SleepQuest Continues to Fight for Sleep Apnea Education

Renewed efforts to reach physicians coincide with Sleep Awareness Week

The current economic downturn has hurt more than America's wallets, it's hurt sleep habits as well. According to the National Sleep Foundation's annual Sleep in America poll, nearly one-third of Americans have lost sleep due to economy-related concerns. With Americans everywhere facing the dangers of sleep loss, SleepQuest is renewing its commitment to educate about health risks stemming from sleep disorders like Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA).

In conjunction with National Sleep Awareness Week (NSAW) March 1-8, SleepQuest has launched a new communication effort to illustrate the importance of healthy sleep.

"It's imperative that we get primary care physicians to look at sleep as being as much a part of total health as nutrition and exercise," said Robert Koenigsberg, President of SleepQuest. "We can give physicians the tools they need to easily screen, diagnose and treat sleep apnea-helping cut the risk of stroke and heart disease associated with chronic sleep loss for more than 30 million Americans.

" SleepQuest has begun using two new programs to inform the Primary Care Physician (PCP) community about the dangers and prevalence of sleep apnea. A new online multimedia presentation, along with a new book by Dr. William Dement (SleepQuest's Chief Scientific Advisor and widely acknowledged to be the father of sleep medicine) offer essential information to the PCP.

"It's about creating an awareness of just how important sleep is in our everyday lives," said Lori Schulman, SleepQuest's Director of Contracting. "In time, we want doctors to view OSA and other sleep disorders just as they do other chronic health concerns like asthma."

Spreading awareness about home sleep testing and treatment options is key to SleepQuest's continuing efforts to promote the crucial role sleep plays in total health.

"We're really hoping that our work will spur a renewed dialogue between patients and health care providers about sleep," said Koenigsberg. "Dr. Dement reminds us that sleep, exercise and nutrition are equally important parts of our lives. Through our efforts we hope to show physicians how to identify sleep-related health risk and understand the different ways they can directly help their sleep apnea patients."

For more information about SleepQuest's new campaign to promote sleep health awareness, call 800-813-8358 or email contact@sleepquest.com.