Perform pulmonary function and adjust equipment to obtain optimum results in therapy.

“Perform pulmonary function and adjust equipment to obtain optimum results in therapy.” is a core task performed by Respiratory Therapists. Among the occupation's 22 rated tasks, workers place it 6th by importance (#17 most important). About 74% of workers say it is relevant to their job.

This is a single occupation-specific task statement from O*NET. The figures below describe how central the task is to the job and what independent studies measure about AI and this kind of work — not a prediction that the task will be automated.

Work activities this task rolls up to

O*NET groups concrete tasks into broader work activities shared across many occupations.

• Administer diagnostic tests to assess patient health. in Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials
• Adjust equipment to ensure adequate performance. in Handling and Moving Objects

AI exposure

The OpenAI / Eloundou “GPTs are GPTs” study rates this task E0. No direct exposure — current language models give little or no time savings on this task.

Exposure measures whether a model could meaningfully speed the task up — it is an estimate of overlap with model capabilities, not a measure of whether the work will be done by software. The study's intermediate score (β) for this task is 0.00. Automation potential label: T1.

Other tasks in this occupation

• Perform endotracheal intubation to maintain open airways for patients who are unable to breathe on their own. · importance 4.9
• Provide emergency care, such as artificial respiration, external cardiac massage, or assistance with cardiopulmonary resuscitation. · importance 4.9
• Monitor patient's physiological responses to therapy, such as vital signs, arterial blood gases, or blood chemistry changes, and consult with physician if adverse reactions occur. · importance 4.8
• Set up and operate devices, such as mechanical ventilators, therapeutic gas administration apparatus, environmental control systems, or aerosol generators, following specified parameters of treatment. · importance 4.8
• Work as part of a team of physicians, nurses, or other healthcare professionals to manage patient care by assisting with medical procedures or related duties. · importance 4.7
• Maintain charts that contain patients' pertinent identification and therapy information. · importance 4.7
• Read prescription, measure arterial blood gases, and review patient information to assess patient condition. · importance 4.7
• Relay blood analysis results to a physician. · importance 4.7
• Inspect, clean, test, and maintain respiratory therapy equipment to ensure equipment is functioning safely and efficiently, ordering repairs when necessary. · importance 4.6
• Explain treatment procedures to patients to gain cooperation and allay fears. · importance 4.6
• Make emergency visits to resolve equipment problems. · importance 4.6
• Determine requirements for treatment, such as type, method and duration of therapy, precautions to be taken, or medication and dosages, compatible with physicians' orders. · importance 4.5
• Enforce safety rules and ensure careful adherence to physicians' orders. · importance 4.5
• Educate patients and their families about their conditions and teach appropriate disease management techniques, such as breathing exercises or the use of medications or respiratory equipment. · importance 4.4

See all tasks on the Respiratory Therapists page.

Sources for this page

Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.

• O*NET 30.3 U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development
• “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130 OpenAI / academic

Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.

@misc{singulariki-task-409,
  title  = {Perform pulmonary function and adjust equipment to obtain optimum results in therapy.},
  author = {{Singulariki}},
  year   = {2026},
  note   = {O*NET 30.3; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130. Accessed June 7, 2026},
  url    = {https://singulariki.com/tasks/task-409}
}