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AASM Membership Sections Newsletter
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Issue #6
Suzanne E. Goldman, PhD, CBSM, APRN
Dr. Suzanne E. Goldman, PhD, CBSM, APRN, received her
PhD in Epidemiology from the University of Pittsburgh with
an emphasis on sleep and aging. She is board certified as
a family nurse practitioner by the ANCC. She is certified in
Behavioral Sleep Medicine by the AASM. As an assistant
professor in the Department of Neurology, Sleep Disorders
Program at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, the focus
of her practice was sleep disorders with a special interest in
insomnia. Her research has emphasized the association of
sleep and daytime function across the lifespan, in populations
ranging from older adults to children/adolescents with autism.
She has recently relocated with her family to the Olympia
area of Washington State, where she continues her interest in
insomnia and other sleep issues.
Miguel A. Sánchez-González, MD, PhD
Dr. Miguel A. Sánchez-González, MD, PhD, is a psychiatrist
working in Consultation & Liaison Psychiatry at the Fundación
Jiménez Díaz Hospital in Madrid, Spain. He is also Associate
Professor of the Department of Anatomy, Histology and
Neuroscience at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid. After
graduating Medical School at the Universidad de Salamanca
in 1998, he obtained his PhD in Medicine at the Medical
School of the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid working on the
neuroanatomy of the dopaminergic innervation of the primate
thalamus. He then did his clinical specialization in Psychiatry
at the Hospital de Móstoles (Madrid) and soon after started
working his current position at the Fundación Jiménez Díaz.
He is part of the Sleep Multidisciplinary Unit at the Fundación
Jiménez Díaz, where he specializes in treating insomnia and
circadian rhythm disorders. In addition to the AASM, he is also
a member of the Society for Neuroscience and the Spanish
Society for Neuroscience. Dr. Sánchez-González is a member
and part of the Board of Directors for the Spanish Society of
Psychosomatic Medicine.
Imran Khawaja, MD
Dr. Imran S. Khawaja, MD, FAASM graduated from King
Edward Medical University, Lahore, Pakistan. He completed
his residency in Psychiatry at Westchester Medical Center/New
York Medical College, Valhalla, NY. He completed a fellowship
in Sleep Medicine at Center for Sleep Medicine at Mayo Clinic,
Rochester, MN. Dr. Khawaja is affiliated with the Department of
Neurology at University of Minnesota School of Medicine. He is
medical director of Minnesota Regional Sleep Disorders Center
(MRSDC) at Hennepin County Medical Center, Minneapolis,
MN. Dr. Khawaja is interested in the complex relationship
between sleep and psychiatric disorders. ■
How to Make Cognitive Behavior Therapy for
Insomnia (CBTi) More Accessible:
By Dr. Zhaoming Chen, MD, PhD, MS; and Dr.
Khurshid A Khurshid, MD
Hypnotic medications have a role in the treatment of insomnia;
however, this treatment should be carefully monitored. Combined
treatment of insomnia with cognitive behavior therapy for insomnia
(CBTi) and pharmacotherapy has not been shown to be better than
CBTi alone. The untoward effects from hypnotics can pose their
own challenges as exemplified by the increased emergency room
visits related to Zolpidem and subsequent FDA alert about dose
reduction of Zolpidem.
Long term use of hypnotics has also been implicated in adverse
cognitive and health risks. Cognitive behavior therapy is a safe and
appropriate solution for chronic insomnia management. Education
about lifestyle adjustment is the key; however, there is a paucity of
behavioral sleep medicine specialists. Most physicians, including
board certified sleep specialists, are not fully trained to treat
insomnia with CBTi. Thus, further training is necessary. There are
several courses that assist clinicians in getting additional training in
CBTi:
• MGH department of psychiatry provides a
four week CME online course for practitioners:
• University of Pennsylvania department of psychiatry
offers 3 day course for CBTi at Philadelphia:
Patient education is very important. Insomnia is the most
prevalent sleep disorder. It is an important health problem which
imparts a huge burden to the health care systems. It also takes an
emotional toll on patients who are frustrated with sleeplessness
at night and the resulting dysfunction during daytime. These
insomniacs feel lonely and helpless, especially when they see their
bed partners are sleeping soundly. Also, there is the role of online
services via the internet or mobile devices. There are two free apps
available – information on these apps can be found by using the
links below:
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