The practical role of the respiratory therapist in the standard apnea test procedure for declaration of death via neurologic criteria in adults.

Introduction: Respiratory therapists (RTs) in the intensive care unit can at times find themselves involved in and assisting during the performance of the apnea test (ApT). The ApT is a clinically complex procedure and is the last part of the clinical declaration of death by neurologic criteria (DNC) protocol and requires close collaboration between the physicians and the RTs. As such, the ApT should be performed with the upmost attention to detail.