Philips Respironics to truckers: Sleep well, drive safe
By HME News Staff
Updated Sun November 16, 2008
MURRYSVILLE, Pa. - Philips Respironics has launched a program to increase awareness of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) among truck drivers.
The "Sleep Well, Drive Safe" program incorporates five elements: education, screening, testing, therapy and compliance.
"We hope that this program will increase awareness of OSA and get a majority of drivers tested and treated within the trucking industry," stated Chick Maffei, manager of National Key Accounts (Special Initiatives) for Philips Respironics. "There are a large number of OSA sufferers who go undiagnosed and untreated, and they present a potential risk for being drowsy drivers. Our goal is to provide a safe working environment for truckers and, ultimately, safer highways for everyone."
About 28% of truckers who participated in a recent study sponsored by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and the American Transportation Research Institute of the American Trucking Associations had some form of sleep apnea.
Philips Respironics is working with sleep labs and homecare providers to execute the program. Additionally, it has launched a Web site, www.philips.com/trucking, which provides information for trucking company owners, safety directors and drivers.
Over the summer, Covidien partnered with Sleep Pointe, a sleep apnea management company, to bring mobile sleep labs to truck stops across America.
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