In Minneapolis during SLEEP 2011, the 25th Anniversary Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies LLC, the Sleep Research Society, and American Academy of Sleep Medicine hosted a special reception in honor of Dr. William C. Dement. This gathering of friends and colleagues gave the sleep community an opportunity to publicly thank Bill for nearly 60 years of dedication to the field of sleep research and sleep medicine. Although an entire volume would be necessary to delineate his many unique professional and personal achievements, a brief synopsis follows to document for posterity Bill's wide-ranging and instrumental contributions to our field.
From the beginning when he worked with Eugene Aserinsky and Nathaniel Kleitman at the University of Chicago in the early 1950s, Bill has taken a highly collaborative approach to research, partnering with and inspiring countless colleagues and students from many scientific backgrounds. As a result, it would be difficult to identify an area of sleep research to which Bill has not contributed. It is well documented that he is responsible for the earliest descriptions of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep as a distinct state, the NREM-REM cycle, the association of REM sleep with dreaming, and the demonstration of a homeostatic pressure for REM sleep. Some of his other major investigative accomplishments deal with the neuropharmacology of sleep, quantification and causes of daytime sleepiness, the pathophysiology and genetics of narcolepsy, description of the opponent-processes theory of sleep-wake regulation, assessment of jet lag and other circadian disorders, behavioral and cardiovascular impact of sleep apnea, and pharmacotherapy for insomnia. An amazing degree of productivity, breadth of interest, innovation, and novelty highlight his research career, and in parallel he pursued other interests with equal fervor.
Throughout the early development of sleep medicine as a clinical discipline, Bill blazed the trail, beginning with the establishment of the Stanford Narcolepsy Clinic in 1964. As knowledge was acquired from active research programs dealing with narcolepsy, insomnia, and sleep apnea, the clinic evolved into the world's first sleep disorders center in 1970. Today, the Stanford Sleep Medicine Center has more than 100 doctors, research faculty, staff, and students, who work together to treat more than 5,000 adults and children each year.
In 1975 Bill guided the effort to establish the first clinical sleep organization, the Association of Sleep Disorders Centers (ASDC), which fueled the development of standard clinical guidelines and a diagnostic classification that were so critical to the nascent field. In the mid-1970s there were only a handful of sleep disorders centers across the country. However, under Bill's visionary leadership, the ASDC started the first sleep center accreditation program and began to administer a certification examination in clinical polysomnography. During his 12-year stint as president, the ASDC, which is now the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, flourished and grew. This set the stage for the AASM to become the leader in the field of sleep health care, the accrediting body of more than 2,200 sleep disorders centers, and the professional society for 9,000 sleep clinicians, scientists, dentists, and allied health professionals.
Howard Roffwarg once wrote, “In regard to the sleep disorders field, it is fair, I believe, to claim that Bill is at the same time its visionary and also its definer, explicator, chief proponent, most effective promulgator, protector, navigator, and, in the best sense, chief politician.” In this role as a spokesman for the sleep field, Bill led the way again by becoming involved in federal advocacy for sleep research and education. His persistent advocacy activities would change the sleep field, resulting in the 1988 legislation establishing the National Commission on Sleep Disorders Research, which led directly to the creation of the National Center on Sleep Disorders Research at the National Institutes of Health.
In measuring the essence of his contributions, many important aspects of Bill's career and character are often overshadowed by his historic achievements. More than any other individual, Bill demonstrates a passion for the dissemination and application of the body of knowledge gained over decades of sleep research. He developed and has taught the remarkably successful Sleep and Dreams course at Stanford nearly every year since 1971, through which an estimated 25,000 undergraduates have been exposed to fundamental concepts about sleep and its relation to health and safety. He has given thousands of academic and continuing medical education presentations at innumerable global events and venues. However, these formal efforts are only a small component of his educational contributions.
Bill's vision of sleep education transcends that of most of us in the field, who tend to limit our efforts to courses or other mainstream educational opportunities. His vision is that every single person on Earth should know the essential facts about sleep, and his behavior backs his vision. While many of us are hesitant to reveal our occupations to strangers for fear of endless questions about the meaning of dreams or an individual's idiosyncratic sleep problems, Bill relishes and invites discussions about sleep with everyone: taxi drivers, flight attendants, congressional staffers, faculty colleagues …‘everyone’ His goal and passion is to share information about sleep because he knows it is largely unavailable in society's many institutions (and not even on the radar of most). In the 1980s and 1990s, it was common for Bill, when he had a few extra minutes between appointments on Capitol Hill, to spontaneously drop in to a representative's office to see if he could find a legislative aid to convert. On many mornings, Bill probably wakes up pondering his next educational target.
Many individuals who achieve iconic status, which Bill has held for decades, are personally unapproachable, unappreciative of the impact of others, and protective of their turf. None of those traits are characteristic of Bill Dement. In fact, he is totally the opposite. When in contact with a new acquaintance, whether a technologist, patient, clinician, pharmaceutical representative, scientist, government employee, or the proverbial “man on the street,” Bill uncannily and inclusively seizes the opportunity to enlist the newly acquainted into the ranks of potential contributors to the field. He makes everyone feel welcome with enthusiasm and warmth. He shares his insights and intellectual territory with anyone interested. Competitiveness with others fails to motivate Bill; overcoming ignorance about sleep is his driving force, and all are welcome on the team.
For Dr. Dement's extraordinary achievements and contributions to the sleep field, the SRS and AASM are pleased to honor him by:
naming the SRS annual trainee day the William C. Dement Trainee Education Day
bestowing the title of “Honorary President of the Sleep Research Society”
bestowing the title of inaugural “Master Fellow” of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine
These dedications further assure that the name William C. Dement will be forever associated with sleep research, medicine, and education.