Sleep Wake

A truck driver involved in a deadly collision that killed a mother and her son was aware that he had sleep apnea, a report in the Salina Journal said.

The driver was required by law to receive a periodic physical examination as all truck drivers are. During such an exam and prior to the incident, he admitted that he had been diagnosed with sleep apnea, but was not having success with the treatment he had been provided. The examiner was concerned and issued him a limited certificate to drive, only 3 months instead of the usual 3 years, in order to give him time to follow up with his sleep doctor to explore alternative solutions.

Instead, he visited a different examiner for his driving physical, avoided mention of the sleep problem, and was issued the standard two year certificate.

Subsequent to that he was found to be the at fault driver in a deadly crash.

Recommendations released in 2006 by a joint task force consisting of the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP), American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM), and the National Sleep Foundation (NSF) suggest a screening process that bases driver certification on severity of sleep apnea.