Comment

Comment by Melodie on February 18, 2009 at 11:48am

I was very lucky with all three (3) of my sleep studies. They were performed at a "Sleep Lab" in a hospital - BUT the rooms were set up just like a guest bedroom in a person's home and with all the "creature comforts" you would have at home. It was NOT like being in a hospital situation in any way.

For my first sleep study, I was concerned that it WOULD be in a hospital-type setting, but was pleasantly surprised to find that is was more of a home-like setting. This put me at ease and I had no problems being able to sleep and at ease. I did not feel apprehensive in the least. In fact, I slept better that night than I had slept in quite some time!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was pretty amazing.

I think that all sleep labs should be set up like this, or done in a setting like the Vanderbuilt Sleep Disorder Centers is now doing. If you can make a patient more at ease, then you are more likely to get a better reading for the sleep study. I think this is fabulous that Vanderbuilt is taking their sleep labs to the next level and taking into consideration the uncertainty of their patients and making sure that the surrounding is more pleasant and not like being in a hospital.

Thanks for sharing this article!
Melodie (Mel) Aultman-Morris

Comment by Henning on February 1, 2009 at 12:09pm

My first sleep study was done in very pleasant surroundings; there were all facilities (TV, telephone, relaxing chairs and a very good bed).

Of course there was a separate bathroom, even room service and I had my own "nurse".

So it was better than any hotel I've been on.

I slept all night long (8 hours) and I was sure I had no sleep episodes. But subsequently, it appeared that of course I had.

Oh! I forgot to tell that it was an in-home study.

Henning

Comment by sleepycarol on February 1, 2009 at 11:01am

Our local hospital recently built a stand alone sleep clinic -- brand new from the ground up. It opens tomorrow and will have an "open house" in the future. It is supposed to be state of the art and very "home-like."

It went from a 2 bed clinic in our hospital to a 6 bed in the new facility. Coupled with the 2 bed unit (opened in the fall of 2007) they have at a satellite clinic thirty miles away they have greatly increased their capacity.

Comment by Rock Conner RRT on January 31, 2009 at 1:51pm

I've seen some cold, clinical sleep lab settings, as well as nice hotel settings. I like our lab at Fusion Sleep in Atlanta because there are private rooms with private baths, soft lighting, remote control TVs, etc.

At best, the sleep lab experience is challenging because of the wires, goop, & interruptions. Most important is a competent and engaging staff to help make the process tolerable.

Rock

Comment by Daniel on January 30, 2009 at 8:53pm

My sleep study was done nine years ago in an awful, sterile hospital environment. In many sleep labs in the the SF Bay Area, the trend has definitely moved to a much more pleasant environment. UCSF/Mt. Zion Sleep Center recently moved their entire operation and took over the entire top floor of a hotel in Japantown. I think the rooms even had HBO! Last week, I was treated to a pre-opening tour of Stanford's new Sleep Disorders Clinic in Redwood City. It's quite luxurious, and the largest facility I've ever seen - 18 beds. All the sleeping rooms have Tempurpedic Matresses, flat screen hi-def TVs, very comfortable bathrooms with showers, and an extremely well designed area to get set up with all the sensors. They even have custom cabinetry to hide the CPAP machines while providing ventilation. The building is right next to the 101 Freeway, but they've gone to great lengths to soundproof the rooms. It was so luxurious that I couldn't help but think about what an amazing cash cow the sleep clinic must be for Stanford. They've got people flying in from around the world to have their studies done there.

One of my patients was unhappy with a sleep study he had done locally, so he became a medical tourist. He stayed for a week at a resort/sleep clinic in Thailand that caters to the international crowd. He was picked up by limo from the airport by English-speaking hospital staff and stayed in a resort for a few days to recover from jet lag. He then received a first class sleep study and very impressive follow-up with his Thai doctor, who was trained at Stanford. To top it off, he spent far less money for the whole experience than the typical cost for a sleep study in the US (if you have to pay out-of-pocket).

Comment by Judy on January 30, 2009 at 8:21pm

I've been fortunate, all but one of my sleep evaluations have been in pleasant, comfortable surroundings. One of the good ones, a stand alone sleep lab, didn't have a private shower, it did have a large private bathroom but no shower. *sigh* The hospital-based sleep studies were in large comfortable rooms as nice as any but the most expensive of motels.

The one sleep study I wasn't particularly impressed with was held in a BEAUTIFUL, well-kept older home, downstairs, but the sleeping rooms upstairs hadn't been re-done yet - and worst of all there was only ONE half-bath at the end of the hall and the sink was NOT compatible for bending over and washing your hair in.