CPAPtalk.com

In fact we (the moderators) have posted the links to other forums in this forum as a means of dissemination information to apnea patients. Links to talkaboutsleep, CPAPtalk.com and other forums are posted all the time.

The operative words here are we the moderators. I have had this same paragraph sent to me but hey I'm not a moderator so guess what, my links are moderated out thank you very much, NOT I really suspect that some of these guests are actually moderators from the ASAA site that don't what to identify themselves as such.

The one positive thing I will say about the ASAA is that I have had some good discussion with Mike the administrator over there and can understand where he is coming from.

NightHawkeye wrote:Now I am totally confused. Is personal bias of some of the moderators interfering with the operation of that forum, or is there a "de facto" policy in place prohibiting links to specific "taboo" subjects, such as APAP?

From what I have ascertained in this discussion, the question of whether or not linking to other sleep apnea forums is permitted at the ASAA depends on:
1. Who you ask
2. Who is doing the asking
3. Who is providing the link
4. Who is moderating at the time

BTW, I'm not an ASAA moderator. I could never, in good conscience, deny someone the right to know how to change their pressure, nor could I justify deleting links to other sleep apnea forums, no matter who posts them.

If you noticed, they said "the moderators"....have posted the links.

I have found this situation somewhat confusing.

From their "rules" is this statement:

"No commercial links are to be posted on the forum. The American Sleep Apnea Association does not promote or endorse a particular brand, manufacturer, or vendor of Sleep Apnea Products."

However, I have witnessed a moderator mentioning a "vendor of Sleep Apnea Products" .......specifically Apria (in a relatively recent post with a CPAP user).

What is Apria?.......a vendor of Sleep Apnea Products (DME provider)
What is CPAP.COM?.......a vendor of Sleep Apnea Products (DME provider).

They can mention one but not the other.......I'm confused on this one.

I understand they have their "rules"........but "rules" is "RULES" to me.

I respect what they're trying to do with that site, but it's too restrictive for me to feel comfortable trying to give advice to a user.

Den

Wulfman wrote: However, I have witnessed a moderator mentioning a "vendor of Sleep Apnea Products" .......specifically Apria (in a relatively recent post with a CPAP user).

What is Apria?.......a vendor of Sleep Apnea Products (DME provider)
What is CPAP.COM?.......a vendor of Sleep Apnea Products (DME provider).

They can mention one but not the other.......I'm confused on this one.

Den

Hey Den,

What's not to understand? there are good commercial links (traditional high priced vendors) and bad commercial links (cpap.com) LOL!

It's the time honored you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours.

Wader,

Oh yes, I understand!

They might be a doner, too.......ya never know. (a different kind of "scratch")

I just did a search on the word "Apria" on their "Sleep Apnea Help" section and came up with 63 matches. Hmmmm.......

Den

I am so tired of bugging Apria, who keeps telling me that someone will get back to me to schedule an appointment.
I want to buy from CPAP.com but how do I know if that one is ok too ? They don't allow returns after opening.

Found this on there so it looks like cpap.com is ok.

That one must have slipped through the censors.

actually a search of cpaptalk comes up with 142, I think that is more than apria isn't it?

whoops that was 43, it found cpap in there too...

The direct clickable links tend to disappear much faster than those ones you referenced. But still some of those get moderated out just as fast. Some of the moderators are trigger happy when it comes to dumping links and references.

well that would make sense, the rule quoted above says direct links, no?

In this corner we have people who care about educating themselves about OSA and finding treatment alternatives and understanding the disorder.

In this corner we have the people that blindly follow what thier doctors order and don't post questions...

I want a clean match with no hits below the belt... ~DING~ ~DING~

Oh those crazy apnea forums that dont just try to sell things, but actually let people speak thier mind and become educated about what afflicts them....

Oh wait, that's this forum and that's why I love it here! (Even though I don't use CPAP!)

As I've said before on a totaly different subject..." That Cory is a smart guy"

Swordz wrote:Oh those crazy apnea forums that dont just try to sell things, but actually let people speak thier mind and become educated about what afflicts them....

Now that's an interesting concept, an educated consumer of health care services . . . Could it actually work? I mean, would we be capable of making such important decisions as wisely as our health care providers are?

Regards,
Bill

NightHawkeye wrote: Now that's an interesting concept, an educated consumer of health care services . . . Could it actually work? I mean, would we be capable of making such important decisions as wisely as our health care providers are?

Bill,

Excellent "rhetorical" question... to which many of us here know the answer.

BTW, I think the good Docs want us to be informed... which is always a good test to see if your Doc is a keeper or not.