February 2, 2007

Sleep disorders testing expands to Holiday Inn

This January, the Sleep Disorders Program of the MGH Neurology Service expanded its adult overnight outpatient testing unit to the Holiday Inn Select on Blossom Street. A total of eight beds are now available, effectively doubling the MGH Sleep Center's capacity to more than 50 patients per week. The move
represents a major expansion of the center's outpatient diagnostic services, which previously had four beds on Bigelow 12.

Under the leadership of John W. Stakes, MD, the center is supported by several physicians, sleep technologists and administrative personnel, and offers a complete battery of routine and complex diagnostic tests for patients suffering from a variety
of sleep disorders such as sleep apnea, narcolepsy, insomnia, restless legs syndrome, periodic limb movement in sleep, parasomnias and night terrors.

Any patient with a potentially health-affecting sleep disorder will undergo an overnight diagnostic study, during which electrodes are attached to the body to electronically record physiological data during sleep. This data, along with audio and video feeds, are monitored in real-time by sleep technologists from a work area adjacent to the patient rooms, allowing patients to be safely monitored in a private setting. The expanded center also will enable the program to pursue future research and medical
training endeavors and permit the development of new programs in conjunction with the MGH Departments of Psychiatry and Pulmonary Medicine.

The partnership with the Holiday Inn represents a unique and cost-effective solution to the challenge of expanding the program while remaining near the main hospital campus. The collaboration, says Holiday Inn general manager Andy Duymovic, is the culmination of "a three-year effort to make the unit a reality. The Holiday Inn is pleased to have the MGH at the hotel; we couldn't be happier with the result."

Says Joan Sapir, vice president of Neurosciences, Pediatrics and Dermatology, "The new MGH Sleep Center provides an excellent and innovative environment for the care of patients with sleep disorders. We look forward to taking care of our patients more effectively in our new location, as well as working more collaboratively with our clinical colleagues in other disciplines to provide leading edge care and teaching."

An open house will be held in early March at the new MGH Sleep Center. Guests will have the opportunity to tour the facility, meet the staff and enjoy refreshments. For more information about the MGH Sleep Center at the Holiday Inn, or to refer a patient for diagnostic testing, call (617) 724-7426.

From left, Anne Young, MD, chief of Neurology; Peter L. Slavin, MD, MGH president; Shawn Farrell, administrative director for Neurology; Stakes; Margaret Merlino, chief sleep technologist; Ken Sassower, MD, sleep neurology physician; Duymovic; Mike Whiteman, Holiday Inn sales director; Walter O'Donnell, MD Pulmonary Service; Charles Hales, MD, chief of Pulmonary Service; and Jean Elrick, senior vice president for MGH Administration