The Respiratory Therapy Department at Blythedale Children's Hospital provides comprehensive cardiopulmonary care to medically complex children of all ages, from infancy to young adulthood.
Contact information
Gerald Signorini, MBA, RRT, Director of Respiratory Therapy
Respiratory therapists serve as consultants to nurses, physicians, and other members of the health care team. Our staff consists of experienced respiratory therapists and respiratory therapy residents who provide excellent quality care, including inpatient services 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The department is equipped with the latest technological advancements in respiratory care, enabling RTs to provide robust, customized care and well-rounded education to both parents and our medically complex pediatric patients. At Blythedale, we have a dedicated Respiratory Therapy Clinical Education Specialist who focuses on staff, child, and family education. We pride ourselves in the education of parents and families in basic medical competencies to improve health outcomes and promote safe clinical decision making.
As a department that strives for innovation and excellence, Blythedale respiratory therapists are always in search of the newest technologies. Our RTs ensure that care delivery and clinical protocols reflect evidence-based practices. The pediatric population served by the Respiratory Therapy Department at Blythedale Children's Hospital are children who have medical complexities such as congenital heart defects, bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), complex feeding disorders, as well as other acute and chronic respiratory illnesses. RTs are undoubtedly an important sector of Blythedale Children's Hospital, providing essential, life-saving services to their patients.
Our respiratory therapists are registered/certified by the National Board for Respiratory Care (NBRC) and licensed by the New York State Education Department. Our team also consists of respiratory therapists who are Board Certified as Neonatal-Pediatric Specialists and Certified Asthma Educators by the NBRC. We also serve as a clinical affiliate and pediatric rotation site for Hartford University, Norwalk Community College, Stony Brook University, SUNY Sullivan, and Westchester Community College.
Click here to learn more about Blythedale's Pediatric Respiratory Therapy Residency Program.
Acquired and Traumatic Brain Injury
With the only dedicated post-acute pediatric brain injury unit in New York State - specifically constructed to treat children and adolescents with brain injuries - and our expertly trained clinical team, Blythedale is uniquely positioned to provide the best environment for recovery.
As technology continues to advance, children with special needs are becoming increasingly more integrated into the world around them. Blythedale's comprehensive Assistive Technology program, one of only a few such programs in New York State, is opening doors for these children.
Blythedale is the only specialty children’s hospital in New York State with the capability of providing the highest level of medical care and rehabilitation for children recovering from complex medical conditions, including childhood cancers.
Blythedale’s commitment to the highest level of medical and rehabilitative care, and ongoing integration of the newest cardiac support technologies for medically fragile children, is evident in our Cardiac Rehabilitation program.
As an expert in helping medically fragile children achieve their highest potential, Blythedale is well-suited to help transition a child with multiple complex chronic conditions from hospital to home.
Complex Post-Surgical Rehabilitation
For children recovering from multiple traumatic injuries, extensive orthopedic surgery or complex surgery, Blythedale offers a highly specialized, integrated approach to care.
Complex Wound and Burn Management
Blythedale is a center of excellence in treating children with complex burns and wounds. The goal of the complex wound rehabilitation team is to obtain maximum autonomy and functionality while maintaining the optimal integrity of the healing wound or grafts with scar control.
Blythedale is widely recognized as a leader in treating children with rare conditions, spinal cord injury, neuromuscular disorders including muscular dystrophy and other myopathies, neuropathies, motor neuron diseases and neuromuscular junction disorders as well as complex genetic syndromes.
Blythedale has a commitment to achieving the best outcomes for infants coming for intensive rehabilitation following Neonatal Intensive Care stays. With a staff of full-time neonatologists overseeing the care our infants, and the addition of neonatal fellows, Blythedale continues to push the boundaries of what post-acute neonatal care can provide to medically fragile infants.
Pre/Post Organ & Stem Cell Transplant
At Blythedale Children’s Hospital, a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week, pediatric attending staff supports infants, children and adolescents prior to and following complicated transplant procedures including heart, liver, kidney, bowel, and even multi-organ transplants.
Pulmonary hypertension is relatively rare, occurring in only two children per one million. Despite its low occurrence, Blythedale treated 30 children with pulmonary hypertension last year.
Blythedale’s Pulmonary Rehabilitation program is widely recognized as a national center of excellence due to the Hospital’s extraordinary success weaning fragile infants and children from respiratory support machines for an improved quality of life. Our parent training programs help ensure that caregivers are both confident and competent in caring for their child.
As the only pediatric specialty hospital in New York State, Blythedale Children’s Hospital has the ability to evaluate and treat complex feeding difficulties in children with a team of pediatric specialists who work exclusively with medically fragile children.
Eleven-year-old Savannah immediately fills any room she enters with her bright smile and sassy personality, never letting her complex medical condition define her. At birth, Savannah was diagnosed with a rare and life-threatening genetic disorder, Congenital Central Hypoventilation Syndrome (CCHS)...
Bringing your child home is no small feat when they're medically fragile. No family ever thinks they will be in the position of caring for a child with complex medical needs, but Blythedale’s innovative Parent and Family Education Program divides what initially seems like an overwhelming learning...
Ana Rivera found out she was pregnant on Halloween in 2020. She and her partner, Diana Vasquez, started preparing for the next chapter in their lives and their new arrival. However, on April 8, 2021, at just 26 weeks’ gestation, River Omari Rivera was born weighing a mere 2 lbs., 2 oz. and was just...
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At Blythedale we understand the value of balancing work and family. Our employees have the opportunity to grow both personally and professionally while making a meaningful contribution to improve the lives of children.
