West Florida ACO Chooses Sandlot Solutions As Partner In Patient Health Information Management

HIT will facilitate the Medicare Shared Savings Program with providers who improve quality and reduce the cost of care.

Sandlot Solutions, a healthcare information technology company, and West Florida ACO, an accountable care organization (ACO), recently announce a new partnership that will support the management of health information for thousands of patients across more than 25 physician groups and multiple health facilities in Florida. The two organizations will work together to create the infrastructure needed to support the ACO and its partners. West Florida ACO will deploy Sandlot Connect, Sandlot Dimensions and Sandlot Metrix.  Sandlot Connect and Dimensions are core Sandlot components that gather and sort patient information that providers can access at the point of care.  Further, Sandlot Metrix provides health data analytics, in the physicians’ EMR, to enhance individual care management and ultimately population health management.

“As our healthcare delivery models evolve, successful ACOs will become even more critical to achieving coordinated care and improved patient outcomes,” said Joe Casper, CEO of Sandlot Solutions. “We are excited to partner with West Florida ACO and Dr. Jay Chowdappa. Organizations like West Florida ACO not only have skilled, dedicated practitioners, but also have the foresight to understand how health information exchange and clinical analytics combine to make effective population health management a reality.”

West Florida ACO joins organizations like North Texas Specialty Physicians (NTSP) and Plus ACO to leverage Sandlot’s fourth-generation technology.  Shifting from basic electronic medical record (EMR) management to real health information exchange has enabled NTSP to better manage and deliver timely, coordinated patient care.

“From a strategic perspective, we want a 360° view of patients to provide the highest-quality, most cost-effective care,” said Jay Chowdappa, M.D., CEO of West Florida ACO. “Sandlot Solutions will give us that view; they offer the greatest breadth and depth of connectivity, including hospitals, labs and especially EMRs. Our relationship is a true partnership, sharing risks and rewards. Together we will achieve our goal of improving care and outcomes for Medicare beneficiaries in our Florida communities.”

Sandlot Solutions and West Florida ACO will begin work on their system in May, and the first community HIE components are expected to be operational by September. Today’s announcement marks the most recent collaboration between Sandlot Solutions and forward-thinking healthcare providers, payers and accountable care organizations (ACOs) to bend the healthcare cost curve and improve the health of patients and communities.

About Sandlot Solutions
Sandlot Solutions is a healthcare IT company focused on fourth-generation health information exchange plus data analytics and care management. Sandlot builds the connection for any organization exchanging healthcare information to improve the quality of care, manage risk and reduce costs supporting Accountable Care and advanced payment models.  The company’s configurable technology streamlines data-sharing. Physicians receive digital envelopes within their workflow with actionable patient information and analytics, including prompts at the point of care for appropriate interventions, education and follow-up. Sandlot Solutions was founded in 2006. For more information, visit www.sandlotsolutions.com.

About West Florida ACO
West Florida ACO LLC is one of the 27 ACOs approved by CMS for a Shared Savings Program in which Medicare savings are shared with providers for improving the experience of care, the health of a defined population and reduce associated healthcare expenditures. West Florida ACO’s mission is to provide improved patient care and health outcomes to the Medicare beneficiaries in Florida through improved Care Coordination. For more information, visit http://www.westfloridaaco.com/.