Respiratory therapists and respiratory therapy technicians--also known as respiratory care practitioners --evaluate, treat, and care for patients with breathing disorders. Respiratory therapists assume primary responsibility for all respiratory care treatments, including the supervision of respiratory therapy technicians. Respiratory therapy technicians provide specific, well-defined respiratory care procedures under the direction of respiratory therapists and physicians. In clinical practice, many of the daily duties of therapists and technicians overlap, although therapists generally have more experience than technicians. In this statement, the term respiratory therapists includes both respiratory therapists and respiratory therapy technicians .