The Importance of Physician Assistants and Nurse Practitioners in Sleep Medicine

Dr. Michael Lacey

Dr. Michael Lacey, one of the most regular physician instructors at the Atlanta School of Sleep Medicine and Technology recently wrote a Guest Editorial about the rise of Nurse Practitioners and Physician Assistants in Sleep Medicine in Sleep Review: The Journal for Sleep Specialists.

In this insightful editorial, Dr. Lacey points out numerous advantages to utilizing Physician Assistants and Nurse Practitioners in Sleep Medicine Clinics.

• Due to the current economic slowdown, Nurse Practitioners (NPs) and Physician Assistants (PAs) offer a fiscally responsible way to improve patient care while lowering center costs
• NPs and PAs can increase the number of patients seen daily, improving the bottom line
• The utilization of NPs and Pas can improve the efficiency of managing sleep histories, medical examinations, CPAP compliance enhancement, and behavioral medicine interventions
• NPs and PAs can help improve medication management and supervision
• NPs and PAs improve service by decreasing average wait times and assisting with patient callbacks of test results
• The use of NPs and PAs affords greater one-on-one interaction between patients and health care practitioners
• NPs and PAs can help meet the increasing patient demand that has resulting from increased awareness of the importance of a good night’s sleep
• The number of physicians eligible to become board certified in sleep will decrease after the 2011 exam. NPs and PAs allow a center with less board certified sleep doctors to see more patients and increase the efficiency of most practice services.
• Rising regulatory requirements will most likely decrease the competition from marginally qualified sleep clinics and labs. This will lead to increased patient numbers for legitimate sleep practices which can be efficiently managed with the help of NPs and PAs.

These obvious benefits that can result from the addition of NPs and PAs in Sleep Medicine should be noted by Sleep Medicine doctors and their staffs. As demand for sleep medicine professionals increases, we should be ready to meet patients’ needs with an increased number of NPs and PAs trained in sleep medicine.

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Tags: Atlanta, Atlanta Sleep School, Editorial, Guest Editorial, Michael Lacey, Nurse Practitioner, Physician Assistant, Sleep Editorial, Sleep Magazine, Sleep Medicine, Sleep Medicine Clinic, Sleep Medicine Practice, Sleep Review, Sleep School

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