Cookeville Sleep Centers Merge and Expand Sleep Services

Saturday, July 2nd, 2011 at 10:51 PM

Two Cookeville sleep centers have announced merger this week. Sleep Solutions of Cookeville has consolidated with the Sleep Lab of Cookeville Regional, a move that will allow the CRMC facility to expand its services, double the number of beds for studies and increase its staff two-fold. The hospital’s board of trustees approved a $250,000 purchase price for Sleep Solutions, its assets and equipment.

With the merger, Sleep Solutions’ rented facility on North Washington Avenue will close. The Sleep Lab at CRMC, meanwhile, located on West Fourth Street, will double in capacity.

“We were both two busy four-bed labs, and we decided it would be best if we joined efforts,” said Scott Clayton, former CEO of Sleep Solutions and the new director of the Sleep Lab of Cookeville Regional. “We will increase to six beds on Tuesday and we’ll be moving to eight beds here as soon as possible.”

The Sleep Lab of Cookeville Regional is the largest sleep lab in the Upper Cumberland. The facility offers a full range of sleep studies for disorders like sleep apnea, snoring, respiratory problems and restless leg syndrome in adults and children as young as 3. But an increase in staff will also allow for studies to be conducted seven nights a week.

The merger will also allow for more in-depth patient follow up. Clayton said he particularly wanted to push compliance with CPAP and sleep apnea patients, monitoring them to make sure they’re actually using their breathing equipment.

“I just want this sleep center to be the hub for anybody with sleep problems,” Clayton said. “If we can be a one-stop shop, we can really help the patients and the physicians.”

Sleep Solutions first opened in Cookeville in 2002 and received its accreditation in 2007. The Sleep Lab of Cookeville Regional, meanwhile, first started sleep studies around 2000 and hit the 900 mark last year. The hospital is budgeting for an additional 600-800 sleep studies as a result of the merger, a more than 75 percent increase in patient volume.