About
Mission Statement
The American Respiratory Care Foundation is dedicated to promoting respiratory health through the support of research, education, and patient-focused philanthropic activities in respiratory care.
Financial Reports
ARCF regularly files IRS Form 990. These forms are available online at GuideStar.
Board of Trustees
The Board of Trustees is comprised of thirteen professionals, including two emeritus Trustees, who conduct the business and manage the decisions of the American Respiratory Care Foundation. ARCF Trustees will serve four-year terms with no more than three consecutive cycles. Trustee nominations will be solicited yearly by the ARCF in collaboration with AARC and NBRC. Board of Trustees will appoint new trustees during the last quarter of the year from this list.

Chair
Michael T. Amato, MBA
Chief Executive Officer
InspiRx
Durham, NC
Mr. Amato has been in the respiratory field for 42 years and has held numerous management and executive positions with several companies including DHD Medical Products, Monaghan Medical Corp., and his current company InspiRx Pharma where he is President & CEO. Mr Amato has also held numerous Committee and Foundation positions including ALA, FDA, AAN, AARC International Council, and ARCF where he serves as Chair and has held that position for over 25 years.
Mr. Amato has held the respiratory community as his way of giving back all the wonderful companies and people who have certainly helped to shape his career and the ARCF has been his love for over 25 years and is proud of the growth of the ARCF and its role in supporting the AARC and all of respiratory care.

Vice Chair
Tonya A. Winders, MBA
CEO & President
Allergy & Asthma Network
Vienna, VA
Tonya Winders. MBA is currently the President and Chief Executive Officer of Allergy & Asthma Network, the leading patient advocacy organization dedicated to ending the needless death and suffering due to asthma, allergies and related conditions.
Tonya has over 17 years experience in leadership roles within the allergy and asthma industry. From sales and marketing leadership to managed markets access, she has worked tirelessly to ensure patients have access to effective diagnostic and treatment tools.
Tonya serves on several expert panels including the ATS Public Advisory Roundtable. Furthermore, she is on the board of directors for Not One More Life, American Respiratory Care Foundation and is the current president of the Global Allergy Asthma Patient Platform, representing 35 patient organizations throughout the world.
Personally, Tonya is the mother of five children, four of whom have asthma and/or allergies, ranging in age from 13-19 years old. She enjoys spending time with her husband of 21 years Brian Winders and cheering on her children in various sports.

Secretary/Treasurer
Joseph Lewarski, MHA, RRT, FAARC
Senior Vice President
Respiratory New Product Development
Drive DeVilbiss Healthcare
Joe has been working in healthcare for 34 years and has been a respiratory therapist for 32 of those years. He is an RRT and a Fellow of the American Association for Respiratory Care (FAARC). He holds undergraduate degrees in respiratory therapy and business administration and a master’s degree in healthcare administration. Joe has held numerous senior management and executive leadership positions in a variety of healthcare organizations and environments, including acute care, homecare, pharmacy, and most recently, medical device companies. He is a past AARC Homecare Section Chair and is past recipient of the ARCF award for excellence in homecare. Joe has served two terms on the AARC board of directors, including a term as Vice President of External Affairs.

Trustee
Anthony L DeWitt,
JD, RRT, FAARC
Partner
Bartimus, Frickleton, Robertson & Rader, PC
Jefferson City, MO
Anthony L. “Tony” DeWitt is an attorney in active practice in Missouri. For thirteen years he was a practicing respiratory therapist and department head in various hospitals in the United States. After seeing changes that affected the quality of care being given, he pursued a legal education with the aim of using his knowledge and skills to improve care. He has been the recipient of the NAACP President’s Award, the Missouri Coalition for Quality Care Service Award, and the Missouri Bar’s Pro Bono Service Award. He is also a fellow of the American Association for Respiratory Care. Tony is a frequent lecturer on legal ethics and provides frequent education to health care professionals on medical negligence topics. As a member of the Board, Tony advises on issues that touch on legal concerns.

