Appointments
...for new patients (people not previously seen at NNSDC) who are referred to see one of our specialists for an opinion:
- You must be 14 or older and a resident of Ontario. As of November 2009 NNSDC is no longer accepting referrals from Manitoba.
- You must be referred by an MD: your family doctor, your specialist, or a doctor at a walk-in clinic. You can also be referred by a midwife.
- Your doctor, not you, must send us a signed letter or a signed referral form.
- The referral request is carefully reviewed, and your case is given a priority rating. We know that every person wants help as soon as possible, and we give you the earliest available appointment.
- People more urgent problems are seen more quickly than people with chronic and less urgent problems. It is up to your doctor to give us the information we need to assign an appropriate priority.
- We will send you a package with instructions shortly before your appointment.
- You can change the appointment we assign by phoning the office - phone weekday mornings between 7 a.m. and 11 a.m.
- You must confirm you are keeping your appointment shortly before the date or it will be canceled.
- We charge a fee if you confirm an appointment but do not keep the appointment.
...for a diagnostic sleep study without a consulation:
- You must be 14 or older and a resident of Ontario. As of November 2009 NNSDC is no longer accepting referrals from Manitoba.
- Your doctor, nurse practitioner, or midwife, not you, must send us a signed sleep study requisition.
- As of July 1st 2010, you can't be refered for a diagnostic sleep study without a consultation if you have EVER had an overnight sleep study in Ontario. You must be seen by sleep medicine before you can have another sleep study.
- Your doctor doesn't need to send a sleep study requisition if you are being referred for a consultation. A study will be arranged (if appropriate) as part of the consultation.
- We will send you a package with instructions shortly before your appointment.
- You can change the appointment we assign by phoning the office - phone weekday mornings between 7 a.m. and 11 a.m.
- You must confirm you are keeping your appointment shortly before the date or it will be canceled.
- We charge a fee if you confirm an appointment but do not keep the appointment.
- Your doctor or midwife will receive a report with your sleep study results. You must see them to get results and decide any further steps.
...for followup appointments:
- Patients who have been previously seen at the centre can phone during office hours and speak to the office manager.
How long does it take to be seen?
The delay for a routine priority referral is currently ~14-24 months, depending on the nature of the problem. Urgent problems are seen within a few weeks.
Followup visits in CPAP clinic can usually be arranged within ~8 weeks.
Other office followup visits are currently booking in ~ 6-8 months.
Sleep studies by direct requistion are booking ~6 mons from the date we receive the requisition. If we suggest sleep studies following initial consultation they can be arranged within ~4 weeks. For new patients referred from outside the immediate Thunder Bay area we try to arrange sleep studies for the same time as the initial visit.
Go to a walk- in clinic. The physician there may be able to help you solve your problem.
NORTHERN NIGHTS