David Gergen Stages Come Back
Hall of Famer NFL Players join The Pro Player Health Alliance (PPHA) to help spread awareness on the deadly disorder, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) on National Sleep Apnea Awareness Day, April 18, 2013. Taking stage for the “Tackle Sleep Apnea” campaign are Roy Green, Larry Fitzgerald, Seth Joyner, Derek Kennard, Alfonso Smith, and Mark Walczak amongst many other retired NFL Superstars. Many players have been loyal and outspoken advocates of spreading awareness of the deadly disorder across the country. Joined with David Gergen, owner of Gergen’s Orthodontic Lab and founder of the PPHA, they have been on a mission to “Tackle Sleep Apnea” nationally. Statistically, over 60% of the NFL and former NFL are suffering from Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA). Who better to speak and share personal stories to the public?
The next “Tackling Sleep Apnea” event will be held in Phoenix, AZ at the Sheraton Crescent Hotel on April 18th hosted by Dr. Gary Core. This will be Dr. Core’s second time hosting a PPHA event. Dr. Core found an outpouring of support from the public at the previous event with so many wanting to meet the players and eventually seek treatment for themselves and/or a loved one. This naturally led to growth in the number of dental sleep patients in Dr. Core’s practice. Dr. Core officially has purchased a phenomenal Koala Center practice from Rod Willey, which is rolling into Phoenix, AZ. This will be the third Koala Center opening and there are two more Koala openings on the horizon.
“I am thrilled to have the new Koala Center practice in Phoenix and am incredibly grateful to have yet another opportunity to work with the PPHA, David Gergen, and the NFL Greats!” said Dr. Core.
Dr. Tara Griffin a Board Member of the American Sleep and Breathing Academy and a fellow Koala Center owner in Bloomington, IL will be attending. Dr. Rod Willey who introduced both Dr. Griffin and Dr. Core will also be attending and actively helping with the event. Rod Willey has one of the largest dental sleep apnea practices in the United States with periods of over 100 cases per month. That is outstanding momentum in the treatment of sleep apnea. Dr. Willey now offers dental sleep center franchises and refined techniques being used in multiple locations with more to open soon.
This event and the events that will follow are co-sponsored by Gergen’s Orthodontic Lab who will provide FREE oral appliances to qualified attendees. The goal of the event and national campaign is to generate as much awareness about sleep apnea and encourage attendees to get tested and diagnosed.
Walczak has stepped up and has been on a mission to help spread awareness amongst his former teammates and anyone else that will listen to his story about how diagnosis and treatment with an oral appliance has changed his life. He simply wants to help others. His best friend, Junior Seau, who is tragically no longer with us, suffered from sleep disorders. This is just one of the reasons Walczak is so passionate about helping to spread awareness.
“I am thrilled to see the momentum that we are making to help spread awareness of sleep apnea on a national level with these fantastic NFL greats!” said Gergen. “Spreading awareness at these events and screenings and through radio and television has been wonderful. I believe by spreading awareness we can save lives.”
Event Specifics:
Date: April 18, 2013.
Time: 7:00pm (open to public and press)
Location: Sheraton Crescent Hotel, 2620 W. Dunlap Ave., Phoenix, AZ 85021
Phone: 602.943.8200
Special Attendees: Roy Green, Larry Fitzgerald, Seth Joyner, Derek Kennard, Alfonso Smith, and Mark Walczak amongst many other retired NFL Superstars.
For more information about PPHA or the “Tackle Sleep Apnea” campaign, visit http://proplayersleep.org.
About Pro Player Health Alliance
The Pro Players Health Alliance (PPHA) is an organization dedicated to helping former NFL players, through providing testing and treatment options for those who suffer from sleep apnea. In addition, the PPHA is dedicated to integrating education and raising sleep apnea awareness, in a fun and memorable way. In addition to the campaign, the PPHA is dedicated to testing and getting people treated who suffer from sleep apnea. The PPHA was created by David Gergen, President of Gergen’s Orthodontic Lab and Former NFL legends.
For more on the PPHA, visit: www.proplayersleep.org
About David Gergen
David Gergen, CDT and President of Pro Player Health Alliance, has been a nationally respected dental lab technician for over 25 years. He received the award for “The Finest Orthodontic Technician in the Country” given by Columbus Dental in 1986. He also has been appointed chair of the dental wing of the American Sleep and Breathing Academy a national interdisciplinary academy dedicated to sleep training and education with over 60,000 members. David rolled out of bed on September 12, 1981 and had his career “ah ha” moment. He knew he was going to be an orthodontic technician and he knew he was going to help people all over the country to help treat their sleep disorders in partnership with their dentists. He has worked for some of the pioneers in the orthodontic and sleep dentistry fields. He was the personal technician for the likes of Dr. Robert Ricketts, Dr. Ronald Roth, Dr. A. Paul Serrano, Dr. Clark Jones, Dr. Harold Gelb, Dr. Joseph R. Cohen, Dr. Rodney Willey, Dr. Allan Bernstein, and Dr. Thien Pham. One of his proudest achievements is receiving The National Leadership award for Arizona Small Businessman of the Year in 2004.
For more on David Gergen and Gergen’s Orthodontic Lab, visit: www.gergensortho.com
About Dr. Tara Griffin
As a general dentist, she has maintained a private group practice with an in-house laboratory providing comprehensive restorative and sedation dentistry as well as treatment for TMJ disorders and sleep apnea in central Illinois for over seven years. She then started a second dental practice in her area devoted to dental sleep medicine and is now the owner of the Koala Center for Sleep Disorders in Bloomington, Illinois. Her practice is now entirely focused on management of sleep-breathing disorders with oral appliance therapy and comprehensive diagnosis and treatment of TMJ disorders, head and facial pain.
About Dr. Rod Willey
Dr. Willey graduated with a Doctorate of Dental Surgery in 1985. His career path has taken him from studying functional orthodontics including Pediatric Guided Growth Development at the United States Dental Institute, a five year course for the general dentist, to Neuromuscular Occlusion from the prestigious Las Vegas Institute for Advanced Dental Studies, to treatment of Obstructive Sleep Apnea with Oral Appliance Therapy. All of these areas of dentistry deal significantly with the neuromuscular positioning of the lower jaw and have proven to be a natural progression in his studies. He has been awarded recognition in the field of TMD Developmental Diagnosis, Neuromuscular Coronoplasty and Mastering Neuromuscular Occlusion. He is a member of the American Dental Association, Academies of Sleep Medicine, Dental Sleep Medicine, and a Diplomate of the Academy of Clinical Sleep Disorders Dentistry.
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