana.

Key Responsibilities

The Respiratory Therapist provides comprehensive care including airway management, mechanical ventilation, and administration of inhaled medications to pediatric patients. They also educate families on disease management and assist in the safe transport of mechanically ventilated patients.

Requirements

Candidates must have a degree from a CoARC-approved program and at least six months of post-graduate experience in respiratory care. Required certifications include RRT, BLS, and PALS, along with active DC licensure.

Qualifications

Education
Professional certificate or licensure

Certifications

ACLS (preferred)

Key Skills

Inhaled medication administrationPatient educationVital signs monitoringArterial blood gas analysisStress managementPatient transport

Respiratory Therapy Career Context

Of the 40 active Respiratory Therapy listings this role was benchmarked against, 3% are remote, 60% have no call, 50% require no weekends.

Respiratory Therapy pay on WeekdayDoc is down 1.2% vs. the prior quarter (through Sep 2026).

The cost-of-living index for District of Columbia is 109.9 (US average = 100; BEA Regional Price Parities (2024)), so the posted ~$98k midpoint carries the purchasing power of roughly $89k in an average-cost state. 64.3% of District of Columbia clinicians report burnout symptoms in WeekdayDoc's Burnout Index (2026-01 data).

Top contract/1099 Respiratory Therapist Jobs

40 matches · ranked by pay

Salary Distribution30 jobs · 25 employers

9
<$100k
14
$100k-115k
4
$115k-130k
3
$130k-145k

Annual compensation range

Benefits & Perks27 jobs · 25 employers

401k / retirement match
89% this job
Sign-on bonus
30%
Relocation assistance
11%
PSLF eligible
11%
Loan repayment
7%

Share of similar jobs offering each benefit

#1

Respiratory Therapist - per diem, day shiftPer Diem

Beth Israel Lahey Health · Danvers, Minnesota

$39.59-$58.83/hr
#2

Respiratory Therapist II PRNPer Diem

Sentara Health · South Boston, Virginia

$37.61-$55.27/hr
#3

Respiratory Therapist

$35.5-$53.25/hr
#4

Registered Respiratory Therapist MRMC - 32 hours Days

$29.71-$53.49/hr
+ 38 more · ranked by pay

Work-life snapshot

median 3.0this job 3.0
Better work-life than 50% of Respiratory Therapy listings

Listing-based score, 0–10, across 3,787 comparable listings. Shaded area = the share scoring below this one.

Living in Washington

Typical 3-bedroom home value
$642k
Typical market rent
$2,517/mo
Residents’ average commute
30 min
Metro price indexU.S. average = 100
108.9
State income tax
Up to 10.8%
Sources & methodology

Sources: Zillow home values (Aug 2026), Zillow market rents (Aug 2026), U.S. Census ACS 2024 five-year.

BEA 2024 · Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV metro prices. Housing figures are city-level.

City-level figures. Not a cost-of-living guarantee.

Children's National Hospital logo

About Children's National Hospital

Hospitals and Health Care
Washington, DC
5,001-10,000 employees

Benefits & Perks

Comprehensive health coverage (medical, prescription, infertility, transgender health services)
Generous PTO (vacation accrual from day one, sick leave, holidays, personal day)
401(k) plan
Healthcare and dependent care spending accounts
Employer-paid life, AD&D, and long-term disability coverage
Tuition assistance
Fitness resources
Employee assistance program