CDC 4H Block One Practice Test

Weaning from a ventilator means gradually reducing the machine’s support and letting the patient breathe more on their own while checking that gas exchange and work of breathing stay adequate. Respiratory therapists manage this by evaluating readiness, conducting spontaneous breathing trials, adjusting ventilator settings, and monitoring breathing effort, oxygenation, ventilation, and vital signs. The goal is to demonstrate the patient can breathe without help and be extubated when appropriate. Administering oxygen is supportive care used during weaning, but it doesn’t itself describe reducing ventilator support. Thoracentesis is a procedure to remove pleural fluid, not related to the weaning process. Stress tests assess exercise capacity and cardiovascular-respiratory response, not the step-by-step withdrawal from mechanical ventilation.