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SLEEP DISORDERS CENTER
In The News
Poor sleep
may be dragging you down
Salina Regional Health Center Sleep Disorders
Center Receives Accreditation
Salina Regional Health Center
set the standard of care for its sleep lab by becoming fully accredited from
the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM). With the addition of Michael
Versali, M.D., medical director for the sleep lab, as well as passing the
lengthy accreditation process, Salina Regional Health Center has earned the
title of becoming a Certified Sleep Disorders Center.
“The AASM congratulates the
Salina Regional Health Center Sleep Disorders Center on fulfilling the high
standards required for receiving accreditation as a sleep disorder center,”
said Michael J. Satcia, M.D., president of the American Academy of Sleep
Medicine. “The center is a significant resource to the local medical
community and will provide academic and scientific value in addition to the
highest quality care for patients suffering from sleep disorders.”
To receive a five-year
accreditation, a sleep center must meet or exceed all standards for
professional quality healthcare as designated by the Academy. The American
Academy of Sleep Medicine accreditation process involves detailed inspection
of a center’s facility and staff, including an evaluation of testing
procedures, patient contacts, and physician training. Additionally, the
facility’s goals must be clearly stated and include plans for positively
affecting the quality of medical care in the community it services.
Currently, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine accredits 773 medicine
centers and laboratories across the country.
Jerry Houchin, RRT,
coordinator of the Sleep Disorders Center, is excited about the new status
and what it means to the community and region. “The accreditation fits in
with the hospital’s overall plan of providing world class service. It’s
proof to our patients and third party payers that a standard of care is
being met by this facility. We are bringing excellence of care to our
patients.”
Sleep disorders affect
families and relationships. Often the person who suffers from a sleep
disorder is relegated to a spare bedroom or sofa at night. The person might
snore or thrash about during sleep. “We have had patients who have truly
been concerned about their marriages,” Houchin says. “I can remember a wife
telling one of our patients that she didn’t think she could live with the
fact that she feared he would stop breathing and never wake up.”
Fortunately, the sleep center
detected sleep apnea, a treatable disorder. Houchin says that such success
stories are a common occurrence at the sleep center.
The Sleep Disorders Center is
located on the lower level of the Salina Medical Arts Building, just south
of the hospital. Patients are referred to the center by their physician for
a sleep study and the results are used by the physician to select a course
of treatment.
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Poor sleep may be dragging you down
David Pantle was experiencing difficulty getting out of
bed, headaches and a severe lack of energy. He had all the classic symptoms
of a sleeping disorder.
Pantle’s physician referred him to the Sleep Lab at
Salina Regional in order to accurately diagnose the problem.
Patients report to the lab’s location on the lower
level of the Salina Medical Arts Building anywhere between 8:30 p.m. and
10:30 p.m. for a night’s sleep. There, lab technicians prepare patients for
the study by attaching 22 electrodes to the body that will monitor
respiratory, brain and cardiac activity; eye movements; muscle tension in
the jaw; nasal and oral airflow; abdominal, chest and leg movements; and
blood oxygen levels. The wires to the electrodes are bundled so that they
can be easily unplugged if a patient needs to get up in the night.
“It’s the easiest test you’ll ever take,” Pantle said.
“All you have to do is sleep.”
The study generates a report of a patient’s “sleep
architecture,” which is sent to the patient’s physician. Sleep architecture
refers to the different stages of sleep and their patterns. Typically people
encounter a period of wakefulness, followed by stage 1 rest, stage 2 rest,
delta – deepest sleep and REM (rapid eye movement) where the most vivid
dreams occur. Patients with sleep disorders will have unusual sleep
architecture.
Pantle was diagnosed with one of the most common sleep
disorders – sleep apnea. One treatment for sleep apnea is the use of a CPAP
(continuous positive airway pressure) machine. Patients wear a headpiece
attached to a mask that covers the nose, or mouth and nose, to bed. The CPAP
machine pressurizes the air inside the nose to keep the airway open through
the night.
After getting use to sleeping with a CPAP machine
Pantle has gained a new outlook on life.
“It improves your quality of life,” Pantle said. “You
get more things accomplished and it even helps with things like depression.
“Before CPAP I experienced tiredness to the point where
I was afraid of falling asleep at the wheel while driving. Now I can enjoy
my time awake and especially enjoy time with my family and children.”
Pantle’s results are not unique. Sleep Lab Supervisor
Jerry Houchin, RRT, said many people have similar experiences.
“Often we get a patient who is lethargic and suffering
from a hypersomnia disorder,” Houchin said. “They often come in cranky and
edgy. These folks have not experienced good vitality in years, maybe even
decades.
“Following a sleep study and proper treatment, they can
experience vitality in their lives again. They feel like they haven’t felt
in years.”
Call (785) 452-7650 for more information on how the
Sleep Lab can help you. Back to top |
