As I near the end of the first year of my term as President I want you to know that it truly has been an honor serving this organization, and I look forward to the upcoming year. I also am looking forward to seeing many
of you in Denver at the 38thAnnual Meeting of the American Association of Sleep Technologists (AAST); a meeting that I always anticipate with excitement.
I am grateful to have this opportunity to serve as your President; I remember attending my very first AAST Annual Meeting, and wondering if I would ever be in a position to contribute to this wonderful profession. I would encourage any of you to consider participating at whatever level feels comfortable for you. The AAST really is a great and supportive organization, and we should all be proud to be a part of it and of our fascinating profession.
我合适的婚姻对象cularly excited about this year’s Annual Meeting program. New this year, on Sunday, June 12, the AAST 38thAnnual Meeting will offer two tracks in the afternoon—one covering fundamental topics and one covering advanced topics. Attendees are welcome to attend all sessions, and may pick and choose from both tracks to meet their individual interests and needs.
The fundamental track includes sessions F01: Proper Hook-Ups with Eileen Leary, MS, RPSGT, RST; F02: Filters with Tim Fields, RPSGT, RST; F03: Artifact Recognition with Deborah Holderman, RPSGT and F04: Arrhythmias with Jon Atkinson, RPSGT, CCSH. The advanced track includes sessions A01: Proper Documentation with William Beauchamp, RRT, RPSGT, RST; A02: CPAP Compliance Program with Kevin Asp, RPSGT, CRT; A03: Successful Titration: Article Review with Nancy Collop, MD and A04: Successful Titrations: Case Reviews with Allen Boone, RPSGT, RST, CCRC and Bernadette Moore-Dumas, RPSGT, RST, REEGT, CRET. I anticipate all of these will be excellent learning opportunities for both new and seasoned technologists!
As part of the Annual Meeting registration fee, AAST attendees will also have access to the SLEEP 2016 Exhibit Hall, which showcases booth displays of the latest offerings from pharmaceutical companies, equipment manufacturers, medical publishers, software companies and more. We have scheduled dedicated time for attendees to visit the Exhibit Hall, and even have provided CEC opportunities for technologists interested in partaking in some of the industry theatre offerings.
Additionally, there will be a new audience engagement platform that attendees can utilize to engage with the AAST during the Annual Meeting. Attendees can navigate to sleep.cnf.io on any computer, tablet or mobile device web browser. The sessions will include the following three features:
- Audience Polling: Polls will automatically appear on your device if there are polls in your sessions.
- Evaluations: Evaluations will automatically unlock at the end of each session.
- Audience Q&A: Click the ‘Ask’ button to submit a question or up-vote questions you like by clicking the arrow next to that question.
We expect attendees will enjoy this new feature we look forward to your feedback!
There is another reason for you to be excited about our 38th annual meeting—Blues Night is back! Sponsored by MVAP, Braebon and the AAST this will be a fun night for meeting attendees. Join us from 9 p.m. to midnight, Tuesday, June 14, at Jazz@Jacks, located in the Denver Pavilions at 500 16thStreet #320, Denver, CO.
Also, don’t forget to add the date for the AAST Fall Course to your calendar. The “Technologist Fundamentals Course” will be held Oct. 7-8, 2016 at the Wyndham Playhouse Square in Cleveland, Ohio. Preliminary information is posted on the AAST website and registration will open soon. Stay tuned for more detailed information about this upcoming course!
Finally, I wish all of you safe travels and I look forward to seeing you in Denver.
AAST President
Laura Linley, CRT, RST, RPSGT
