There is none more qualified to provide an oral appliance than a dentist who has been properly trained in dental sleep medicine .
Overcoming the Challenges
There are a few primary reasons most dentists do not treat patients for OSA . The good news is , there are easy solutions to each one of them .
Lack of training . Chances are you received exactly zero training in airway issues and treatment in dental school . However , today the opportunities for education abound – everything from online training modules to weekend CE courses to mini-residencies .
Medical billing . This is an entirely different animal than dental billing . Don ’ t waste time and frustrate your staff trying to do it in-house . Simply outsource to one of the many third party billing companies that specialize in medical billing for dental practices .
Cost of home sleep testing units . You have two options : You can lease units from test providers . Or you can make it easy on yourself ; outsource the entire process to one of the many companies that provide this service , totally turnkey , to dentists .
Patient ’ s bite will change . It very likely will . However I ’ ll happily trade a slight change in my bite for the ability to breathe better at night . ( In fact , I did happily make that trade when I started oral appliance therapy treatment .)
From a financial perspective , dental sleep medicine is one of the most lucrative services in dentistry . Yet , it is also one of the least practiced and most needed .
Don ’ t allow the perceived hurdles listed above to prevent you from growing your practice by offering a solution to this epidemic and saving lives in the process .
Your Next Steps
Get educated . Target 40-50 hours of sleep CE . Be sure and take your team to courses . You ’ ll need your staff educated and on-board if you want the sleep portion of your practice to really take off .
Find a home sleep testing company that provides a turnkey solution . Start by screening and treating your family , friends , your team and their family members . This will provide first-hand case studies and testimonials which will increase your understanding , confidence and passion .
Partner with a third party billing company . Be sure to choose one that has significant experience working with dental practices providing billing for oral appliance therapy .
Purchase dental sleep-specific software . Designed specifically for managing a dental sleep practice , it will streamline everything from ordering a sleep test , to providing patient data to the billing company , to communicating with the patient ’ s physicians .
Generate awareness . Develop a plan for promoting your new sleep practice . This should include direct-to-consumer marketing with online and offline , internal and external strategies .
Marc Fowler is President of Bullseye Media in McKinney , Texas and a sleep apnea sufferer . He can be reached at Marc @ BullseyeDental . com or his direct line : 214.592.9393 .
Visit DentalSleepMarketing . com for more information .
The Opportunity
The potential market for dental sleep medicine is huge . A very small percentage of dentists currently provide oral appliance therapy . Now is the time to grab market share and position yourself as the go-to dentist in your area .
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