Telemedicine

Sleep medicine, by its very nature, is a technology-driven medical specialty. From polysomnography and home sleep apnea tests to positive airway pressure machines and hypoglossal nerve stimulators, sleep specialists have implemented innovative technology to treat sleep diseases. Moreover, consumer sleep technologies now are transforming the way populations consider their sleep health. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) is committed to advancing the adoption of telemedicine in the sleep field to improve access to high quality, patient-centered care. Telemedicine has the capability to revolutionize sleep care, allowing you to provide care for patients previously out of reach. Today, through the capabilities of technology, you can now see patients from coast to coast. Patients who were unreachable in the past are now able to connect to qualified providers like you to diagnose and treat their sleep disorders. While telemedicine can allow you to care for your patients in innovative, revolutionary ways, senseless barriers and regulations can stand in your way. As you attempt to implement telemedicine into your practice, resources from the AASM can help you better understand these challenges. Some patients are too ill to travel to your center, some are frequent travelers or live in rural areas – telemedicine can help you care for all of these patients regardless of their individual needs and concerns. As sleep care evolves and moves into your phone and computer screen, your practice will have to evolve to meet these needs and patient demands.

AASM SleepTM

The AASM invested in the development of a platform for providers and facilities that enables them to seamlessly integrate telemedicine into a practice. AASM SleepTM was created for sleep medicine care, with specific tools that help providers and patients monitor and track their sleep patterns, among other resources. To learn more about this exciting technology and how to implement it into your practice, visit sleeptm.com or call AASM SleepTM at 1-888-334-6820.

Telemedicine Position Paper

The AASM Board of Directors convened a task force to understand and define the key features, processes, and standards for telemedicine specific to sleep medicine. The task forced developed a position paper that discusses the specific advantages and disadvantages of telemedicine and provides recommendations for appropriate use of telemedicine for the sleep specialist:  American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) Position Paper for the Use of Telemedicine for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Sleep Disorders.

Telemedicine Case Studies

The following case studies are examples of how sleep clinicians have implemented telemedicine into their practices in order to expand access to care for patients and increase the efficiency of their practice. Although these are based on real scenarios, no actual patient information is included.

• Growing a Rural Sleep Clinic through Telemedicine
• Telemedicine for Obstructive Sleep Apnea