CleveMed Blogs

Poor quality of sleep tends to accompany common illnesses, and life stressors (including family and social structure changes); patients tend to visit their primary care physician (PCP) who has knowledge of these factors that are related with their sleep problems. Symptoms and complaints associated with Obstructive Sleep Apnea are often expressed at a higher frequency in the primary care practice setting.

Patients often go to a sleep lab for OSA diagnosis & evaluation. On many instances, the primary care physician looses direct contact with his/her patient’s sleep condition and overall care path. An alternative to sending patients to a sleep lab test is to begin the diagnosis and management process within the primary care setting, by utilizing newer technology that makes sleep diagnosis portable and more readily accessible.

CleveMed’s sleep study network connects the primary care physician to sleep technologists, and board certified sleep physicians, so that the primary doc is able to be involved in the patient’s continuum of care. Here’s how:

This way, the PCP can maintain management of his/her patients’ sleep apnea and associated conditions.

Happy New Year doodle from CleveMed

CleveMed extends its warmest wishes for a happy, healthy and prosperous new year to our valued customers, employees and clinical collaborators.

CleveMed has announced the promotion of Joseph P. Giuffrida, PhD to Vice President, General Manager of the Division of Movement Disorders. CleveMed is continually expanding as a medical device company and Dr. Giuffrida will continue to fill a crucial role to assist with the company’s success.

Dr. Giuffrida, 33, completed his BS, MS and PhD in Biomedical Engineering at Case Western Reserve University with a concentration in rehabilitation engineering. He began his career at CleveMed in 2000 as an Applications Engineer and upon receipt of his PhD in 2004, became a Principal Investigator and eventually Director of the Division of Movement Disorders. Within these roles, Dr. Giuffrida has secured over $10 million in funding from both the National Institutes of Health and the State of Ohio to fuel the research, development, and commercialization of innovative medical devices focused on aiding in the diagnosis and therapy of movement disorders. He has secured FDA clearance to market for a number of CleveMed systems, managed reimbursement strategies for new and emerging technology, established multiple world renowned key opinion leaders and clinical consultants, and lead the marketing and sales teams for CleveMed’s clinical movement disorder products as well as the research and education product lines.

Most notably, CleveMed’s Division of Movement Disorders commercialized and launched Kinesia under Dr. Giuffrida’s direction. This technology is intended to provide a standardized platform for objectively quantifying motor symptoms associated with Parkinson’s disease. Additional research and development in this Division is focused on extending the market applications for Kinesia from clinical office visits to home monitoring and deep brain stimulation programming, assistive technologies to aid in communication for persons with limited mobility and speech impairment and the development of rehabilitation systems to aid in motor recovery after brain injuries such as stroke or cerebral palsy.

In addition to the Division of Movement Disorders, Dr. Giuffrida also manages CleveMed’s line of products focused on the research and education market. Dr. Giuffrida was able to commercialize CleveMed’s wireless physiological monitoring technology into specific academic and university based target applications to increase CleveMed’s sales both domestically and internationally.

Have you ever thought about something you could do to help out in your community? Or things you could be involved with that may help improve the lives of others? CleveMed is involved with a number of non profit organizations and community groups that support Parkinson’s disease research, patients and their families. Because of the research that CleveMed does involving Parkinson’s, it’s important to make sure that these types of organizations are aware of new findings, outcomes, and breakthroughs so that the information can be shared with patients. These types of organizations are also a great resource because they can spread the word about clinical trials being conducted and helping patients become involved.

Below are links to organizations in Ohio and the Northeast area:
Courageous Steps for Parkinson’s:
http://www.courageoussteps.com/
Ohio Parkinson Foundation Northeast Region:
http://ohparkinson.org/
Tri State Parkinson’s Wellness Center:
http://www.parkinsonswellness.org/
Central Ohio Parkinson Society:
http://www.centralohioparkinson.org/

Here are some organizations on the national level that can always use support and help:
The Tremor Action Network:
http://www.tremoraction.org/
National Parkinson Foundation:
http://www.parkinson.org
American Parkinson’s Disease Association:
http://www.apdaparkinson.org
The International Essential Tremor Foundation:
http://www.essentialtremor.org/

The above organizations provide invaluable resources for Parkinson’s disease research and patients and provide a place where people affected can go to for support and information. Please visit these websites to find out more information on how you can become involved or donate.