Sleep Technician
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Category: Sleep Center
Facility: Blue Mountain Hospital
Job Description
A sleep (polysomnographic) technician performs comprehensive sleep testing and analysis, and associated interventions under the general supervision of the Sleep Center Technical Director and/or the Medical Director or designee. A sleep technician will provide training and supervision of a sleep trainee.
Duties & Procedures:
- Review the patient's history and verify the medical order
- Follow sleep center protocols related to the sleep study
- When patients arrive, verify identification, collect documents and obtain consent for the study
- Explain the procedure and orient the patient for either in center or out of center sleep testing
- Select appropriate equipment and calibrate for testing to determine proper functioning and make adjustments if necessary
- Apply electrodes and sensors according to accepted published standards
- Perform routine positive airway pressure (PAP) interface fitting and desensitization
- Follow procedural protocols (such as Multiple Sleep Latency Test (MSLT), Maintenance of Wakefulness Test (MWT), parasomnia studies, PAP and oxygen titration, etc.) to ensure collection of appropriate data.
- Perform appropriate physiological calibrations to ensure proper signals and make required adjustments.
- Follow "lights out" procedures to establish and document baseline values (such as body position, oxyhemoglobin, respiratory and heart rates, etc.)
- Perform data acquisition while monitoring study-tracing quality to ensure signals are artifact-free, identify, correct and document artifacts
- Document routine observations, including sleep stages and clinical events, changes in procedure, and other significant events in order to facilitate scoring and interpretation of polysomnographic results.
- Implement appropriate interventions (including actions necessary for patient safety and therapeutic intervention such as positive airway pressure, oxygen administration, etc.)
- Follow "lights on" procedures to verify integrity of collected data and complete the data collection process (e.g. repeat the physiological and instrument calibrations and instruct the patient on completing questionnaires, checking for completeness, etc.)
- Assist with scoring sleep/wake stages by applying professionally accepted guidelines and clinical events (such as respiratory events, cardiac events, limb movements, arousals, etc.) utilizing AASM standards
- Assist with the generation of accurate reports by tabulating sleep/wake and clinical event data
- Demonstrate the knowledge and skills necessary to recognize and provide age specific care in the treatment, assessment, and education of neonatal, pediatric, adolescent, adult, and geriatric patients
- Demonstrate the knowledge and skills necessary to perform portable monitoring equipment preparation and data download
- Perform patient education and instruction appropriate for out of center sleep testing
- Demonstrate adherence to cleaning and disinfection procedures for portable monitoring devices
- Assist with scoring portable monitoring recordings according to AASM scoring parameters; identify artifacts, inadequate signals and study failures and generate an accurate report
Education/Experience/Management:
- Successful completion of a sleep technology program, associated with a state licensed and/or a nationally accredited educational facility
- A minimum of two years experience with documented proficiency in all required competencies OR holds a RPSGT, RRT, CCSH equivalent
- Maintain current CPR or BCLS certification
- Follow HIPAA policies to maintain the privacy and security of patient information
- Comply with applicable laws, regulations, guidelines and standards regarding safety and infection control issues
- Perform routine equipment care and maintenance and inventory evaluation
- Demonstrate computer skills appropriate for the position
- Demonstrate effective written and verbal communication skills
- Demonstrate appropriate social skills
- Demonstrate customer service skills
- Demonstrate critical thinking and ability to work with minimal supervision
- Demonstrate teamwork skills
- Demonstrate ability to follow direction
- Respond to sleep patient' procedural-related inquiries by providing appropriate information
- Assist with patient education utilizing sleep center specific protocols
- Adhere to sleep center policies related to quality assurance
Physical Demands
- The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to stand; use hands to finger, handle, or feel; reach with hands and arms; climb or balance; and talk or hear. The employee is occasionally required to walk, sit, stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl. The employee must regularly lift and/or move up to 10 pounds, frequently lift/and or move up to 25 pounds, and occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus.
Work Environment
- The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential job functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. In the performance of this job, the employee may be exposed to chemical vapors such as cleaning and disinfecting solutions. There may also be skin contact with these substances. The employee may also be exposed to infectious agents including bloodborne pathogens.
