Sleep disorders are among the most common — and underdiagnosed — conditions encountered in primary care. Patients may not be fully aware of their nighttime symptoms or may not report them. From obstructive sleep apnea to parasomnias, sleep conditions that aren’t effectively treated can significantly worsen cardiovascular risk, metabolic disease, mental health and overall quality of life.
Novant Health Sleep Medicine offers a comprehensive, systemwide sleep program designed to support referring physicians with consistent standards, accredited testing and expert interpretation — no matter where patients access care.
General practitioners can often begin addressing sleep concerns with behavioral interventions, supplements and medications, but these approaches aren’t effective for every patient. Recognizing when symptoms warrant a specialized sleep evaluation is essential to improving long-term health outcomes.
Here are five indicators that it’s time to make a sleep specialist referral:
- There are signs of sleep disorders or unsafe sleep behaviors such as obstructive sleep apnea, insomnia, narcolepsy, restless legs syndrome or parasomnias such as sleepwalking and eating.
- Sleep issues persist despite initial management such as counseling on sleep hygiene and prescribing medications.
- Symptoms include excessive daytime sleepiness that’s interfering with work, school or other daytime tasks despite the patient getting at least seven hours of sleep.
- Chronic insomnia is an issue, with trouble falling or staying asleep for several months despite behavioral or medication-based interventions.
- More support is needed to manage complex sleep problems such as insomnia complicated by psychiatric or medical conditions, or other suspected underlying conditions.
Referring patients early for sleep evaluation enables clinicians to identify the underlying disorder and intervene before complications develop. Sleep studies serve as the gold standard for diagnosing a wide range of sleep disorders. Expert sleep studies support diagnosis and treatment plans.
Novant Health’s six sleep centers provide a full range of diagnostic services for both adult and pediatric patients. Patients are cared for by using age-appropriate protocols while maintaining the same systemwide standards. Standardized reading criteria allow sleep studies to be interpreted consistently and accurately, providing clinically actionable results that guide treatment plans.
Novant Health sleep centers follow shared American Academy of Sleep Medicine standards, protocols and clinical expectations across locations, helping ensure patients receive the appropriate study and consistent care at the site most convenient for them. The program’s broad portfolio of diagnostic studies also helps physicians match patients to the right test based on age, symptoms and clinical complexity.
In-lab studies are delivered in facilities accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Health Care. They include:
● Polysomnography (PSG) to measure sleep stages, respiratory events, oxygenation, cardiac rhythm and limb movements. This helps diagnose sleep disorders such as obstructive sleep apnea and parasomnias.
● Positive airway pressure (PAP) titration studies to determine the best PAP settings to treat obstructive sleep apnea. This helps reduce apneas, hypopneas and oxygen desaturations during sleep.
● Multiple Sleep Latency Test (MSLT) to measure excessive daytime sleepiness and sleep-onset REM periods. This helps diagnose narcolepsy and other hypersomnia disorders.
● Maintenance of Wakefulness Test (MWT) to evaluate a patient’s ability to remain awake in a quiet environment. This helps assess treatment effectiveness or ability to conduct safety-sensitive activities.
Novant Health’s integrated sleep program includes 27 credentialed sleep study reading clinicians, experienced sleep technologists, and dedicated sleep lab supervisors and operational leaders.
Home sleep testing is also available for appropriate adult patients. They can complete testing at home and return devices the following day for assessment.
Following their sleep studies, patient treatment plans can be built around advanced therapies that include medication management and sleep resources, dental appliances, adaptive support ventilation and implantable devices.
Referring patients to a sleep specialist is easy.
“Referring to Novant Health Sleep Centers is simple through the Epic app or fax, allowing for efficient and seamless referrals,” said Stacy Nagy, Novant Health systems sleep manager. “Our teams are available to assist with questions regarding study selection, patient preparation, pediatric considerations and follow-up care.”
By referring patients to Novant Health Sleep Medicine, physicians gain access to a unified network of sleep specialists, standardized diagnostics and dependable interpretation — all designed to improve outcomes and streamline care. For patients struggling with persistent sleep concerns or complex cases, timely referral can make a measurable difference in both sleep health and overall well-being.
