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BATON ROUGE — Today, Gov. John Bel Edwards has issued a proclamation declaring the week of October 24 as Respiratory Care Practitioners Week in Louisiana. This recognizes the thousands of trained medical professionals who are on the frontlines and have been continuously serving our state during the COVID-19 pandemic. Respiratory care practitioners are trained specifically to provide ventilation and aerosolized medicine treatments to those who suffer from serious and chronic lung diseases when they are hospitalized. They play a critical role every day in treating patients with life-threatening diseases, especially those who have also been diagnosed with COVID-19.

“This COVID-19 crisis has impacted all of us in some manner, but especially those with chronic lung diseases such as chronic bronchitis, asthma, emphysema and others,” said Gov. Edwards. “There is no cure for many of these illnesses and many who suffer and have also been diagnosed with COVID-19 have had to be hospitalized and placed on mechanical ventilators. Respiratory care practitioners have been at the forefront of providing the medical assistance needed to treat and rehabilitate them. I am grateful for each one of them. They have worked tirelessly throughout this pandemic and continue to do so. It takes someone with great skill and compassion to provide the kind of care they give, which can lead to a complete recovery, prolong life, or make the patient more comfortable. It is with great honor that I recognize all respiratory care practitioners in our state and their incredible work that means so much to their patients and their patients’ families.”

Click here to read the proclamation.