Respiratory Therapy Appreciation – Jessie Roberts and Debbie Ahmad

Today we are spotlighting our incredible group of respiratory therapists who assist patients by helping to improve patients’ lung function and quality of life. Jessie Roberts and Debbie Ahmad are both respiratory therapists at Fort Sanders Regional who are dedicated to providing the best care to their patients. Learn more about Jessie and Debbie’s passion for respiratory therapy below.

Where are you from?

Jessie: Tazewell, Tennessee
Debbie: I’m originally from Indiana

How long have you worked at Fort Sanders Regional?

Jessie: I’ve worked for Covenant Health since 1998
Debbie: I have worked at Regional since 2000.

Tell us a little bit about your job at FSR?

Jessie and Debbie: We take care of patients with various respiratory issues. We are not central to one department and see patients throughout the hospital. We do different respiratory tests and work alongside the care team to make sure the patients receive the right treatment.

What attracted you to respiratory therapy?

Jessie: I’m not sure. I always knew I wanted to work in healthcare. I started taking classes for respiratory therapy in college and after meeting my educators and learning more about it I decided it was the right fit for me.

Debbie: I always knew I wanted to work in the medical field and started working in healthcare as a CNA. I would interact with the other respiratory therapists and I became fascinated with what they were doing. I liked that respiratory therapy gave me the opportunity to move around the hospital and work with different patients.

 What are some traits necessary to be a successful respiratory therapist?

Jessie and Debbie: You need to be good at multi-tasking, trouble -shooting, passionate about what you do and outgoing because you see so many patients.

What do you enjoy the most about being a respiratory therapist at Fort Sanders Regional?

Jessie: The people I work with. We have become like a family.
Debbie: I think we have a great team of physicians here at Fort Sanders Regional.

What do you enjoy doing in your free time?

Jessie: I spend most of my free time with my kids. I enjoy going to all of their extra-curricular activities.
Debbie: Gardening, hiking and spending time with my two granddaughters

What is your favorite food?

Jessie: Cheesecake
Debbie: Anything spicy

What is your favorite movie?

Jessie: I really like comedies. I don’t like sad or scary movies.
Debbie: I like Dirty Dancing.   

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