PBMC Physician Says
Everyone Should Have a Good Night's Sleep

Most people should be getting a good night's sleep, because the majority of sleep disorders are treatable, according to Dr. Andrew Filderman, MD, DABSM, Medical Director for the Pen Bay Center for Sleep Medicine. Dr. Filderman is an experienced board-certified sleep specialist.

"Many disorders such as insomnia may be evaluated with a simple history taken by the patient's primary care provider," explained Dr. Filderman at a symposium on March 6. "More complex issues may require evaluation by a sleep medicine physician and may include an overnight sleep study."

Such sleep studies are conducted at the Center for Sleep Medicine's new facility, which opened in December 2007. It is located in the Ledgewood Professional Park on Route 1. Although Penobscot Bay Medical Center has been offering sleep disorders testing since 1997, this new facility allows the sleep lab to double the amount of patients they can test each night.

At the Pen Bay Healthcare Foundation's Wellspring Society winter symposium, Dr. Filderman introduced the Wellspring members to the center's new facility and explained that, while sleep disorders are common, they need not be.

"The key to getting help for a sleep problem is to first discuss it with your primary care provider," he told the group. "Your provider may be able to treat the disorder, or he may decide that referral to a sleep medicine physician is appropriate."

The four-bed center is staffed by two registered polysomnographic technologists. The data gathered during the overnight testing is interpreted by Dr. Filderman, and a treatment plan is developed.

The Center for Sleep Medicine currently performs testing three nights during the week and can accommodate up to four patients at a time. The center has conducted more than 2,477 sleep studies on patients ranging from children to geriatric patients.

The Pen Bay Center for Sleep Medicine accepts patients by physician referral and testing. Treatments are covered by most insurance. The center provides state-of-the-art evaluation and treatment of all sleep disorders in a caring environment. The center also provides educational opportunities for patients, physicians and the community to increase awareness of sleep disorders, their diagnosis and treatment. For more information, contact the Pen Bay Center for Sleep Medicine at 207-593-5588.

In 2003, the Pen Bay Healthcare Foundation established the Wellspring Society, an organization composed of people who support Pen Bay Healthcare and its nonprofit partner organizations – Penobscot Bay Medical Center, Mid-Coast Mental Health Center, the Knox Center for Long Term Care, Kno-Wal-Lin Home Care and Hospice, Penobscot Bay Physicians & Associates and the Anderson Inn at Quarry Hill. The Wellspring Society was founded to help maintain and provide the highest quality medical care available – from birth until death – for the more than 50,000 people residing in Midcoast Maine.

The staff of the Pen Bay Center for Sleep Medicine.
From left: Keith Siegel, RRT, CPFT; Cindy Roth, RPSGT, CRT
and Andrew Filderman, MD, DABSM.