THE CELLARIAN STORY
Frustration got us here.
Dr. Michael Sprintz founded a comprehensive clinical practice in The Woodlands, Texas, focused on treating patients with chronic pain and/or substance use disorders. As a clinician expert in chronic pain and addiction, Dr. Sprintz understood the importance of drug testing as part of good patient care balanced with cost-effective appropriateness of testing.
While at his practice, he became frustrated with egregious payment denial strategies of health insurance companies towards drug testing and decided to solve this ever-growing problem. He designed an algorithm to help providers and labs rapidly create the necessary documentation to support appropriate drug testing, while preventing unnecessary testing and overuse.
Joining together with a seasoned team of experts, industry and health IT specialists, Cellarian was born.
EXECUTIVE TEAM
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Michael Sprintz, DO, DFASAM, Founder/CEO
Dr. Sprintz is triple board-certified in Pain Medicine, Addiction Medicine, and Anesthesiology, and trained at Johns Hopkins (Anesthesiology) and MD Anderson Cancer Center (Pain Medicine). Importantly, Dr. Sprintz is personally in recovery from drug addiction for over 18 years and founded Sprintz Center for Pain & Recovery, an integrated outpatient private practice that specializes in the comprehensive management of chronic pain & substance use disorders. Dr. Sprintz serves as a member of the FDA’s Analgesic & Anesthetic Drug Products Advisory Committee & is a member of the Joint Commission Standards Review Panel for Pain Assessment & Management, as well as the Joint Commission's Technical Advisory Panel for Pain Assessment & Management in Behavioral Healthcare. Dr. Sprintz is the Past-President of the Texas Society of Addiction Medicine, & a member of the American Society of Addiction Medicine’s Drug Testing Expert Panel, Payer Relations Committee, & the Pain & Addiction Educational Program Planning Committee.
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Michael C. Lu, MBA/HCM, ALM, President & COO
Mike Lu is the Chief Operating Officer for Cellarian Inc. Mr. Lu is a seasoned hospital and healthcare administrator, and his former company was one of the first clients for the CellarianRx product line. He knows firsthand the impact that Cellarian can make within the health marketplace. Mike is committed to the operational application of transformative medical innovation that addresses the challenges and unmet needs of society. He has deep operational experience from startups to Fortune 100. Mike has an MBA in Healthcare Management and a Masters in Strategic Management and certifications in Healthcare Finance, Informatics, Healthcare Quality, Value Based Care and Compliance. A former healthcare & management consultant with McKinsey & Co, Mike is a Harvard-trained healthcare administrator with a commitment to the application of transformative medical innovation that addresses the challenges & unmet needs of society. A former officer in the Strategic Air & Materiel Commands for the US Air Force Reserves, Mike is a member of the ARHQ, AAHC and ACHE.
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Ian Williamson, CTO
Ian Williamson is a full stack software developer with over 20 years of experience working with leading edge technologies for a wide variety of industries (TV, Film, Museum Interpretive Media, and Web Development). He brings a clear head to every project and crafts the best solutions to solve problems, even when they require a non-standard approach. As Cellarian Health CTO, Ian has designed and developed Vision from the ground. Ian is passionate about creating software to help solve the challenges facing the medical industry as it relates to the opioid addition epidemic. Ian is dedicated to delivering innovative products that ease the burden facing medical providers and improve overall patient care.
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Heather Lockert, Director of Client Success
Heather Lockert is our Director of Client Success. She has over a decade of experience as a Registered Nurse, and is well versed in the clinical aspects of multiple patient populations. Heather is driven by a profound sense of empathy and is dedicated to breaking down barriers and stigma surrounding substance use disorder.
Heather’s journey into healthcare was preceded by an illustrious 23-year tenure in the technology sector, where she honed her skills at industry giants like eBay, Electronic Arts, and Oracle Corporation. A lifelong learner, Heather holds degrees from prestigious institutions, including UC Berkeley. Her creative approach and deep sense of urgency will make her an unstoppable force to your success and ours.
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John Erickson, Vice President of Sales
John Erickson is the VP of Sales for Cellarian Inc., and a seasoned veteran with over 20 years’ experience in healthcare and life sciences sales and consulting. Through his engagements with the largest health systems, physician groups and independent laboratories in the country, he understands first-hand the challenges faced by their executives in solving complex financial and reimbursement objectives, while also balancing the improvement of quality of care.
Working in the national reference lab space for nearly 15 years, John has tremendous knowledge on the way in which the laboratory can influence total cost of care while improving margins and directly contributing to patient satisfaction.
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Cecilie Korst, Digital Vibe Curator (CMO)
Cecilie Korst is a highly-organized designer and communicator who loves working in digital media. She has gathered a force of creatives and passionate designers who want to create beautiful and compelling websites, graphics, and social content, helping people connect via the Internet.
Cecilie is a 22-year Air Force Veteran holding billets in cyber operations, civil engineering, and communications. Her civilian experiences include positions in corporate communications management, project management, LEAN, 6-Sigma, sales, web design, research, and SEO. Cecilie has a Bachelor of Landscape Architecture from Ball State University and a Bachelor of Science in Web Design & Information Management from The Art Institute.