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Partnership a Significant Step Toward Addressing Concerns About Sleep Education and Public Awareness of Sleep Disorders
WASHINGTON, DC, March 1, 2007 - A coalition of government, professional, voluntary and other organizations has aligned to form the National Sleep Awareness Roundtable (NSART), which will officially launch on March 7th during National Sleep Awareness Week (March 5-11). The mission of NSART is to: 1) raise awareness about; 2) increase the understanding of; and 3) reduce the public health and safety impact of sleep deprivation and sleep disorders by improving communication and collaboration among local, state and federal agencies, professional organizations and the public.
NSART currently has almost 20 members from many different disciplines and perspectives including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the American Academy of Pediatrics, the National Institutes of Mental Health, the American College of Chest Physicians, the American Thoracic Society, the Sleep Research Society, the Board for Registered Polysomnographic Technologists (BRPT), the American Lung Association, and the National Sleep Foundation (NSF), which initiated the development of NSART.
NSART will actively seek to expand its membership by reaching out to new organizations and state and federal agencies that are interested in raising awareness of sleep issues through implementing new programs and disseminating health and safety messages to the public and public health officials.
NSART members have agreed to pursue the following broad goals:
- To increase public awareness about sleep, sleep disorders, and consequences of sleep deprivation
- To promote science-based public policies that improve the sleep health of the nation
- To advance basic, clinical, applied, and population-based research
- To promote recognition of and access to care for all individuals with sleep disorders
"The role of sleep deprivation and sleep disorders is severely underappreciated, given the immense impact they have on public health and safety," said Dr. Wayne Giles, M.D., MS, Director of the Division of Adult and Community Health, CDC. "This partnership will focus on critical areas like surveillance data, prevention research, and awareness of sleep-related health concerns among care providers, researchers, policymakers, and the public."
NSART has already taken steps to ensure that these goals will be met by creating a Web site - www.NSART.org - that will serve as a new destination for health care professionals and the public seeking authoritative information about sleep, sleep disorders and the consequences of sleep deprivation. Additionally, four task forces have been formed to develop a National Action Plan that will address issues surrounding sleep in the areas of public awareness, research, education, access to care and public policy.
NSF worked with CDC to form NSART in direct response to government recommendations and reports that advocate the development of activities to raise awareness about the impact of sleep on public health and safety. Language contained in the Senate and House Labor-HHS appropriations bills for the past three years encouraged the National Institutes of Health and the CDC to work with voluntary health organizations to develop a sleep education and public awareness initiative. A groundbreaking report by the Institute of Medicine titled "Sleep Disorders and Sleep Deprivation, An Unmet Public Health Problem," released in 2006 stated that "awareness among the general public and health care professionals is low given the magnitude of the burden."
The "magnitude of the burden" is pervasive: The National Institutes of Health estimates that sleep-related problems affect 50 to 70 million Americans, most of which are undiagnosed and untreated due to a lack of public awareness and a lack of training for health care professionals. The cumulative effects of sleep loss and sleep disorders represent an under-recognized public health problem and have been associated with a wide range of health consequences including hypertension, diabetes, obesity, depression, heart attack, stroke and at-risk behaviors. More than 100,000 car crashes are caused by driver fatigue each year, resulting in at least 1,550 deaths, 71,000 injuries, and $12.5 billion in monetary losses; and it is estimated that hundreds of billions of dollars are spent annually on direct medical costs associated with sleep problems.
"The demanding lifestyle of Americans has directly contributed to a sleep deprivation epidemic," said James Walsh, PhD, immediate past chairman of the NSF board. "It is of paramount importance that we reach both the public and health care professionals with information about the importance of adequate sleep and how to get it as well as the signs and symptoms of sleep disorders and that they should be discussed with a qualified professional. We are excited that many health and safety organizations are joining with NSF and CDC in this outreach effort."
Please visit www.NSART.org for more information about sleep or membership in NSART. For general information about sleep, please visit www.sleepfoundation.org .
NSART Members: American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine
American Academy of Pediatrics
American College of Chest Physicians
American Lung Association
American Sleep Apnea Association
American Thoracic Society
Board of Registered Polysomnographic Technologists
Federal Railroad Administration
International Life Sciences Institute - North America
Narcolepsy Network Inc.
National Institute of Mental Health
National Sleep Foundation
Restless Legs Syndrome Foundation
Sleep Research Society
Federal Liaisons Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
About BRPT
The Board Of Registered Polysomnographic Technologists (BRPT) is a nonprofit corporation that provides board certification and recertification for Polysomnographic Technologists. The BRPT is an independent organization, governed by a Board of Directors including a diverse group of experts in polysomnographic technology. The Board is international in scope and blends both technologists and physicians for the purpose of establishing rigorous standards which have a basis in a real world practice.
Contact: Helen Sullivan
BRPT Public Relations/Communications
Phone: (703) 847-9691
Email: Writesullivan@aol.com
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