Trustee
Sam P. Giordano,
MBA, RRT, FAARC
Carrollton, TX
Sam Giordano began his career in respiratory care over 50 years ago. He became a Registered Respiratory Therapist and worked in all capacities from staff therapist to director of respiratory services. Serving in that position at Barnes Hospital, (now BJC), in St. Louis, and Cook County Hospital in Chicago.
He then transitioned to the position of Director of Respiratory in Biomedical Services at St. Luke’s Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri.
He earned his undergraduate degree in health service administration from Park College, graduating Magna Cum Laude. He subsequently earned an MBA from University of Dallas.
Throughout his career he served as a volunteer with the American Association for Respiratory Care (AARC) on local, state, and national levels; he served on many committees, among which was the committee to assist in organizing local chapters into state societies. Sam was elected to AARC’s Board of Directors and other offices, including President. During his term at AARC, along with its members and state societies, he undertook a coordinated team effort to obtain legal recognition of the profession, via state licensure, throughout the United States.
At the end of this term Sam was offered the position of Executive Director/CEO of AARC. He served in that capacity for over 30 years, retiring in 2012.
Throughout his tenure, he also served as Publisher of Respiratory Care, assisting its outstanding Editors and editorial staff; a position he still holds today.
Sam also served as a Director of Brookhollow Bank of Dallas, and continues to serve as a volunteer patient advocate, as a Board member of the COPD Foundation, and current Chair of the US COPD Coalition.
He is a recipient of AARC’s highest honor, the Jimmy A. Young Medal, the Hector Leon Garza Award for Promoting International Excellence in International Respiratory Care, and Special Awards from the United States Air Force Cardiopulmonary Society, as well as a Certificate of Appreciation for Outstanding Contributions to the United States Army.
Sam is also proud to be an Eagle Scout with Bronze Palm.

Trustee
Neil MacIntyre, MD,
FAARC
Medical Director of Respiratory Care Services and Professor of Pulmonary Medicine
Duke University Medical Center
Durham, NC
Dr MacIntyre is a Professor of Medicine and Medical Director of Respiratory Care Services at Duke University. In his 31 year career, he has been principal investigator or co-principal investigator on over 37 clinical trials that have enrolled hundreds of patients. Among the most important of these have been the NIH funded ARDS Network evaluating many aspects of respiratory failure, the National Emphysema Treatment Trial (NETT) evaluating lung volume reduction surgery for emphysema and the Long Term Oxygen Treatment Trial (LOTT) evaluating oxygen therapy in COPD patients. He has held a number of national and international leadership positions, including the chair of the large ACCP/SCCM/AARC Evidence Based Guidelines Committee for Ventilator Weaning, the chair of the joint ATS/ERS Committee to Standardize DLCO, the chair of the ACCP Mechanical Ventilation Simulation Program, and on the steering/writing committees of ATS and AACVPR addressing pulmonary rehabilitation and exercise assessment. Within the respiratory care community, he has been on BOMA for two separate terms, an associate editor of Respiratory Care, and a long time trustee of ARCF.

Trustee
Bruce Rubin, MEngr, MD, MBA, FRCPC, FAARC
Professor and Chair, Department of Pediatrics
Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine
Richmond, VA
Bruce Rubin is the Jessie Ball duPont Distinguished Professor and Chair of Pediatrics at Virginia Commonwealth University and Physician in Chief of the Children’s Hospital of Richmond. He is also Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Physiology and Biophysics at VCU and has been named a Virginia Eminent Scholar by the Governor. He trained in Biomedical Engineering at Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar, and then did a fellowship in Paediatric Respirology and Critical Care at Sick Kids in Toronto. He holds the MD and Masters in Engineering degrees from Tulane and an MBA degree from Wake Forest University Babcock School of Business
Prof. Rubin received Lifetime Scientific Achievement Awards from the AARC and CIPP. He holds honorary appointments in 4 medical schools, is on the editorial board of 11 pulmonary journals, has published more than 300 original research papers and chapters, and holds eight patents. He is on the Board of the NIH funded Atlantic Pediatric Device Consortium. His research focus is regulation of mucus clearance in health and disease, airway inflammation, and aerosol delivery of medications.
Dr. Rubin is also a magician, elected to membership in the International Brotherhood of Magicians and over the past 20 years has taught medical magic in 31 countries on 5 continents.

Trustee
Gary A. Smith, RRT(HON), FAARC
Olathe, KS
Formerly a practicing respiratory therapist, Gary is also the former Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director of the NBRC. Mr. Smith is the former President of Applied Measurement Professionals, Inc. He was a member of the NBRC Board of Trustees from 1979-1983 and served as President of the NBRC in 1982 and 1983.
Gary is a former Chairman of the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA) and President of the National Organization for Competency Assurance (NOCA). In addition to his duties at the NBRC, Gary has also held the position of Secretary/Treasurer of the American Respiratory Care Foundation.

