Neonatal / Pediatric Respiratory Therapist (RRT-NPS) Recruiters
Healthcare Headhunters recruits healthcare professionals for employers. No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.
This is what we do all day: recruit healthcare professionals.
Hiring a neonatal or pediatric respiratory therapist means separating specialty credentials from the bedside experience your NICU, PICU, or children's service actually needs.
No postings. No stacks of resumes. No chasing. You interview a short list.
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.
Need someone now? Call 305-306-4829.
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What happens next
- We review your role, responsibilities and location.
- Ivan or a senior team member will reach out soon.
- You meet a focused shortlist when qualified candidates fit the agreed search.
- Fees.
- No upfront fee. Pay only if you hire, under the signed agreement.
- Exclusivity.
- Set out in the signed client agreement.
- Confidentiality.
- We agree the brief before outreach. This is not a promise of absolute anonymity.
- No hire.
- No hire means no fee on standard searches.
What does an open seat cost you every week?
An open role costs you more than the recruiting fee. Someone covers the work, waits for care, or stops a service. We ask what is falling behind and who is carrying it. Use your own figures to compare the cost of waiting with the cost of hiring.
The seat is costing you every week.
Overtime, diverted patients, a stretched team and a schedule held together by favors.
The posting brought the wrong people.
Applicants arrive, but the person who has done this exact work is employed and not looking.
You are the one chasing.
Screening calls, no-shows and follow-ups land on the desk of someone with a facility to run.
What does this hire really come down to?
Healthcare Headhunters recruits respiratory therapists for permanent neonatal and pediatric roles. We start with your patient population, respiratory equipment, and shift duties. A therapist experienced with premature infants may have limited exposure to older children, transport, or emergency admissions. Your search should make those differences visible before interviews begin.
During a shift, this therapist may assess respiratory status, check ventilator settings against orders, manage airway equipment, document care, and report changes. Ask which duties the candidate performed directly and which belonged to another team.
The RRT-NPS designation combines the Registered Respiratory Therapist credential with neonatal and pediatric specialty certification. Verify current credentials and the license applicable to your jurisdiction. Decide whether NPS certification is necessary for your opening or preferred alongside documented specialty experience. We screen credentials, work history, and experience with your patient ages and respiratory equipment. Your clinical team verifies credentials and assesses bedside skills for the assigned neonatal or pediatric service.
We arrange locum tenens, travel and contract coverage on request. Credentialing, licensing and malpractice coverage are confirmed per engagement before anyone starts.
What do we check before you see anyone?
Patient mix: Ask, 'Which neonatal and pediatric age groups did you treat during your recent shifts?' A useful answer identifies unit types, common assignments, and direct responsibilities. Listen for clear boundaries rather than a claim to handle every population. Ask which ventilators and modes the candidate used recently.
- Ventilator work: Ask, 'Describe your role when a ventilated infant's condition changed.' Look for assessment, communication with the clinical team, actions within orders and scope, and documentation.
- Airway responsibilities: Ask, 'What did you personally do during an urgent airway event involving a child?' The answer should distinguish preparation, equipment checks, bedside support, and procedures authorized at that employer. Do not mistake observation for independent experience.
- Shift coverage: Ask, 'How did you handle simultaneous requests from the NICU and pediatric service?' Useful evidence includes escalation, handoff details, and how the therapist obtained help. Confirm whether your position involves cross-coverage, deliveries, transport, or resuscitation attendance.
- Family communication: Ask, 'How did you explain respiratory equipment to a worried parent while care continued?' Look for plain language, respect for the family's questions, and clear limits on what the therapist could explain without involving the treating clinician.
- Credential and training history: Ask, 'Which credentials are current, and when did you last complete neonatal or pediatric emergency training?' Compare dates with documents and your policy. Ask how recent orientation, competency reviews, and equipment training relate to the proposed assignment.
Where do we find them, and why would they move?
We look at respiratory departments in children's hospitals, hospitals with NICUs, pediatric intensive care services, and regional hospitals with neonatal programs. The department's name is only a starting point. We ask about actual assignments, because some therapists rotate broadly while others remain within one service.
Candidates may consider a move for steadier scheduling, a different patient mix, less travel, or more consistent specialty assignments. We ask whether the candidate will accept your rotation between neonatal and pediatric services, transport duties, and delivery attendance where applicable. A therapist seeking neonatal-only work may not accept a role that regularly covers adult wards, even when the title highlights pediatrics.
Which mistakes stall the search?
A common mistake is treating NPS certification as proof of recent bedside practice. Ask when the candidate last held regular neonatal or pediatric assignments and what those shifts involved. Another is leaving delivery attendance or transport out of the brief. If these duties apply, state their frequency, team structure, and orientation process before presenting candidates.
Advertising one specialty while expecting broad hospital coverage. Describe adult assignments, overnight staffing, and escalation support so both sides can assess the match.
How would we run the search for this opening?
Tell us which services the therapist covers, the usual patient ages, shift pattern, and equipment. We discuss recent assignments, employment history, specialty credentials, and reasons for moving. Your team compares shortlisted candidates' recent neonatal and pediatric assignments with your unit's patient mix.
Define the assignment
Separate duties expected after orientation from duties needing additional training. Identify the license, credentials, and emergency training your hiring process checks.
Screen relevant practice
We ask for concrete examples of ventilation work, airway support, and handoffs. You receive candidates whose stated experience matches the work described, with gaps identified for interview.
Complete your hiring review
Clinical interviews should distinguish direct ventilator and airway responsibilities from observation. Use your competency assessment and credentialing process to confirm readiness and identify orientation needs for cross-coverage or transport. No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire. We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement.
Where this search connects
Cardiovascular, Respiratory & Neurodiagnostic Technologists
SpecialtyCardiac Cath Lab Technologist (Cardiovascular Invasive Specialist, RCIS)
Related roleElectrophysiology Lab Technologist (EP Tech)
Related roleRespiratory Therapist (RRT, CRT, RT)
Related rolePolysomnographic Technologist (Sleep Tech, RPSGT)
Related roleNational median annual wage. SOC 29-1126, Respiratory Therapists.
BLS reports Respiratory Therapists as one occupation. It does not publish a separate estimate for Neonatal / Pediatric Respiratory Therapist (RRT-NPS), its setting or its engagement terms.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS, 2025-05, released 2026-05-15. View source. See the full guide.
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Can NICU experience substitute for PICU experience?
NICU practice may not include the older children or emergency admissions seen in your PICU. Ask about older children, pediatric airways, equipment, and emergency assignments before deciding what orientation would be needed. NICU experience alone does not establish readiness for every pediatric assignment.
Should NPS certification be mandatory for our opening?
Use your facility's policy and the assignment to decide. NPS certification should not be presented as a universal legal mandate or substituted for recent specialty practice.
How should we describe delivery attendance?
State whether attendance is routine or requested for selected deliveries. Explain the therapist's duties, team support, and training checked before assignment.
What matters when the role includes pediatric transport?
Ask about transport-specific experience, equipment, handoffs, and responsibility during movement. Bedside experience does not by itself establish transport readiness.
Can we recruit into our neonatal per diem pool?
Yes, per diem means placement into your own pool, not filling individual shifts. Describe orientation, expected availability, and which services the pool therapists cover.
What should you send us about this role?
Send us the role, where the person will work and what needs to change with this hire. We will ask about the work, not just the title. Share any license or schedule limits that could rule someone out before we begin the search.
Share your neonatal and pediatric coverage needs, credentials, and shift expectations. We can help turn them into a focused search.
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire. We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement.
What happens next
- We review your role, responsibilities and location.
- Ivan or a senior team member will reach out soon.
- You meet a focused shortlist when qualified candidates fit the agreed search.
- Fees.
- No upfront fee. Pay only if you hire, under the signed agreement.
- Exclusivity.
- Set out in the signed client agreement.
- Confidentiality.
- We agree the brief before outreach. This is not a promise of absolute anonymity.
- No hire.
- No hire means no fee on standard searches.
Which other positions in this family should you consider?
What do you get at each step of the search?
Our process for every search: calibrate the seat with you, map the market, research the real people, reach out to each one personally, qualify them in live conversation, then hand you a short list with a written brief on each person and support through the offer.
Search Calibration
You get an agreed brief: the work, reporting line, credentials, schedule, and offer you can make.
Market Mapping
You get a search aimed at relevant backgrounds, including people working now who have not applied.
Professional Contact Intelligence
We check appropriate ways to reach the people identified for your search. You do not have to chase them yourself.
Persistent Personalized Outreach
We explain your actual job and follow up with people who may consider a conversation.
Live Candidate Qualification
You see people we have spoken with about the work, interest, and practical fit, not an unread resume pile.
Candidate Intelligence and Process Support
You get a written brief and support through interviews and offer discussions. You make the hiring decision.
How long will it take to see a short list?
That depends on the job, schedule, available people, and what your employer can offer. We discuss those constraints before outreach and update you as candidates respond. We do not promise a fixed shortlist date. We check the job brief before arranging interviews. Tell us which parts of the role you can change.
What if a candidate receives a counteroffer?
We ask why the person wants to move and discuss competing decisions before an offer. A counteroffer can still change their choice. Keep the duties and offer clear rather than assuming more money settles every concern. Tell us early if parts of your offer cannot change, so the candidate hears it from us first.
What are the replacement terms?
We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement. Ask us to walk through those terms before you sign, so you know how a replacement would work for your opening and who would start it.
What do we not do in a standard permanent search?
We do not bill standard contingency search by the hour or simply repost your job. Temporary coverage is a separate arrangement. Any retainer or different engagement must be agreed, not assumed. Tell us early if you need coverage while the permanent search runs.