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CPAP Therapy Compliance
Bill Pruitt, MBA, RRT, CPFT, AE-C has written an article for RT Magazine proposing 10 practices to improve CPAP therapy compliance.
"What Else Contributes to Noncompliance?
Side effects and problems with the patient-CPAP system can cause the CPAP machine to be stuck in the closet, never to be used. The side effects include nasal drying, increased congestion, sneezing, rhinorrhea, sinusitis, conjunctivitis, claustrophobia, pressure sores on the bridge of the nose, difficulty exhaling, allergic reaction to the materials in the mask, air swallowing with gastric distension, machine noise, and skin creases the next morning. Many of these are avoidable if everyone in the health care team does a proper job of education, application, and follow-up with trouble-shooting and making corrections early in the start-up, as needed."
The full articles is at:
http://www.rtmagazine.com/issues/articles/2009-02_03.asp?frmNewslet...http://www.rtmagazine.com/issues/articles/2009-02_03.asp?frmNewslet...">
"What Else Contributes to Noncompliance?
Side effects and problems with the patient-CPAP system can cause the CPAP machine to be stuck in the closet, never to be used. The side effects include nasal drying, increased congestion, sneezing, rhinorrhea, sinusitis, conjunctivitis, claustrophobia, pressure sores on the bridge of the nose, difficulty exhaling, allergic reaction to the materials in the mask, air swallowing with gastric distension, machine noise, and skin creases the next morning. Many of these are avoidable if everyone in the health care team does a proper job of education, application, and follow-up with trouble-shooting and making corrections early in the start-up, as needed."
The full articles is at:
http://www.rtmagazine.com/issues/articles/2009-02_03.asp?frmNewslet...http://www.rtmagazine.com/issues/articles/2009-02_03.asp?frmNewslet...">
Views: 125
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Mike on
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Thanks for sending this. I noticed that the author stressed education, training, support and communication over and over again as key factors for whether someone will succeed or fail with CPAP. Forums like this certainly fit the bill for providing those things. All the more reason to listen and share with your fellow apneans and the pros here.
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Permalink Reply by Judy on
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That's the problem, tho, Mike. Research article after research article attests to proper education, communication, support, etc., etc. prior to and during the research or substantiates and verifies the need for proper education, communication, support, etc., etc. - but the d*mn sleep profession doesn't seem to be getting the message!!! Not the many sleep doctors (who leave it up to the local DME suppliers), not the many sleep labs (who leave it up to the local DME suppliers) and not enough of the local DME suppliers!!!! IF the AARC wants their RRTs to have legally protected "rights" to Tx'ing sleep apnea patients they need to clean up their act and their profession and see to it they get the proper training and competency to do so. I won't even get into the way too many sleep "specialist doctors" and their self-perceived lack of responsiblity for education and support.
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i'm wondering how do you convince patients who are new and 100% clueless about CPAP that they're going to need to pay attention and educate themselves and read up, and that CPAP isn't like a pill that you swallow to "cure" your problem and make everything go away?
Judy said:That's the problem, tho, Mike. Research article after research article attests to proper education, communication, support, etc., etc. prior to and during the research or substantiates and verifies the need for proper education, communication, support, etc., etc. - but the d*mn sleep profession doesn't seem to be getting the message!!! Not the many sleep doctors (who leave it up to the local DME suppliers), not the many sleep labs (who leave it up to the local DME suppliers) and not enough of the local DME suppliers!!!! IF the AARC wants their RRTs to have legally protected "rights" to Tx'ing sleep apnea patients they need to clean up their act and their profession and see to it they get the proper training and competency to do so. I won't even get into the sleep "specialist doctors" and their self-perceived lack of responsiblity for education and support.
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We'd have to look at how those monitoring and treating diabetics handle getting the situation across to their patients, I guess. AND, don't discount how many apnea patients would LIKE to know more and be educated but are discouraged from doing so and/or don't have access to a 'puter. I know before a 'puter I spent a lot of time at our local hospital's medical library regarding my Crohn's disease but was only allowed access as a special favor as I volunteered there.
