RC Week: Meliza Walsh Finds Purpose and Goodwill in Respiratory Care

Respiratory therapy has given Meliza Walsh, MHA, RRT, RRT-NPS, AE-C, more than a career. It also introduced her to lifelong friends and her husband, Brian Walsh, a past AARC president.

Today, as director of respiratory care services at Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston, Walsh is passionate about helping the next generation of RTs succeed. In honor of Respiratory Care Week, she reflects on her unexpected path into the profession, the impact RTs make on patients, and why respiratory therapy offers so many opportunities.

What first drew you to respiratory therapy, and when did you realize it was the right career for you?

I wasn’t aware of the respiratory therapy profession until I faced the financial hardship many college students still face today. Nursing school is very expensive, which was a limiting factor for me. I was born and raised in El Salvador before I moved to New York, so student financial aid or loans weren’t options for me.

Lucky for me, respiratory therapy is an affordable career to get into. I had completed all the prerequisite classes, so I researched my options and found a respiratory therapy school 10 minutes away from where I was living. I stopped by one day, and because the deadline for new enrollers was two days away, I applied immediately. 

What do you wish people understood about respiratory therapists and the role they play in overall healthcare?

I would love for people to understand that we do so much more than respiratory treatments. I’m guilty of that, too. When I was a respiratory therapy student, I thought we only treated asthma patients, worked in the intensive care units, intubated patients, or gave nebulized medications.

Once I was in the profession, I was given the opportunity to work on quality improvement initiatives, care for technology-dependent patients, and participate in asthma research—all opportunities presented to me because I was a respiratory therapist. I’ve been able to teach and present my work at the regional, state, and national levels. My passion for meeting patient needs has pushed me to become the clinician and leader I am today. 

I want patients to know that RTs have so much to offer, but only because our patients drive us to do better for them.

What makes Respiratory Care Week so important?

I think it’s an opportunity to highlight all the wins and recognize individual RTs for the excellent work they do and the impact they have on patients. At my two previous organizations, we recognized RTs with the PHIL Award, a national award that honors respiratory therapists nominated by patients or multidisciplinary teams for going above and beyond for their patients. I was fortunate to receive the award myself in 2021.

It’s also a great time to have fun, connect, eat good food, play games, and say, “Thank you so much for being an RT.”

It feels like Christmas.

What does this year’s RC Week theme of “Every Breath, Every Moment” mean to you?

In a second, things can change for the better or worse. As respiratory therapists, we have an opportunity to help make things better. While not every outcome will be positive, it’s reassuring as a clinician to know we made a difference and provided hope in high-stress situations.

What are good ways RTs can develop in their careers?

I think it’s important to highlight the opportunities AARC offers. In 2024, I participated in the Emerging Leaders Program, which shows AARC’s commitment to growing our profession. RTs moving into leadership roles don’t receive formal leadership training, and this program helps fill that gap by connecting participants with mentors and giving them opportunities to learn from experienced leaders and build skills to better serve their teams.

For someone who’s just getting started or thinking about getting started in respiratory therapy, what would you want them to know about the profession?

Respiratory therapy is a generous profession. It gives back to you so much more than you give. I have had the opportunity to do some remarkable things and be part of some awesome things, and I think that there’s just not enough said about that.

Obviously, you have to work for it, but that hard work earns you a beautiful community of RTs who want you to succeed. Some of my closest friends came from this profession. I just got back from a weekend girls’ trip to Disney with two of my dearest friends I met through AARC, and we all did the Emerging Leaders Program together.  

Something I want people to know as they start: Do not give up when things get hard. When you feel that resistance, don’t recoil. Keep working. If you’re feeling resistance, it’s because you’re creating change, and change moves us forward.