Kathleen Sarmiento

Professor

Kathleen Sarmiento is an Professor of Medicine at the VA San Francisco Health Care System and the Executive Director for VHA's National Sleep Medicine Program Office. Her research focuses on improving access to sleep care for both rural and urban Veterans by leveraging telehealth and hub-spoke partnerships, and by de-implementing low-value visits. Her current grant will assess the value of home sleep apnea testing in a broad range of comorbidities and pre-test risk for OSA, as well as study the impact of an initial consultation before sleep testing on adherence to therapy, patient satisfaction, and patient outcomes. Through the national implementation of VA’s TeleSleep Program, a variety of synchronous and asynchronous modalities to improve access, quality, and timeliness of care are evaluated. Dr. Sarmiento is also engaged in clinical research evaluating virtual care for sleep disorder evaluation and management, and hospital to home transitions and the benefit of non-invasive ventilation on morbidity and mortality in patients with chronic respiratory failure. She is an innovator and early adopter of technology, seeking to incorporate AI and machine learning into care delivery models to improve practice efficiency and patient outcomes.

Education
2018 - Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Champion Training, University of California
2014 - National Center for Leadership in Academic Medicine, University of California
2009 - Sleep Medicine, University of Maryland
2008 - Pulmonary & Critical Care Medicine, University of Maryland
2005 - Internal Medicine, University of Maryland
MD, MPH, 2002 - Allopathic Medicine, Tulane University
Honors and Awards
  • 143rd Cohort, Veterans Health Administration Selectee,, Interagency Institute for Federal Health Leaders, 2024
  • Communications Award, VHA Specialty Care Program Office, 2023
  • VHA Diffusion Academy (Innovation Ecosystem), Veterans Health Administration, 2021
  • Federal Employee of the Year, San Francisco Federal Executive Board, 2019
  • Federal Health Innovations Award, Federal Health IT, 2018
  • Women in Innovation, VHA Innovation Program, 2017
  • Be the Difference Award for Exemplary Patient Care, VA San Diego Healthcare System, 2016
  • Excellence in Leadership Award, VA San Diego Healthcare System, 2016
  • ATS Young Investigator Award, American Thoracic Society, 2015
  • Excellence in Teamwork Award, VA San Diego Healthcare System, 2015
  • Valedictorian, National Center for Leadership in Academic Medicine, University of California, San Diego, 2014
  • Excellence in Teamwork Award, VA San Diego Healthcare System, 2014
  • Junior Faculty Research Award, American Academy of Sleep Medicine, 2013-2015
  • Clinical Research Enhancement through Supplemental Training (CREST) K30 Program, University of California, San Diego, 2013-2015
Publications

  1. Nokes B, Sarmiento KF, Owens RL. Philips leaving the United States: what does that mean for physicians, patients and everyone in between? Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine 2024. PMID: 38656814


  2. Nokes B, Zamora T, Velazquez Y, Golshan S, Cervantes-Gomeros C, Perrine W, Barker R, Malhotra A, Sarmiento KF, Stepnowsky C. Trends in obstructive sleep apnea disease severity over nearly two decades: update on the VA San Diego experience. Sleep advances : a journal of the Sleep Research Society 2024. PMID: 38957728


  3. Sarmiento KF, Gomez A, Atwood CW. Time for a unified federal sleep health care workforce? Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine 2024. PMID: 38597894


  4. Belkora JK, Ortiz DeBoque L, Folmer RL, Totten AM, Williams K, Whooley MA, Boudreau E, Atwood CW, Zeidler M, Rezayat T, Chilakamarri P, Sarmiento KF. Sustainment of the TeleSleep program for rural veterans. Frontiers in health services 2023. PMID: 38028943


  5. Hahn Z, Hotchkiss J, Atwood C, Smith C, Totten A, Boudreau E, Folmer R, Chilakamarri P, Whooley M, Sarmiento K. Travel Burden as a Measure of Healthcare Access and the Impact of Telehealth within the Veterans Health Administration. Journal of general internal medicine 2023. PMID: 37340257


  6. Colvonen PJ, Goldstein LA, Sarmiento KF. Examining the bidirectional relationship between PTSD symptom clusters and PAP adherence. Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine 2023. PMID: 36692162


  7. Chun VS, Whooley MA, Williams K, Zhang N, Zeidler MR, Atwood CW, Folmer RL, Totten AM, Smith CJ, Boudreau EA, Reichert JM, Sarmiento KF, VA TeleSleep Enterprise-Wide Initiative. Veterans Health Administration TeleSleep Enterprise-Wide Initiative 2017-2020: bringing sleep care to our nation's veterans. Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine 2023. PMID: 36708262


  8. Belkora JK, Fields B, Shamim-Uzzaman QA, Stratford D, Alfandre D, Hollingshaus S, Yackel E, Geppert C, Nechanicky P, Nichols A, Williams K, Reichert J, Whooley MA, Francis J, Sarmiento KF. Veterans Health Administration response to 2021 recall of Philips Respironics devices: A case study. Medicine and science in sports and exercise 2023. PMID: 38585370


  9. Chang JL, Goldberg AN, Alt JA, Ashbrook L, Auckley D, Ayappa I, Bakhtiar H, Barrera JE, Bartley BL, Billings ME, Boon MS, Bosschieter P, Braverman I, Brodie K, Cabrera-Muffly C, Caesar R, Cahali MB, Cai Y, Cao M, Capasso R, Caples SM, Chahine LM, Chang CP, Chang KW, Chaudhary N, Cheong CSJ, Chowdhuri S, Cistulli PA, Claman D, Collen J, Coughlin K, Creamer J, Davis EM, Dupuy-McCauley KL, Durr ML, Dutt M, Ali ME, Elkassabany NM, Epstein LJ, Fiala JA, Freedman N, Gill K, Gillespie MB, Golisch L, Gooneratne N, Gottlieb DJ, Green KK, Gulati A, Gurubhagavatula I, Hayward N, Hoff PT, Hoffmann OMG, Holfinger SJ, Hsia J, Huntley C, Huoh KC, Huyett P, Inala S, Ishman S, Jella TK, Jobanputra AM, Johnson AP, Junna MR, Kado JT, Kaffenberger TM, Kapur VK, Kezirian EJ, Khan M, Kirsch DB, Kominsky A, Kryger M, Krystal AD, Kushida CA, Kuzniar TJ, Lam DJ, Lettieri CJ, Lim DC, Lin HC, Liu SYC, MacKay SG, Magalang UJ, Malhotra A, Maurer JT, May AM, Mitchell RB, Mokhlesi B, Mullins AE, Nada EM, Naik S, Nokes B, Olson MD, Pack AI, Pang EB, Pang KP, Patil SP, de Perck EV, Piccirillo JF, Pien GW, Piper AJ, Plawecki A, Quigg M, Ravesloot MJL, Redline S, Rotenberg BW, Ryden A, Sarmiento KF, Sbeih F, Schell AE, Schmickl CN, Schotland HM, Schwab RJ, Seo J, Shah N, Shelgikar AV, Shochat I, Soose RJ, Steele TO, Stephens E, Stepnowsky C, Strohl KP, Sutherland K, Suurna MV, Thaler E, Thapa S, Vanderveken OM, de Vries N, Weaver EM, Weir ID, Wolfe LF, Woodson BT, Won CHJ, Xu J, Yalamanchi P, Yaremchuk K, Yeghiazarians Y, Yu JL, Zeidler M, Rosen IM. International consensus statement on obstructive sleep apnea. International forum of allergy & rhinology 2022. PMID: 36068685


  10. Folmer RL, Smith CJ, Boudreau EA, Totten AM, Chilakamarri P, Atwood CW, Sarmiento KF. Sleep disorders among rural Veterans: Relative prevalence, comorbidities, and comparisons with urban Veterans. The Journal of rural health : official journal of the American Rural Health Association and the National Rural Health Care Association 2022. PMID: 36333991


  11. Goldstein LA, Purcell N, Sarmiento KF, Neylan TC, Maguen S. Barriers to positive airway pressure adherence among veterans with sleep apnea: a mixed methods study. 2022. PMID: 35640475


  12. Folmer RL, Boudreau EA, Atwood CW, Smith CJ, Totten AM, Tock JL, Chilakamarri P, Sarmiento KF. Study protocol to assess de-implementation of the initial provider encounter for diagnosis and treatment of obstructive sleep apnea: the DREAM (Direct Referral for Apnea Monitoring) Project. 2022. PMID: 35366836


  13. Kaul B, Lee JS, Zhang N, Vittinghoff E, Sarmiento K, Collard HR, Whooley MA. Epidemiology of Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Among U.S. Veterans, 2010 - 2019. Annals of the American Thoracic Society 2021. PMID: 34314645


  14. Weaver TE, Pepin JL, Schwab R, Shapiro C, Hedner J, Ahmed M, Foldvary-Schaefer N, Strollo PJ, Mayer G, Sarmiento K, Baladi M, Bron M, Chandler P, Lee L, Malhotra A. Long-term effects of solriamfetol on quality of life and work productivity in participants with excessive daytime sleepiness associated with narcolepsy or obstructive sleep apnea. Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine 2021. PMID: 34606437


  15. Chang YHA, Folmer RL, Shasha B, Shea JA, Sarmiento K, Stepnowsky CJ, Lim D, Pack A, Kuna ST. Barriers and facilitators to the implementation of a novel web-based sleep apnea management platform. Sleep 2021. PMID: 33216916


  16. Kaul B, Hynes DM, Hickok A, Smith C, Niederhausen M, Totten AM, Whooley MA, Sarmiento K. Does Community Outsourcing Improve Timeliness of Care for Veterans With Obstructive Sleep Apnea? Volume 59 of Issue 2. Medical care 2020. PMID: 33290324


  17. Nicosia FM, Kaul B, Totten AM, Silvestrini MC, Williams K, Whooley MA, Sarmiento KF. Leveraging Telehealth to improve access to care: a qualitative evaluation of Veterans' experience with the VA TeleSleep program. Volume 21 of Issue 1. BMC health services research 2021. PMID: 33478497


