Sandlot Solutions
Defining the Value of Information in Healthcare

Joseph Casper, the CEO of Sandlot Solutions, is a man of analogy. Comparing the healthcare system in the U.S. to a well-run factory, he begins, “Inside, there are multiple production lines that churn out different products in complex dimensions.” “The healthcare sector is not different,” he adds. Primary care centers, physicians, specialists and hospitals are managing patient data in multiple formats that only they can understand. “If standardized and distributed across the point of care, the value this data could bring to the patients, providers, and ultimately payers is beyond imagination,” he says.

In this scenario, it is no wonder when Casper—who was named as an expert in the area of sharing health information before the President’s Information Technology Advisory Committee (PITAC)— dreams about a future when the U.S. will have networks that allow national sharing of healthcare data. Headquartered in Dallas, TX, Sandlot Solutions is relentlessly working towards achieving this dream.

Sandlot Solutions designs software for state-wide, enterprise-wide sharing of healthcare data. The company’s interoperable healthcare information exchange and data analytics platform streamlines data sharing among healthcare organizations. “When a patient moves from primary healthcare centers to specialists and to hospitals, clinical data gets captured at different points,” says Casper. At any point, a doctor who is unaware of a patient’s history might treat him without knowing about the allergies, and that creates risk. “We are tying information to the patient by making his or her data ubiquitous across any care giver in any community setting, so that providers can make faster, safer decisions that will eliminate redundant care and cost,” says Casper.

Sandlot Connect, the company’s flagship product, collects clinical data from physicians and hospitals and brings it together with other entities. “We have algorithms that can detect corrupt data, replace or enrich it before distribution,” says Casper. The collected patient information securely resides in Sandlot Dimensions, the company’s data warehouse combined with business intelligence tools. Physicians can access the specific data they need, whether they are accessing the exchange through their electronic medical record system, or through the Sandlot Solutions physician portal.

Complementing the above solutions is Sandlot Metrix, a U.S. patent-pending healthcare technology that provides pointof- care reminders and health data analytics for physicians within their own workflow. “Metrix can perform miracles on how organizations manage gaps in care and manage risk,” claims Casper.

“The technology can look across the broad community to view data to analyze gaps that nobody else could do,” he adds.

In its eight years of existence, Sandlot Solutions has become the trusted custodian of records for more than five million patients. By the middle of next year, Sandlot will have six million patients alone in the Chicago area. The company also serves hundreds of physicians and several core hospitals in the Dallas, TX market, which altogether contributes to a gigantic cloud of healthcare information.

All this data is managed via a master patient index, which makes sure that when an entity extracts and places a record, it goes to the correct patient. “Our solutions are in complete adherence to evolving consent specifications and access standards for moving data between physicians, practice systems, and hospitals,” says Casper.

Sandlot is a fourthgeneration, SaaS-based platform that offers better, faster functionality and capabilities at a much lower cost, including the ability to perform big data analytics

As the healthcare system moves from a fee-for-service business model to payfor- performance models, Sandlot is there to provide the much needed clinical data. Sandlot observes more traction from hospital associations, provider hospitals and ACOs that are trying to provide high quality healthcare at reduced costs. “Sandlot is a fourth-generation, SaaS-based platform that offers better, faster functionality and capabilities at a much lower cost, including the ability to perform big data analytics,” claims Casper.

Optimistic about the future, the platform is aiming to accommodate more than 10 million patients by end of this year. At this rate, it won’t be so far, before Sandlot “connects” a major portion of the U.S. healthcare sector.