By KALEY LYON
Hays Daily News
When Suzanne Bollig, manager of the sleep and neurodiagnostic service at The Center for Health Improvement, attended her first international conference on sleep medicine, she admits she was overwhelmed by the size of it.
Years later, Bollig, who grew up in Hays, has received a prestigious award at that same conference, the International Respiratory Care Congress, attended by about 6,000 people.
"I look out there at all the other folks and hope that I get to be like them when I grow up. To get the award was very gratifying," Bollig said. "It made me feel very good that, even in a small community in the Midwest, we're able to contribute and make a difference in health care."
The American Association of Respiratory Care, which consists of more than 37,000 members, presented her with the Sleep Section Specialty Practitioner of the Year Award at the December conference, which was in Orlando, Fla.
Bollig was nominated for the award by her peers, though she does not know by whom. She then completed a telephone interview in October to verify information and provide more background information about her career.
This is the first time Bollig, and anyone from Hays Medical Center, has received such an award.
The specialty award in sleep medicine only has been offered for two years -- Bollig specialized in sleep medicine years ago.
The sleep specialty is relatively new, making its debut slightly more than a decade ago, she said. As a result, the professional community is relatively small, which has enabled Bollig, who has been with HMC since 1974, to network with other specialists all over the nation.
"Because it's such a small group, I've managed to connect with people all across the nation and developed great friendships and mentorships in New York, California, New Mexico," Bollig said. "Even here in Kansas, in a relatively small community, the sleep community is worldwide so I get access to them."
Bollig's other accomplishments include serving as editor of the AARC Sleep Section Bulletin and co-authoring academic textbooks. She was a contributing author to "Fundamentals of Sleep Technology," and is in the process of writing for another, to be released next summer.
Her role at HMC is to oversee the four-bed sleep lab facility and to help patients evaluate their sleeping problems and find solutions, she said.
"It's all about sleep," Bollig said. "If you don't sleep well at night, you can't do anything during the day well either... sleep is a part of everyday health."
Reporter Kaley Lyon can be reached at (785) 628-1081, Ext. 138, or by e-mail at klyon@dailynews.net.
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