6 Places Dentists Can Find Sleep Apnea Patients

So you are ready to treat sleep but you need patients. Where can you find them? About 1 in 5 American adults qualify as having mild to moderate OSA, so the truth is they are all around, you just need to know where to look.  Here are 6 places to start looking:

1. Your own team: The first place to look is your own team. Screen each member of your team and their spouses, test and treat them. These first cases will make a big difference moving forward. Personal testimonials about better sleep or curing snoring will do wonders for your conversion rate too.
2. Your own patients: Remember 1 in 5 qualify, so you need to institute a comprehensive screening program, work screening into your daily process, and train your team to talk about sleep. Many of these patients need help, they just don’t know you can offer it. Screening every patient will uncover those at risk who are already in your practice.
3. CPAP intolerant/non-compliant patients: Studies indicate only 17% of CPAP wear their masks more than 4 hours a night. Not wearing the mask means not treating the disease. These are people you can help, with a therapy that has about 80% compliance rate. These patients know they need help and are looking for another way to treat their condition, but they and their doctors will need education about oral appliance therapy.
4. Physicians: Referrals from physicians are key to any dental sleep medicine practice. Building a good referral network often requires educating about oral appliance therapy, building relationships with open communications and by referring severe OSA cases back. These relationships can result in lasting and rewarding collaborations.
5. First responders: Firefighters, EMTs and Police are populations with specific needs for alertness and performance that undiagnosed and untreated OSA can affect. Approach these organizations and create a screening and testing program to identify and treat those at risk. Building these relationships requires navigating the organizational health model and insurance system but can result in a steady stream of patients
6. Industry: Many companies and organizations know that undiagnosed and untreated OSA is a problem they need to address, for safety, liability and insurance reasons. Reaching out to organizations in your area and create a screening and treatment plan that addresses their concerns and needs can result in a steady stream of patients.

N3Sleep, the consulting division of DreamSleep is ready to help you find your patients. We have special programs in place to help you find the patients you need.

Comprehensive Screening

Our Advanced In-Office Training will give you and your team the tools and techniques needed to screen every one of your patients. Truly comprehensive screening will ensure you are positioned to treat each patient in need. You can capture each member of your team, and every patient. We give you the tools to approach CPAP intolerant and non-compliant patients and the skills to help them find treatment.

Physician Referral Agent

Physician referrals are key to every dental sleep Our practice. But building a solid referral network takes both time and effort. That’s why N3Sleep created the Physician Referral Agent to help your practice build a local referral network. Our agent will compile your profile and approach physicians in your area to forge relationship and create a referral network.

Specialized Program Referrals

DreamSleep’s national network allows us to tap into large groups of patients from performance an safety conscious industries like Athletics, Transportation, Military, and First Responders. Our existing long-life contracts include patients across the country in search of providers.

Contact N3Sleep to learn how we can help you find the sleep patients you need: