AASM Congratulates New Fellow Members
Fellow status in the AASM is a unique honor that recognizes special competency in sleep medicine and significant contributions to the field. The AASM is pleased to welcome the following new Fellow Members:
Anita Bhola, MD, FAASM
Lance S Patton, MD, FAASM
Katherine M Sharkey, MD, PhD, FAASM
Anwar Wassel, MD, FAASM
NHLBI Genomics Symposium is Sept. 12-13
The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute is hosting, “Genomics: Gene Discovery and Clinical Applications for Cardiovascular, Lung, and Blood Diseases,” a symposium that will take place Sept. 12-13 at the Natcher Conference Center at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md. The symposium will focus on cutting-edge findings in recent and ongoing genome-wide research studies, highlighting novel discoveries that include results from large-scale collaborative studies, new analysis techniques, novel directions in functional genomics, and translational research.
NIH announces “sleep and social environment” grant opportunity
The Basic Behavioral and Social Sciences Research Opportunity Network (OppNet) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) issued a funding opportunity announcement (RFA-HD-12-204) for Research Project Grant (R21) applications that propose to investigate the reciprocal interactions of the processes of sleep and circadian regulation and function with behavioral and social environment processes. The grant offers a unique opportunity to link social environment factors that shape sleep behaviors with the direct neurobehavioral and circadian biology effects of sleep processes on individuals in the context of their social milieu.
Sell-out alert: Limited seats remain for the AASM Board Review course in Denver
As of Wednesday morning, July 20, 2011, only 31 seats remain for the AASM’s Board Review for the Sleep Specialist course in Denver, Colo., Aug. 12–14, 2011. Individuals interested in attending the Denver course are encouraged to register online as soon as possible. The AASM’s Board Review for the Sleep Specialist course in Reston, Va., Sept. 9–11, 2011, is sold out.
CMS Publishes 2012 Physician Fee Schedule Proposed Rule in the Federal Register
On July 8, the AASM announced that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) had released the display copy of the 2012 Physician Fee Schedule Proposed Rule, which is being reviewed and analyzed by AASM staff. This week the Proposed Rule was published online in the Federal Register. The final decisions on the proposed policy and payment changes are scheduled to be published in November 2011 in the final rule.
Comparative Billing Reports: New Resource and AASM Response
As an additional resource, the AASM has developed a template letter to assist members in drafting a response to the CBR Producer. This two-page form letter can be used in whole or in part, and it should be modified to reflect the specifics of each member’s practice. Members interested in responding to the CBR are encouraged to send a personally modified version of the form letter or their own individually crafted letter to the CBR Producer.
Submit Nominations for SLEEP 2012 Speakers by July 27
Submit your recommendations for speakers for SLEEP 2012, the 26th Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies LLC, which will be held June 9-13, 2012, at the John B. Hynes Veterans Memorial Convention Center in Boston, Mass. The Program Committee is accepting recommendations for Keynote Speakers, Invited Lecturers and Meet the Professors.
American Academy of Sleep Medicine Names Emory Sleep Specialist Nancy Collop, MD, President
Nancy A. Collop, MD, director of the Emory Sleep Center and professor of Medicine and Neurology at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, Ga., became the 26th president of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) in June. Her one-year term as president of the board of directors began Monday, June 13, 2011, at SLEEP 2011, the 25th Anniversary Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies LLC (APSS) in Minneapolis, Minn.
NHLBI Releases Executive Summary of Bariatric Sugery Workshop
Experts in bariatric surgery, cardiovascular disease, sleep disordered breathing, clinical trials, guideline development, and insurance coverage concurred with the need for randomized controlled trials as an important step in developing a strong evidence base for bariatric surgery.
Medscape Expands its Electronic Health Records Incentive Programs Learning Center
The learning center now includes new articles, interviews and tool kit resources. Also, it will soon feature information on the meaningful use requirements that must be met to demonstrate successful participation in the EHR incentive program.
AASM Recognizes Its Top Member Recruiters
Congratulations to the AASM's top Member-Get-A-Member Campaign recruiters for the month of June. These members are contributing to the growth of the organization by reaching out to their professional colleagues and encouraging them to join the AASM.
Earn CME Credit Online: July Issue of SLEEP
You can earn CME credits online by reading designated articles and taking the online CME exams within one year of the date of publication.
