Optimal Sleep Pathway

We are delighted to share with you the publication of the Optimal Sleep Pathway. Sleep medicine services across the UK are experiencing significant challenges with rising referrals, a significant backlog and workforce challenges. A NHSE outpatient transformation workstream was commissioned to design an optimal sleep pathway, in order to modernise and improve the patient pathway. The group consisted of a broad range of healthcare professionals, representing all of those involved in the delivery of sleep medicine, alongside patient representatives and members of national organisations, including the British Sleep Society and the Association for Respiratory Technology and Physiology. The document has been endorsed by the British Sleep Society, the ARTP, the British Thoracic Society, the Sleep Apnoea Trust, The OSA Alliance, Hypersomnolence UK, The Sleep Charity and Hope2Sleep. 

We feel that this high-quality piece of work, co-produced with patients, has captured a broad breadth of challenges and experiences within sleep medicine. The document effectively reflects the views of a wide group of professionals and patients with lived experience of sleep disorders and has given voice to patients who are using sleep services. It provides helpful guidance on how to improve sleep services, regardless of what level of development the services are currently in, and we believe that this guide will facilitate progress towards improved outcomes and experiences for patients with sleep disorders.

Dr Allie Hare and Dr Nicola Read, on behalf of the Outpatient Sleep Pathway Working Group