More About NORCAL SLEEP MANAGEMENT

For Physicians 

Starting an In-Office Sleep Program on your own is not an easy task! Running an improper sleep program may seem frustrating, time consuming, non-beneficial, and just flat- out overwhelming

Are you as passionate about patient care as we are? Are you tired of your patients falling through the cracks of the “referring out to a specialist” game? WE ARE HERE FOR YOU! Imagine being able to dispense an HST to your patient the same day you have the suspicion that S/He has sleep apnea! Our board certified Sleep Physicians will interpret the study and recommend treatment options within a few days! Our sleep coordinators will be in your office to coordinate the dispensing of the Home Sleep Test as well as all follow ups!”

Sounds Familiar?

What Doctors often say when looking into starting a Sleep Program:

  • I am not interested, it’s not worth it, I don’t need it
  • I don’t have time or am too busy to discuss sleep
  • I don’t have enough room, resources, or patients
  • I don’t want to invest money starting a sleep program
  • I don’t want to alter my relationship with my referring doctors

Benefits of Our Sleep Program

Our Sleep Program was created by the Doctors for the Doctors. Our model works in all types of practices: from Family to Specialty Practices. We manage the headaches and unknowns often seen with Sleep Screening, Testing, Treating, Billing,and follow-ups with patients. If you are not currently running a sleep program and are referring out these procedures to other doctors, then significant revenue is leaving your practice.

Time to keep YOUR revenue in YOUR Office!

Additional Program Benefits Include:

  • Absolutely NO Risk, NO Contracts. NO Start-Up, Or Recurring Costs to Incorporate This Program In Your Office.
  • Significantly Increases your Revenue( Passive Income) By Retaining Billable Services In-House
  • Requires Minimal Doctor or Staff Time
  • Fully Customisable to Your Office Flow
  • Improve Your Patient’s Quality of Life/Longevity, Their Co-Morbidities, and Your Treatment Efficiency, and More…

It’s Time To Get Started!

Proforma

  • Approximately 7-9 Office Visits are eligible for insurance reimbursements per OSA patient
  • Projected Average Net Income per COMMERCIAL Insurance $500-600 Per OSA Patient
  • Projected Average Net Income per Medicare Insurance $300 Per OSA Patient.

Benefits of Home Sleep Testing for Your Patients

Approximately 3.5 million diagnostic sleep tests are ordered each year.

An estimated 80% of these tests are appropriate for home sleep testing, where the patient is able to complete a sleep study in the comfort and convenience of his/her own home.

It can potentially take weeks to get an appointment at a sleep center; home sleep testing can happen next day or around your patient’s schedule

Up to 15% of patients fail to make their appointment at a sleep center due to fear, inconvenience or delay in scheduling time; home testing minimizes those factors, eliminating travel time and the need for child care.

The natural at-home sleep environment facilitates a normal night’s sleep, improving the accuracy of test results. Home sleep test results are delivered via cloud-based software to the interpreting physician the morning after test completion, making speed to treatment faster than any other OSA home testing option.

Results are provided quickly in an easy-to-understand format.

Home sleep testing eliminates waiting periods and improves test completion rates.

FAQ

Common questions about home sleep testing

Why is HST preferred by patients over traditional in-lab sleep studies?

  • Most Comfort- Most people are more comfortable sleeping in their own beds with no one observing them from another room.
  • Lowest Cost- Cost is a huge consideration as well with HST. A home sleep test is a fraction of the cost of an in-lab study. Because of this overwhelming cost factor, Medicare and most insurance companies are now covering HST. Interpretation of the HST results is performed by a board certified sleep doctor.
  • Most Convenient- Patients are usually diagnosed, treated, and on therapy in less than a week with the Michigan Sleep Solutions process as compared to possible months later in traditional in-lab sleep studies. With Michigan Sleep Solutions, the device is dispensed right out of your office, complete with knowledgeable instructions given by a trained professional. The next day, the patient returns the device to your office, the study is then uploaded and read by a board-certified sleep physician, and a follow up visit to review results is scheduled.

How will HST benefit my practice?

For starters, you will notice reduced paperwork and less interaction with insurance companies. Most insurers don’t require prior approval for HST if the order is from the primary care physician (PCP). Your staff can save a bit of time by not having to obtain approvals for a specialist referral or in-lab sleep study. They will not have to waste time going back and forth with the insurance companies to justify the test, providing documentation, clinical notes, CMN’s, etc.

HST allows faster results and interpretation by a boarded sleep doctor. Results are usually available in 3 – 5 days after the patient has completed their HST and the boarded sleep physicians review each study making treatment recommendations or suggestions on how to proceed. Patients are usually tested and receiving treatment within a week compared to a several month delay with many in-lab sleep studies. This allows for patient retention within your practice, along with simple follow up if necessary under the guidance of a boarded sleep physician.

Most important of all, HST makes for happier patients. People like being able to sleep in their own bed and in an environment in which they are accustomed. Not to mention, nobody wants someone watching over them while they sleep. Patients with high deductibles and co-pays appreciate the low cost this option provides in these harsh economic conditions. Older patients appreciate not having to drive in the dark and go to some unfamiliar place to sleep.

How reliable is home sleep testing technology?

The technology for home sleep testing has been available for over twenty years. It has been effectively utilized in Europe, Canada, and Australia to substantially lower healthcare costs. Technological improvements in the last several years have made it even more reliable including simpler set up procedures for the patient and faster sampling rates on the oximetry channels. For more information on home sleep technology please refer to American Academy of Sleep Medicine.

How do I perform the Clinical assessment?

SA risk can be determined in one of three ways:

  • Patient can complete the Thornton Snoring Scale
  • Patient can complete the Sleep Epworth Exam
  • Ask the patient the five OSA screening questions:
  1. Do you snore?
  2. Do you have hypertension?
  3. Are you excessively tired during the day?
  4. Have you been told that you stop breathing during sleep?
  5. Is your neck size greater than 17 inches (Male) or 16 inches (Female)?

If the patient answers “Yes” to at least two questions then they are candidates for HST. The physician should perform a cardiopulmonary assessment to rule out disorders such as CHF and COPD, examine the airway for enlarged tonsils, obvious asymmetries or blockage of the nasal passages and document your results in the patient’s chart.

Does Insurance pay for the Test?

CMS approved coverage in 2008. Most insurance companies have already followed suit, but there are a few stragglers that are trying to catch up. We have been in talks with the few that do not cover HST and most of them have it on their agenda, but are still trying to adjust to some of the other changes in the healthcare system and it hasn’t quite made it to the top of the list.