AASM Board Review Course: Deadline and Sellout Alert
Limited seats remain for the AASM's Board Review for the Sleep Specialist course to be held Aug. 12-14, 2011, in Denver, Colo. The Sept. 9-11, 2011 course is SOLD OUT.
SLEEP 2011 Scientific Posters Available Online
View and discuss nearly 250 of the top scientific abstracts presented as posters at SLEEP 2011, the 25th Anniversary Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies.
Application Deadline for ABSM Sleep Technologist Registry Exam is Aug. 1
Make sure to visit the ABSM website for more information Sleep Technologist Registry Exam coming up Nov. 11, 2011.
Impact Factor for SLEEP is Announced
According to Journal Citation Reports statistics , the 2010 impact factor for SLEEP is 5.486. This places the journal in the upper 5.12 percentile of all scientific journals.
AASM Congratulates New Fellow Members – July 2011
Fellow status in the AASM is a unique honor that recognizes special competency in sleep medicine and significant contributions to the field. If you are interested in becoming a Fellow member of the AASM, please review the requirements on the AASM website. All required documentation should be submitted to the AASM Membership Department.
Sleep Technology Licensure Bill is Signed into Law in Oregon
Bill requires that an applicant for licensure complete educational and training requirements approved by a newly constructed Respiratory Therapist for Polysomnographic Technologist Licensing Board before obtaining a sleep technologist license. The bill also establishes a scope of practice for sleep technologists, outlining the procedures they can perform under the general supervision of a licensed physician.
CMS Releases a Display Copy of the Proposed Physician Fee Schedule for 2012
On July 1, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released a display copy of the proposed rule for the proposed changes to policy and payment for the Physician Fee Schedule for 2012. If implemented, changes outlined in the proposed rule will significantly affect sleep physicians.
HypnoGram: Standards in Sleep Medicine
My thoughts for this week center around STANDARDS. The AASM has set the standards for sleep medicine since its inception many years ago: Practice parameters; center accreditation; standards for physicians, which eventually morphed into the American Board of Sleep Medicine; ASTEP, an education program for sleep technologists; DME accreditation; out-of-center sleep testing accreditation; the list goes on. But all of these processes require constant evaluation and re-evaluation to keep them current. As the field has grown, so has the AASM staff, by leaps and bounds, to stay ahead of the required changes. As healthcare reform looms large, the AASM - as the leader in the field of sleep medicine - needs to stay ahead of the curve by anticipating changes and being nimble in improving our standards as necessary.
AASM White Paper on the Future of Sleep Medicine is Online for Member Comment
Under the leadership of Patrick J. Strollo Jr., MD, an AASM Presidential Task Force on the Future of Sleep Medicine and workgroups of thought leaders in the sleep field have been examining how changes in health-care delivery might impact the evaluation, management and treatment of patients with sleep disorders. Their reports have been compiled in an AASM white paper that addresses three key topics: frameworks for healthcare delivery such as the patient-centered medical home (PCMH), patient registries, and new outcomes measures and tools for the diagnosis and treatment of sleep disorders.
NIH Seeks Applicants for the 2011 Council of Public Representatives
The Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is seeking nominations to fill vacant appointments to the 2011 Council of Public Representatives (COPR) roster. The COPR consists of up to 21 individuals with diverse backgrounds from local, regional, and national levels, with a range of professions and experiences, including community leaders, patient advocates, health educators, media, medical and public health professionals, science administrators, and academicians who have a broad public perspective. Every year NIH selects new COPR members who serve an average of four-year terms.
HHS is Advised to Halt the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences
Montana congressman Denny Rehberg, Chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor-HHS-Education, recently sent a letter to HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius calling for a halt to the establishment of the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) within the National Institutes of Health (NIH). He expressed concerns about how NCATS would impact existing programs such as Institutional Development Awards and Clinical and Translational Science Awards.
AASM Acknowledges June Contributions to the ISR Testing Program
Each month a new set of 200 consecutive epochs from a sleep record is posted online for the AASM Inter-scorer Reliability Testing Program. This convenient online program provides sleep centers, educational programs and research labs with the opportunity to compare the scoring ability of their staff and students with the AASM Gold Standard Scorer.
IOM Report Emphasizes the Role of Sleep in Preventing Early Childhood Obesity
Last week the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies (IOM) released a new consensus report, “Early Childhood Obesity Prevention Policies.” The IOM reviewed factors related to overweight and obesity from birth to age 5, recommending actions that health-care professionals, caregivers and policymakers can take to prevent obesity in young children.