  18. Lu AD, Kaul B, Reichert J, Kilbourne AM, Sarmiento KF, Whooley MA. Implementation Strategies for Frontline Healthcare Professionals: People, Process Mapping, and Problem Solving. Journal of general internal medicine 2020. PMID: 32918200


  19. Sarmiento KF, Boudreau EA, Smith CJ, Kaul B, Johnson N, Folmer RL. Effects of Computer-Based Documentation Procedures on Health Care Workload Assessment and Resource Allocation: An Example From VA Sleep Medicine Programs. Federal practitioner : for the health care professionals of the VA, DoD, and PHS 2020. PMID: 32908344


  20. Folmer RL, Smith CJ, Boudreau EA, Hickok AW, Totten AM, Kaul B, Stepnowsky CJ, Whooley MA, Sarmiento KF. Prevalence and management of sleep disorders in the Veterans Health Administration. Sleep medicine reviews 2020. PMID: 32791487


  21. Weaver FM, Hickok A, Prasad B, Tarlov E, Zhang Q, Taylor A, Bartle B, Gordon H, Young R, Sarmiento K, Hynes DM. Comparing VA and Community-Based Care: Trends in Sleep Studies Following the Veterans Choice Act. Journal of general internal medicine 2020. PMID: 32242312


  22. Malhotra A, Shapiro C, Pepin JL, Hedner J, Ahmed M, Foldvary-Schaefer N, Strollo PJ, Mayer G, Sarmiento K, Baladi M, Chandler P, Lee L, Schwab R. Long-term study of the safety and maintenance of efficacy of solriamfetol (JZP-110) in the treatment of excessive sleepiness in participants with narcolepsy or obstructive sleep apnea. Sleep 2019. PMID: 31691827


  23. Sarmiento KF, Folmer RL, Stepnowsky CJ, Whooley MA, Boudreau EA, Kuna ST, Atwood CW, Smith CJ, Yarbrough WC. National Expansion of Sleep Telemedicine for Veterans: The TeleSleep Program. Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine 2019. PMID: 31538607


  24. Stepnowsky C, Sarmiento KF, Bujanover S, Villa KF, Li VW, Flores NM. Comorbidities, Health-Related Quality of Life, and Work Productivity Among People With Obstructive Sleep Apnea With Excessive Sleepiness: Findings From the 2016 US National Health and Wellness Survey. Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine 2019. PMID: 30736870


  25. Goldstein LA, Colvonen PJ, Sarmiento KF. Advancing Treatment of Comorbid PTSD and OSA. Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine 2017. PMID: 28454602


  26. Cairns A, Sarmiento K, Bogan R. Utility of home sleep apnea testing in high-risk veterans. Sleep & breathing = Schlaf & Atmung 2017. PMID: 28243925


  27. Orr JE, Smales C, Alexander TH, Stepnowsky C, Pillar G, Malhotra A, Sarmiento KF. Treatment of OSA with CPAP Is Associated with Improvement in PTSD Symptoms among Veterans. Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine 2017. PMID: 27707436


  28. Balachandran JS, Thomson CC, Sumter DB, Shelgikar AV, Lachapelle P, Pamidi S, Fall M, Lal C, Baba RY, Shah N, Fields BG, Sarmiento K, Butler MP, Shea SA, Baptiste JV, Sharkey KM, Wang T. ATS Core Curriculum 2016: Part I. Adult Sleep Medicine. Annals of the American Thoracic Society 2016. PMID: 27058183


  29. Hepokoski ML, Wali AR, Sarmiento KF. Mechanisms and implications of the link between sleep apnoea and chronic kidney disease. Respirology (Carlton, Vic.) 2016. PMID: 27030604


  30. Stepnowsky C, Sarmiento KF, Amdur A. Weaving the Internet of Sleep: The Future of Patient-Centric Collaborative Sleep Health Management Using Web-Based Platforms. Sleep 2015. PMID: 26194574


  31. Orr JE, Ishman SL, Sarmiento KF. Stimulating Progress in the Upper Airway. Sleep 2015. PMID: 26039962


  32. Sarmiento K, Rossettie J, Stepnowsky C, Atwood C, Calvitti A. The state of Veterans Affairs sleep medicine programs: 2012 inventory results. Sleep & breathing = Schlaf & Atmung 2015. PMID: 25924933


  33. Malhotra A, Neilan TG, Sarmiento K. Obstructive sleep apnea and atrial fibrillation: is the link real? Journal of the American College of Cardiology 2014. PMID: 25440098


  34. Stepnowsky C, Zamora T, Barker R, Liu L, Sarmiento K. Accuracy of positive airway pressure device-measured apneas and hypopneas: role in treatment followup. Sleep disorders 2013. PMID: 24062954


  35. Kohli P, Sarmiento K, Malhotra A. Update in sleep medicine 2012. American journal of respiratory and critical care medicine 2013. PMID: 23675714


  36. Schwartz EA, Hayes BD, Sarmiento KF. Development of hepatic failure despite use of intravenous acetylcysteine after a massive ingestion of acetaminophen and diphenhydramine. Annals of emergency medicine 2008. PMID: 18986731