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Permalink Reply by RockRpsgt on
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You can't put all the blaim on the sleep industry. Patients need to stop taking such a lack-a-daisicle approach to their own health as well. My innitial training was horrible. I found a way to teach myself as can anyone else. The same education(to a varying degree) can be had by anyone with a 'puter. The only part of an RPSGT's training that cannot be found on the net is the practical side. There are less than 20 sleep schools in the world. Well at least any worth of a good nights sleep. I agree that the people need to be better educated, and that the sleep industry needs to do a better job of it. It is not completely their responsibility though! I see this all the time: A patient comes in and the first question we ask... "Why are you here?" response "I don't know!" This response would tell any tech or medical person(S) that the patient ha s a laid back view on his own health so now I can too. How do you come in for a procedure and not know why? or what the threat could be? As patients we cannot just blame the medical industry for our own lack of knowledge. Yes they have a responsibility to us as patients, but don't we have a responsibility to ourselves. Do we blaim the public school system for all of the problems it has. No, we spread it around to the kids,teachers, and yes us parents. Yes the medical system has it's problems. Patients are just as much a part of that system as the Doctors or techs. At least that's what this site has lead me to believe. Whew I now conceed the soap box.
Judy said:That's the problem, tho, Mike. Research article after research article attests to proper education, communication, support, etc., etc. prior to and during the research or substantiates and verifies the need for proper education, communication, support, etc., etc. - but the d*mn sleep profession doesn't seem to be getting the message!!! Not the many sleep doctors (who leave it up to the local DME suppliers), not the many sleep labs (who leave it up to the local DME suppliers) and not enough of the local DME suppliers!!!! IF the AARC wants their RRTs to have legally protected "rights" to Tx'ing sleep apnea patients they need to clean up their act and their profession and see to it they get the proper training and competency to do so. I won't even get into the way too many sleep "specialist doctors" and their self-perceived lack of responsiblity for education and support.
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Back to the original question. I believe that sleep techs play, or should play, a vital role in compliance. The education should begin with the patient and be acknowledged by the tech. I personally give more educational advice then I am probably allowed.
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You said it pretty well, Rock Hinkle. Patients DO need get off their duffs and start taking an active part in their own health care. I could just scream when I run into these "idiots" that just blindly accept what their doctor says and never ask any further questions!!! Even at my most naive I wasn't THAT dumb!
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I think I put alot more trust into my doctors before I understood how it works. Now that I know the medical system is kind of a rough version of our mass transit system I ask alot more questions of the doc deciding where I am to go. I was not putting the blaim on anyone in particular as much as I was trying to explain how a system needs to work. Take the Nervous system for example. It is made up of the brain(doctors) spinal cord,(techs,nurse,rrts), and the nerves themselves(patients). One can't work without the other. As a tech I am kind of a mediator between Drs and patients. I think that one side needs to step up as much as the other needs to come down a few notches.
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This is the question I'm interested in: how do we, the educated patients, persuade the clueless masses of uneducated patients that they need to "step up"?
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i don't think there is one right answer. This site goes a long way towards that process. I don't believe that anything is going to change until everyone realizes what killers bad sleep and apnea are. I think that in the not so far future good sleep hygiene is going to be as much a part of our school curriculum as any other health subject.
Until then talk to your local labs about what they are doing to educate their communities. Search "Sleep Logistics" in Las vegas. The city that never sleeps seems to be leading our country in sleep education. Once I am certified(MArch cross your fingers) I plan to take an active role in sleep education. I plan to add a teaching certificate and hopefully work at one of our local schools. If they ever get the ball roling. I will help sleep guide in the process until then in anyway that I can.
Mike said:This is the question I'm interested in: how do we, the educated patients, persuade the clueless masses of uneducated patients that they need to "step up"?
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Permalink Reply by Duane McDade on
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DON'T GET ME STARTED!!
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