Trustee
James K. Stoller, MD, MS, FCCP, ATSF, FAARC
Chair, Education Institute
Jean Wall Bennett Professor of Medicine
Cleveland Clinic
Cleveland, OH
James K. Stoller, M.D., M.S., FCCP, ATSF, FAARC is a pulmonary/critical care physician who serves as Chairman of the Education Institute at Cleveland Clinic. He holds the Jean Wall Bennett Professorship in Emphysema Research at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine and the Samson Global Leadership Academy Endowed Chair at Cleveland Clinic. Dr. Stoller has had longstanding involvement in respiratory care as he served as the Section Head of Respiratory Care at Cleveland Clinic from 1988 to 2008 and as Director of the Respiratory Special Care Unit (ReSCU). A major focus of his work in respiratory care has been optimizing care delivery, especially through the implementation of respiratory care protocols. He has had longstanding clinical and scientific interest in emphysema and in alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, having authored 310 peer-reviewed papers and served as an Editor of Egan’s Fundamentals of Respiratory Care over the last 6 editions. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Alpha-1 Foundation and has served on the Board of Directors of the COPD Foundation, as a member of BOMA as the ATS representative.

Trustee
Mark A. Valentine, MBA, RRT
President, The Heart Hospital Baylor Plano
The Heart Hospital Baylor Denton
Plano, TX
Mark Valentine is the president of The Heart Hospital Baylor Plano, The Heart Hospital Baylor Denton, The Heart Hospital McKinney and Co-leader of the cardiovascular service line for Baylor Scott & White Health. Since January 2006, Valentine has been instrumental in growing and expanding the advanced services at The Heart Hospital Baylor Plano. As a result, the hospital is recognized as one of the top 10 largest heart surgery centers in the country, the largest cardiothoracic surgery program in Texas, and the busiest heart surgery center in the Dallas/Ft. Worth Metroplex. The Center for Medicare and Medicaid recently named The Heart Hospital Baylor Plano a 5 Star Hospital in quality outcomes and service in consecutive years ranking the hospital in the top 5% nationally.
These achievements were accomplished while maintaining the highest quality scores and service scores recognized by both The Society of Thoracic Surgeons and Press Ganey® which has rated The Heart Hospital Baylor Plano in the top 1% nationally since opening in January 2007. Under Valentine’s leadership, the hospital has received numerous national awards and recognition.
Valentine’s proven ability to organize resources to bring a vision to fruition range from leading a strategic expansion into a new market to introducing new technology into his hospital’s environment. His sense of urgency creates an aggressive pace toward project completion and he continues to demonstrate his aptitude for fund-raising. An articulate executive, Valentine is adept at recognizing the talent his colleagues possess and giving them “the keys to the franchise” to make decisions and keep their departments on a successful course.
Valentine earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Allied Medicine from Ohio State University and a Master’s of Business Administration in Health Care Administration from Baker College in Michigan.

Trustee
Teresa A. Volsko, MBA, MHHS, RRT, CMTE, FAARC
Director, Respiratory Care, Transport and the Communication Center
Interim Director, The Rebecca D. Considine Research Institute
Akron Children’s Hospital
Terry Volsko is the Director of Respiratory Care, Transport and the Communication Center and Interim Administrative Director of Operations of the Rebecca D Considine Research Institute. She serves the profession of Respiratory Care as a trustee for the NBRC, a board member for Lambda Beta Society, the editorial board for RC Journal and the Evidence Based Clinical Practice Guidelines Committee for the AARC. Terry has authored numerous peer-reviewed publications, and 2 textbooks.
As a respiratory therapist for more than three decades, I lead initiatives which supported research, education and philanthropic activities, enabling respiratory therapists to develop professionally, educate our community about pulmonary diseases and successfully raise funds for charitable endeavors. As a Trustee, I am able to direct my energy and talents in a way which will serve the profession and respiratory care community on a much broader level.

Emeritus
Dale Eiserman
Vice President of International Sales, Critical Care Division
VIASYS Healthcare
Palm Springs, CA

Emeritus
David J. Pierson, MD, FAARC
Harborview Medical Center
Seattle, WA
ARCF Executive Office
The Board of Trustees shall appoint an Executive Office to oversee day-to-day operations of the ARCF. The Executive Office will be charged by the ARCF Trustees to execute agreed upon duties and will be empowered by to represent the ARCF in agreed upon negotiations, program development, financial matters, personnel matters, and other administrative duties.

