Almost 7,700 more Manitobans could receive at

The Manitoba government says it has struck a new deal with the Misericordia Health Centre's sleep disorder centre and a private medical technology company that could provide as many as 320 more Manitobans with at-home sleep study kits every month over the next two years.

The $1.8-million agreement will scale up staff and add more equipment at the sleep disorder clinic, said Dr. Peter MacDonald, chair of the diagnostic and surgical recovery task force steering committee.

A spokesperson for the province said the deal could result in as many as 10 full-time-equivalent positions being filled over the next few years, including physician assistants, respiratory therapists and filing clerks, among others.

The two-year deal also includes the expansion of an interim partnership with private Winnipeg-based medical technology company Cerebra Medical. MacDonald said Manitoba needs to use both private and public options to combat the sleep study wait-list.

"Otherwise, you're not going to be able to serve Manitobans in a timely fashion," he said during a Wednesday news conference.

The sleep clinic could provide as many as 200 at-home sleep study kits each month under the two-year deal, while Cerebra Medical could add as many as 120 kits, MacDonald said. That means as many as 7,680 more Manitobans could be receiving at-home sleep studies over the next two years under the new deal.

The number of Manitobans currently on the wait-list for sleep studies was not provided on Wednesday but is estimated to be several thousand, MacDonald said. The actual number is currently being held by the sleep disorder clinic and will be shared with the task force under the new deal, he said.

Capital and infrastructure costs to increase capacity for level-one sleep studies will also be part of the new deal, according to MacDonald. Level-one sleep studies are done overnight under staff observation at the clinic, and people with more complex or rare sleep disorders will continue to receive those studies.

The agreement could be renewed if it proves successful, said MacDonald, but it's meant to be a short-term measure until the province can build more capacity for sleep studies inside of Manitoba.