How Vivos Providers Can Leverage Reputable Health Tools to Educate Patients

As a Vivos provider, you already play a key role in helping patients improve airway health, sleep, and related outcomes. But patient education is often more compelling when it is anchored in credible, science-backed resources. By integrating tools and infographics from respected organizations (like the American Heart Association, National Institutes of Health, and others), you can:

• Bolster your authority and trustworthiness
• Provide patients with clear, digestible visuals or handouts
• Help patients internalize complex relationships (e.g. between sleep and cardiovascular risk)
• Save your staff time in creating educational materials
• Encourage patients to take ownership of their health with reliable resources

Below is a suggested framework for doing this in your office.

1. Select High-Quality Tools and Resources

When choosing patient-education materials, prioritize those from organizations with well-recognized scientific rigor and reputation. Examples include:

• American Heart Association (AHA)
• National Institutes of Health (NIH) / National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
• Peer-reviewed societies or guideline bodies

These organizations often release infographics, downloadable PDFs, posters, slide decks, or patient handouts that are already scientifically vetted.

Case in point: The AHA infographic “How Sleep Affects Your Health” illustrates in a simple, visual way how sleep impacts cardiovascular health, brain function, metabolism, mood, and more. (heart.org)

This infographic (and others like it) can be used in multiple ways: in exam rooms, waiting rooms, on your website, or as a handout for patients to take home.

2. Integrate Tools into Your Patient Touchpoints

Here are practical ideas for integration:

Touchpoint How to Use the Tool Tips

• Waiting room / reception Display the infographic (printout or digital display) Use large font; perhaps rotate among a few infographics
• Exam room Show the infographic when discussing sleep, airway, or cardiovascular risk Use it as a visual talking point during consultation
• Patient handout Give patients a printed or emailed copy Add a short note: “I recommend you review this information and think about how it applies to you”
• Clinic website / patient portal Embed or link to the resource Use a local PDF or link directly to the authoritative source
• Social media / newsletter Share the infographic with commentary Add your own “call to action” (e.g. “Ask me how sleep may influence your airway health”)

By doing so, the material becomes part of your patient education ecosystem rather than a one-off.

3. Use the Tool as a Conversation Starter and Anchor

Rather than just giving the infographic and walking away, use it actively in your patient interactions:

• Begin with “Here’s a visual that shows how sleep affects your cardiovascular health, metabolism, mood, and cognition.”
• Walk through the sections: “See this box showing poor sleep may increase high blood pressure or diabetes risk? This is relevant for you because …”
• Ask the patient: “Which of these effects surprises you? Which do you feel most strongly apply to you now?”
• Use it as a segue: “Because sleep contributes to inflammation and vascular stress, it’s another reason why optimizing your airway is important.”
• At a follow-up visit, revisit the infographic: “You told me last time you didn’t know that poor sleep can affect cholesterol — did you notice any change in how you sleep after we started therapy?”

This kind of guided discussion helps the material “stick” and gives patients ownership of the information.

4. Tool You Can Share with Patients Today

To get started immediately, we suggest that you begin sharing the AHA “How Sleep Affects Your Health” infographic with your patients. It’s already available and free for use (with attribution). (heart.org)

Here’s how you can implement it right away:

1. Download or print the infographic from the AHA website
2. Place copies in your waiting room and exam rooms
3. Include a digital version on your website or in patient portal
4. In your next patient visits where sleep, airway, or cardiovascular risk is relevant, hand it to the patient and walk through it
5. Encourage patients to take the infographic home and reflect on which items resonate with them

Suggested script for introducing it to a patient:

“I’d like you to review this infographic showing how sleep can affect your heart, metabolism, mood, and cognition. Let’s go through it together — then think about which impacts seem most relevant to you. Over time, this will help us tie your airway/sleep therapy to more than just snoring or apnea — but broader health benefits.”

Using tools from well-respected organizations like the AHA adds legitimacy, saves you time, and empowers your patients with trustworthy, digestible information. The AHA “How Sleep Affects Your Health” infographic is a perfect place to start — you can begin sharing it with patients today. Link it into your practice’s patient education workflow, use it to spark meaningful conversations, and build on it over time to support better outcomes.

American Heart Association | To be a relentless force for a world of longer, healthier lives

Learn more about the American Heart Association’s efforts to reduce death caused by heart disease and stroke. Also learn about cardiovascular conditions, ECC and CPR, donating, heart disease inform…

• How-Sleep-Affects-Your-Health-Infographic
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