Employees are the backbone of every company regardless of location, industry, or services. If your employees are not well-rested and healthy, productivity and morale can suffer, leading to a negative work environment and a waning bottom line. While a poor night’s sleep is certainly an unavoidable fact of life, for many, the problem is much worse and can lead to even more frightening symptoms later on. For employers, keeping your employees healthy and happy is essential to have a successful business that runs smoothly.
Truth of the matter is, many of your employees may be suffering from Obstructive Sleep Apnea, or OSA, without even knowing about it. And, without a diagnosis, they can’t get the therapy they need to be at their best. When your employees who suffer from sleep apnea get the treatment they need, you’ll notice significant changes, like:
- Less Daytime Drowsiness & Fatigue
- Better Attention & Focus
- Higher Productivity
- Decreased Risk for Type 2 Diabetes, Heart Disease, and Cancer
- Overall Improved Health & Wellness
- Better Quality of Employee’s Sleep
Diagnosing Employees with Sleep Apnea
There are two surefire ways to test an employee for sleep apnea: an in-lab study (polysomnography) or an at-home sleep test. While testing for more vitals, in-lab tests are unnecessary for employees who have a high-likelihood of suffering from sleep apnea. Rather, in-lab testing’s complexity is more appropriate for those who believe they may be suffering from more specialized sleep disorders like narcolepsy, insomnia, and restless leg syndrome (RLS). Without mentioning how uncomfortable and awkward they are, in-lab tests are also expensive, averaging between $2,000 to $4,000, and may not lead to more answers than an at-home test would.
While also being the more cost-effective option, at-home sleep testing allows the employee to take the test from the comfort of their own home, in their own bed. Once they complete the home test, their results are sent back to the test provider and examined by board-certified sleep physicians. Upon receiving their results, employees will be contacted by a patient care representative who will review their treatment options with them.
Treating Obstructive Sleep Apnea
If your employee is diagnosed with OSA, there is hope for a more productive and healthier future. OSA can be easily diagnosed, but you must have a diagnosis from a board-certified sleep physician in order to qualify for sleep apnea treatment options.
You can choose between the in-lab or at-home sleep studies discussed above. Regardless of which path the employee takes, be sure they do their research and ensure they are going with a trustworthy company.
Once they get an obstructive sleep apnea diagnosis, they can discuss treatment options with their doctor or a patient care representative. The most effective treatments for OSA are continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy, automatic positive airway pressure (AutoPAP) therapy, and bilevel positive airway pressure (BiPAP) therapy.
Aside from these, there are other treatments like dental appliances or surgical options that may be available to your employees depending on the nature and severity of their sleep apnea.
Provider Programs for Employers
Many providers, including ApneaMed, provide programs for companies that wish to extend sleep apnea testing and treatment benefits to their employees. There are different types of partnerships available to your company based on what kind of needs your employees have. If you’re looking for a simple option, you can opt for a referral partnership. In this program, if you have an employee who reports experiencing sleep apnea symptoms, you can have them fill out a referral form and get in contact with ApneaMed’s patient care specialist to schedule an at-home sleep test.
For businesses looking for something faster, you can also sign up for an In-Office Partnership where ApneaMed will send you a white label home sleep test unit on hand for employee health screenings. This way, you can send the unit home with the employee to begin the testing and analysis process sooner.
However, ApneaMed knows that the process of managing which employees may need sleep testing can be difficult to manage. So, for companies looking for the best service, we offer a Mail-Out Partnership where your HR team can order home sleep tests for any employee who may need it. Then, ApneaMed will mail out the test to the employee and have them send it back upon testing completion, expediting the process and getting the employee, and employer, seeing productivity increases sooner.
If you suspect that your employees are suffering from fatigue at work or other serious side effects of sleep apnea, it’s imperative that you get them OSA testing and treatment to ensure the behavior does not impact their health or work performance. Getting treatment is the best way to see immediate improvement and start experiencing rejuvenative sleep nightly.