Dental Sleep Medicine Insider December 2016 - Page 22

BRETT BROCKI

RECOGNIZE THE OPPORTUNITY IN YOUR WAITING ROOM
S

leep Medicine represents
an amazing opportunity for
dental practices but many
dentists get frustrated because they have trouble
finding patients. The truth
is, every dentist already has
sleep patients, they just don’t
recognize them. Sleep patients are walking through
your door every day. If you
have 10 patients, statistically
2 have some degree of Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA).

The In-Office Screener tool,
available through the DS3 System.

That means, for every 100
dental patients, 20 have OSA.
200 out of 1000 are OSA patients. How many are in your
waiting room right now?
How many will you see next
week?
Many patients don’t know
they have a problem. They
wake up tired every day and
think that is normal. Some
of your patients may already
suspect they have a problem, but fear of “the mask”
(CPAP) is preventing them

from seeking treatment.
They are afraid that if they
go to a doctor, they will be
diagnosed and prescribed
CPAP as the only treatment
option. Those of us involved
in dental sleep medicine
know there is an effective
and convenient alternative
for those who qualify: oral
appliance therapy (OAT). We
also know that good sleep
improves so many aspects of
daily life: alertness, ability to
concentrate and improved
moods.
The first step to identifying
and treating these patients
is screening. It begins with
asking a simple question
like, “you seem tired, how
are you sleeping?” From
there, you or a member of
your staff can ask follow-up
questions to determine if
a sleep test is warranted.
They key to identifying the
patients in your practice is
to build an effective, efficient screening process into

1 out of 5 screenings
lead to sleep patients.

BRETT BROCKI

Brett Brocki is CEO of N3Sleep,
a national sleep consulting
and training firm. If you need
help getting your whole team
on board screening for OSA,
contact N3Sleep for in-office
training for your entire staff.

your existing workflow. Get
your whole team involved.
With the right training and
techniques, each patient
interaction can lead to a
screening, and as we know,
1 out of 5 screenings lead to
sleep patients. By starting
the conversation, you can
help educate your patients
about how serious OSA is,
how it affects their existing
conditions, and how it can
get worse if left untreated.
There are patients in your
office who need help. Let’s
make a difference together.