Executive Vice President
Thomas J. Kallstrom, MBA, RRT, FAARC
Irving, TX

Business Development
Timothy R. Myers, MBA, RRT, RRT-NPS, FAARC
Irving, TX

Foundation and Grants Coordinator
Crystal Maldonado
Irving, TX
Award Recipients
The 2019 ARCF Awards will be presented in New Orleans, LA, on Nov. 9, 2019, at the American Association for Respiratory Care’s AARC Congress 2019. The award winners include:

Richard D. Rice, MEd, RRT
Charles W. Serby COPD Research Fellowship

Maria Madden, MS, RRT-ACCS
Philips Respironics Fellowship in Mechanical Ventilation

Joel M. Brown II, RRT, FAARC
Vyaire Fellowship for Neonatal and Pediatric Therapists

Coral Ringer, MN, RN, CPN
Jeri Eiserman, RRT Professional Education Research Fellowship

Renee M. Bartle, RRT, RCP
Mallinckrodt Literary Award

Daniel D. Rowley, MSc, RRT- ACCS, RRT-NPS, RPFT, FAARC
Drager-Shreyas Roy, MD Memorial Literary Award

Jerry A. Krishnan, MD, PhD
Forrest M. Bird, MD, PhD, ScD Lifetime Scientific Achievement Award

Michael T. Amato, MBA
Hector Leon Garza, MD International Achievement Award

Tonya A. Winders, MBA
Dr. Charles H. Hudson Award for Cardiopulmonary Public Health

Barry J. Make, MD
Thomas L. Petty, MD Invacare Award for Excellence in Home Respiratory Care

Joyce Baker, MBA, RRT, RRT-NPS, AE-C
Mike West, MBA, RRT Patient Education Achievement Award

Michael McPeck, RRT, FAARC
Mitchell A. Baran Achievement Award

Sonya S. Park
Morton B. Duggan, Jr, Memorial Education Recognition Award

Gustavo Lopez
Jimmy A. Young Memorial Education Recognition Award

Mohaimeed Hamad Alshamrani
NBRC William W. Burgin, Jr., MD and Robert M. Lawrence MD Education Recognition Award

Marby R. McKinney, Med, RRT, RRT-NPS, AE-C
NBRC Gareth B. Gish, MS, RRT Memorial Education Recognition Award

Daniel U. Gochenour, MSc, RRT-ACCS, RRT-NPS, AE- C, CPPS
William F. Miller, MD Postgraduate Education Recognition Award

Khalsa Al Siyabi, BSc, RT — Oman
International Fellow

Yu-qi Liu, MD — China
International Fellow

Amsa Mairami, MBBS, FMCPaed — Nigeria
International Fellow

Yao Tian, Bachelor — China
International Fellow

Mohammed Alqahtani, MS, RRT
NBRC/AMP H. Frederick Helmholz, Jr. MD, Educational Research Grant

