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Imagine what would happen if 90% of sleep apnea patients were found and treated.
What would that world look like? Would healthcare costs plummet? Would the US economy thrive?
Views: 116
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by RockRpsgt on
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I do believe that the economy would be just fine. There is alot of money being made off of sleep. However the workforce in this industry is relatively small. With the exceptions of the hospitals, lab owners, and myself there is not a large group of people depending on money from this industry. I believe that the total workforce is between 30 and 40k. Half of which are techs or buisiness support. Most labs have less then 10 employees. Not alot when looking at the big picture. In the mean time I am working very hard to find and treat everyone I can. There has and always will be apneans to treat.
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Permalink Reply by Mary Z on
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I see disaster as a system already not able to keep up may be overwhelmed for requests for sleep tests and CPAP supplies. Even though sleep apnea is implicated in the development of many other diseases, I don't see changes in the amount of diabetic, kidney disease patients, or cancer patients... I think it is but one part of the problem with US health, but to call it a root cause of every debilitating disease known to man and to expect that the US economy would thrive if it were successfully treated, I see this as putting our heads in the sand. If treating sleep apnea would reduce or eliminate these causes of morbidity in the US I would have more hope."In the USA, the top three are, in this order: Smoking, Poor diet/exercise, alcohol, .....
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My patients are. I can not speak for everyone else. you have no idea the amount of fight I put in for each and everyone of you. Alas it is time for to put in more time. have a great evening everyone.
99 said:they may be treated but are they treated correctly
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Rock, Those of us who know you and have watched your RSGPT journey would never doubt your dedication to the study of sleep. I believe I speak for all most of us when I say you would be the Sleep Tech we would choose. I have a DME that does the same thing- thinks out of the box, beyond the what the doctor orders to what might work in the real world. Many health professionals get tarred with the same feathers, it only takes a few to make everyone look suspiciously bad. So, please, buck up, Buddy, and remove yourself from these blanket statements that are not about the elite in the field.
I don't want my CPAP off the shelf at WalMart, or my diagnosis, if in question, made through trial and error on a APAP machine. I want Rock Hinkle, a good sleep lab, a good doc, and a good DME. Sleep Apnea is not as simple as so many would have us believe- in many cases.
Rock Hinkle said:My patients are. I can not speak for everyone else. you have no idea the amount of fight I put in for each and everyone of you. Alas it is time for to put in more time. have a great evening everyone.
99 said:they may be treated but are they treated correctly
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Permalink Reply by Banyon on
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Rock Hinkle said:I do believe that the economy would be just fine. There is alot of money being made off of sleep. However the workforce in this industry is relatively small. With the exceptions of the hospitals, lab owners, and myself there is not a large group of people depending on money from this industry. I believe that the total workforce is between 30 and 40k. Half of which are techs or buisiness support. Most labs have less then 10 employees. Not alot when looking at the big picture. In the mean time I am working very hard to find and treat everyone I can. There has and always will be apneans to treat.
There is a fundamental misunderstanding about how economies work. In various fields new technologies and methods arise which are cheaper and more effective. The old field may become obsolete and many or all of the jobs are lost. This is sometimes a hardship for people from the old field who lose their jobs.
However, for the overall economy it is an excellent thing in significant ways. First, the consumers save money and get better benefits from the new field. Second, the consumers are able to spend the saved money for other things (cars, housing, food, vacation, whatever they choose) to enrich their lives. Third, where this saved money is spent enriches other producers. And lastly, the labor and resources freed up from the obsolete field can be applied to enriching people's lives in other areas.
This process is called "creative destruction" and is one of the cornerstones of rapid human progress in free markets.
I might also add, having personally been "creatively destroyed" in an industry that became obsolete after it had supported me for over thirty years, there are often good things that happen to those loosing their jobs. Many of my colleagues and myself have found fulfillment in other industries where we brought in experience and diverse viewpoints and made positive changes.
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Permalink Reply by 99 on
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should legislation of HST take place there should be legislation to block people other than RT and Smimular qualified to do the HST test so their employment is safe guarded for several years to come and are rewarded financally for their hard work
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99, Is it any surprise if I say I adamantly disagree with more damn legislation to tell us what we can and can't do?
Hell, let's get a law requiring everyone over the age of five to mail six handwritten letters every week so we can keep the pen and paper workers and the postal employees fat, dumb and employed.
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legislation was suggested to protect current RT for future employment and when all the uptake slack was take up then remove the legislation. i do not like legislation, i agree
Banyon said:99, Is it any surprise if I say I adamantly disagree with more damn legislation to tell us what we can and can't do?
Hell, let's get a law requiring everyone over the age of five to mail six handwritten letters every week so we can keep the pen and paper workers and the postal employees fat, dumb and employed.
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Permalink Reply by Jason on
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I asked my doctor about how many people tested come back positive for sleep apnea and he said that 95% of those tested came back positive. This to me does not sound right. Its hard from me to believe that majority of people tested have sleep apnea. I was under the impression that less then 10% of population has some form of sleep apena, even 10% sounds high to me. So how can 95% of those tested come back positive.
Sound like a push to market CPAP equipment.
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Jason said:I asked my doctor about how many people tested come back positive for sleep apnea and he said that 95% of those tested came back positive. This to me does not sound right. Its hard from me to believe that majority of people tested have sleep apnea. I was under the impression that less then 10% of population has some form of sleep apena, even 10% sounds high to me. So how can 95% of those tested come back positive.
Sound like a push to market CPAP equipment.
If the truth is ever found out, we will know that more than 50% of the U.S. population either has OSA or will develop it as they age. By "has OSA", I mean at a level such that successful therapy would make a significant improvement to their health.
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