Last month, I wrote about the expansion in telemedicine brought on my the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19. This month, I want to share other ways that the virus has changed the education of patients and physicians in training programs. We are all in the midst of these unprecedented times, where the virus has claimed so many lives and transformed our daily existence. The tragedy of the virus is very real, and I do not think we are seeing light at the end of the tunnel yet.

For over 15 years, I have used this website as an opportunity to educate patients, whether in the written content on the main sleep-doctor.com site, my blog, or videos posted on Youtube. I have participated in multiple medical education webinars and telephone (old school!) lectures and feel strongly that this format will grow as the technology becomes more advanced, just as is happening in non-medical education. My Chair has led a collaborative effort to provide online training to resident physicians at many training programs (last count: 42 residency training programs involvd). This collaborative effort includes faculty from these programs, with each of them giving lectures on a topic in their areas of expertise. It has been phenomenal, and I am excited to speak about drug-induced sleep endoscopy on Thursday, April 9.

While these lectures are available only to resident physicians, patients have many opportunities to obtain information online, whether through recorded or live content. I will be starting to hold webinars related to Inspire Upper Airway Stimulation therapy for obstructive sleep apnea. I wanted to announce that my first webinar will occur on Thursday, April 23, 2020, at 2 pm Pacific Time. Here is the link to register in advance or to join the Zoom webinar at that time. Depending on the level of interest, I may be holding these webinars at other dates/times, but I hope this offers a chance for me to share information about Inspire and answer questions that you might have about this exciting therapy.

Again, here is the link to register in advance or join the Zoom webinar on Thursday, April 23 at 2 pm Pacific time: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_IkhR6WRFTuK8VCuQpqbi-g.