Gerald Moody, RRT-NPS
BOMA Travel Fund
Respiratory Care Journal Conferences
For the last 35 years Respiratory Care has presented Journal Conferences with the most important, timely, and proven information affecting the practice of respiratory everywhere. The proceedings appear in special issues of the Journal both in print and online.
Conference attendance is limited to the faculty and staff of the Journal. Each topic is thoroughly presented by an invited expert, followed by heavy discussion among the faculty. All state-of-the-art papers and discussions are then published in the Journal.
Journal Conferences are presented under the auspices of the ARCF. The ARCF invites corporations to become official sponsors after the topic of the conference is known. E-Mail us for more information about becoming a sponsor.
Upcoming Conference
59th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
COPD: Current Evidence and Implications for Practice
Conference Co-chairs:
Neil R MacIntyre MD FAARC
Meilan Han MD
Thomas Kallstrom MBA RRT FAARC
June 2–3, 2020 | St. Petersburg, FL
Past Conferences
58th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Monitoring Respiratory Function in Adult Acute Care”
Held June 10–11, 2019 in St. Petersburg, FL
57th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Noninvasive Respiratory Support in Adults”
Held June 14–15, 2018 in St. Petersburg, FL
56th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Respiratory Medications for COPD and Adult Asthma: Pharmacologic Actions to Clinical Applications”
Held June 22–23, 2017 in St. Petersburg, FL
55th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Pediatric Respiratory Care”
Held June 10–11, 2016 in St. Petersburg, FL
54th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Respiratory Care Controversies III”
“Held June 5–6, 2015 in St. Petersburg, FL
53rd Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Aerosol Drug Delivery in Respiratory Care”
Held June 6–7, 2014 in St. Petersburg, FL
52nd Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Adult Artificial Airways and Airways Adjuncts”
Held June 14–15, 2013 in St. Petersburg, FL
51st Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Adult Mechanical Ventilation in Acute Care: Issues and Controversies”
Held September 7–8, 2012 in St. Petersburg, FL
50th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Oxygen”
Held April 13–14, 2012 in San Francisco, CA
49th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“The Chronically Critically Ill”
Held September 9–10, 2011 in St. Petersburg, FL
48th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Pulmonary Function Testing”
Held March 25–27, 2011 in Tampa, FL
47th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Neonatal and Pediatric Respiratory Care: What Does the Future Hold?”
November 5–7, 2010 in Scottsdale, AZ
46th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Patient Ventilator Internaction”
Held March 19–21, 2010 in Cancun, Mexico
45th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Sleep Disorders: Diagnosis and Treatment”
Held December 10–12, 2009 in San Antonio, TX
44th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Respiratory Care Controversies II”
Held March 13–15, 2009 in Cancun, Mexico
43rd Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Respiratory Care and Cystic Fibrosis”
Held September 26–28, 2008 in Scottsdale, AZ
42nd Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Non-Invasive Ventilation in Acute Care: Controversies and Emergency Concepts”
Held March 7–9, 2008 in Cancun, Mexico
41st Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Meeting the Challenges of Asthma”
convened on September 28–30, 2007 at the JW Marriott Camelback Resort & Spa in Scottsdale, Arizona.
40th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Mechanical Ventilation in Mass Casualty Scenarios”
Held July 16–17, 2007 in Reno, Nevada
39th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Airway Clearance: Physiology, Pharmacology, Techniques and Practice”
Held April 21–23, 2007 in Cancun, Mexico.
38th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Respiratory Controversies in the Critical Care Setting”
Held October 6–8, 2006 in Banff, Alberta, Canada
37th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Neuromuscular Disease in Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine”
Held March 17–19,2006 in Ixtapa, Mexico
36th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Metered Dose Inhalers (MDIs) and Dry Powder Inhalers (DPIs) in Aerosol Therapy”
Held April 29–May 1, 2005 in Los Cabos, Mexico
35th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Ventilator Associated Pneumonia”
Held February 25–27,2005, Cancun, Mexico
34th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Applied Respiratory Physiology: Use of Ventilator Waveforms and Mechanics in the Management of Critically Ill Patients”
Held April 16–19,2004, Cancun, Mexico
33rd Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Computers in Respiratory Care”
Held October 3–5,2003, Banff, Alberta, Canada
32nd Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: Translating New Understanding Into Improved Patient Care”
Held
31st Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Current Trends in Neonatal and Pediatric Respiratory Care”
Held August 16–18, 2002, in Keystone, Colorado.
30th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Liquid Nebulization: Emerging Technologies”
29th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Invasive Mechanical Ventilation in Adults: Implementation, Management, Weaning, & Follow-up”
28th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Evidence-Based Medicine In Respiratory Care”
27th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Transtracheal Gas Insufflation (TGI): Current Status and Future Prospects”
26th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Palliative Respiratory Care”
25th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Consensus Conference V: Aerosols and Delivery Devices”
Held January 10–12, 1991, Cancun, Mexico
24th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Long-Term Oxygen Therapy”
23rd Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Artificial Airways”
22nd Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Inhaled Nitric Oxide”
21st Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Sleep Disordered Breathing”
Proceedings were published in Respiratory Care> journal, April 1998.
20th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Non-invasive Position Pressure Ventilation”
Proceedings were published in Respiratory Care Journal, April 1997.
19th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Emerging Health Care Delivery Models and Respiratory Care”
18th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Mechanical Ventilation: Ventilatory Techniques, Pharmacology and Patient Management Strategies”
17th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Resuscitation in Acute Care Hospitals”
16th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Consensus Conference III: Assessing Innovation on Mechanical Bentilatory Support”
15th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Controversies in Home Respiratory Care”
14th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Oxygenation in the Critically Ill Patient”
13th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Emergency Respiratory Care”
12th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Consensus Conference II: The Essentials of Mechanical Ventilators”
11th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Respiratory Care of Infants and Children”
10th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Consensus Conference 1: Aerosol Delivery”
Proceedings were published in Respiratory Care Journal and Chest, September 1991.
9th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Noninvasive Monitoring in Respiratory Care”
8th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Pulmonary Function Testing”
7th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“PEEP”
6th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Mechanical Ventilation”
5th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Neonatal Respiratory Care”
4th Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Monitoring of Critically Ill Patients”
3rd Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Perioperative Respiratory Care”
2nd Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“The Management of Acute Respiratory Failure”
1st Respiratory Care Journal Conference
“Complications of Respiratory Therapy”