Founded in 1975, both the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and Microsoft are celebrating 40th anniversaries in 2015. As the AASM continues our mission to improve sleep health and promote high quality patient centered care, there is an important lesson we can learn from Microsoft’s history.

Last fall the American Academy of Sleep Medicine sent a letter on behalf of our members to the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) expressing multiple concerns about the Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program. I am pleased to report that earlier this week the AASM and other specialty societies were contacted by the ABIM, which indicated that reasonable improvements are being implemented to address criticisms of the MOC program by making it more relevant and meaningful for physicians.

I’ve never been more excited to attend a course. Sleep Medicine Trends 2015 is the premier course for sleep clinicians, with a bold agenda that not only updates our clinical knowledge, but also addresses the most important practical issues in the field.  I hope you will join me and hundreds of other sleep specialists from Friday to Sunday, Feb. 20 – 22, in beautiful Scottsdale, Arizona.

I didn’t know it at the time, but a significant event that would impact my career took place in 1975: The American Academy of Sleep Medicine was established. In 2015 the AASM is celebrating 40 years of advancing sleep medicine.

After 20 years as a sleep clinician, I still love what I do. As I wrote earlier this year in an editorial for JCSM, I believe that each day offers us new opportunities to find joy in the practice of sleep medicine, as long as we are looking for it. When we give our patients the gift of healthy sleep, we get to share their joy.

The AASM was recently contacted by Unite Here! Local 8, who is encouraging our organization to boycott of the Grand Hyatt Hotel and Hyatt at Olive 8, two hotels which are available to members during SLEEP 2015. The labor and employment lawyer whom we retained stated the Hyatt hotels are not in violation of labor or employment law, and advised that we should not change the plans of the AASM at this time.

The approaching Thanksgiving holiday is a welcomed opportunity for us to pause and reflect on the everyday blessings that we tend to overlook during our hectic daily schedule. For us the field of sleep medicine is especially fruitful as we continue to offer life-changing care to the millions of people who suffer from a sleep disease.

As a sleep specialist I’m thankful that space is not necessarily the “final frontier,” despite what the iconic introduction of the Star Trek TV series would have you believe. Today sleep physicians and scientists have numerous frontiers to explore in an exciting era of genomics, big data, personalized medicine, and patient-centered outcomes. Yet as I reflect on the approaching 40th anniversary of the AASM in 2015, my thoughts keep drifting back to space.

As the U.S. health care system continues to transition away from a fee-for-service payment model, it is critical that we accelerate translational and clinical research that demonstrates the value of care provided by sleep specialists. We’ve already identified strategic opportunities in sleep and circadian research. Now the American Sleep Medicine Foundation (ASMF) and MyApnea.org are acting as catalysts that will help convert those perceived opportunities into realized achievements. 

Last month I wrote about Don, a sleep apnea patient whose experience emphasized the need to improve care coordination and patient access to knowledgeable sleep experts. Today I share with you the story of another patient who opened my eyes to a potential gap in care that can be rectified by simply asking the right questions.