Summary
Trisha Tindall, a 2022 Ozarks Technical Community College graduate, was awarded a fellowship from the American Respiratory Care Foundation (ARCF) for research. Tindall’s project analyzing the efficacy of flow sensors on ventilators for neonatal patients earned the ARCF’s 2022 Vyaire Fellowship for Neonatal and Pediatric Therapists.
Trisha Tindall, a 2022 Ozarks Technical Community College graduate, was awarded a fellowship from the American Respiratory Care Foundation (ARCF) for research. Tindall’s project analyzing the efficacy of flow sensors on ventilators for neonatal patients earned the ARCF’s 2022 Vyaire Fellowship for Neonatal and Pediatric Therapists.
“I was shocked when I received the email that I’d won,” Tindall said. “I was the only student selected for this award, and it is gratifying to be chosen from a group that included long-practicing respiratory therapists.
Tindall earned one of only four fellowships awarded out of more than 180 project submissions. She is the first OTC respiratory therapy student to receive an award of this nature.
Tindall’s paper is titled “Analyzing Flow Sensor Location to Neonatal Breath Trigger Abilities on Multiple Ventilator Platforms.” Ventilators have sensors that monitor a patient’s inspiratory muscles to determine when the patient needs to take a breath. The inspiratory muscles are much smaller and weaker for infants compared to an older child or adult. Tindall’s research examined three different ventilators with sensors closer and farther away from the patient. Her research determined that the ventilator with the sensor farther away from the patient was more effective and accurate in determining when the patient needed to breathe.
Tindall received the award at the American Association of Respiratory Care convention held in New Orleans Nov. 9-12.
Tindall currently works as a respiratory therapist at CoxHealth.
Beginning in January of 2023, OTC will offer a bachelor’s degree in respiratory therapy in addition to an associate degree. That will be the first bachelor’s degree in any subject ever offered at a community college in Missouri.
