Inland Northwest Health Services extensive electronic medical-records network here has caught the eye of some high-level federal officials, and the Spokane nonprofit hopes to be in on the early stages of an effort to form a national records system.


INHS CEO Tom Fritz says that earlier this month, he met at the White House with President Bushs chief technology advisers to discuss the Spokane hospital collaboratives system, which currently handles patient records for 32 hospitals in Washington and Idaho and includes records for 2.6 million patients.


The organization also is working with the Office of the National Coordinator of Health Information Technology to schedule a time when coordinator Dr. David J. Brailer can come to Spokane to tour INHSs operation.


Last April, President Bush established the Health Information Technology Office, under the secretary of Health and Human Services, and called for formation of a national electronic medical-records system within 10 years.


Fritz says that as currently proposed by that office, the first step of creating a broad system would be to form regional health-information offices. That work could begin next year, he says, adding that he hopes INHSs network could be designated as a regional network.


Thats clearly something we are very interested in, Fritz says. Some people think were already a (regional health-information office) because of how large our network is.


Its unclear what economic impact being involved in a federal effort might have, he says.


I dont know if there is any economic value, to be honest, to becoming a regional office, Fritz says. They arent throwing money at anybody right now.


A spokeswoman for the national coordinators office couldnt be reached for comment.


Rich Hadley, CEO of the Spokane Regional Chamber of Commerce, says that if INHS became a regional network, federal funds might become available to expand that network to include a greater geographic area and a larger number of hospitals and patient records.


That would create additional investment in our region and additional high-tech jobs at INHS, and might attract additional investment from other high-tech areas who say, I want to be in an area where theyre doing things like that, Hadley says.


Chamber leaders traveled to Washington, D.C., earlier this year to talk about the chambers health-care initiatives with the Washington state congressional delegation and others, including Undersecretary of Commerce for Technology Phillip J. Bond. After that meeting, Bond came to Spokane in September to speak at the chambers annual meeting and to tour the INHS operation.


Meanwhile, INHS continues to expand its area of service.


Earlier this month, the company landed consulting contracts with Salinas Valley Hospital, in Salinas, Calif., and with Valley Hospital, in Palmer, Alaska. In some cases, after signing consulting contracts, hospitals later become part of the INHS system.


In Salinas, which is roughly 100 miles south of San Francisco, INHS will help that hospital set up an electronic emergency-department management system and train physicians and staff members.


Mike Smyly, director of information systems at INHS, says the system there will be similar to one that INHS has employed at hospitals within its network and which handles emergency-room work-flow management, physician-orders entry, and both physician and hospital billing.


It will take about three months to put that system in place and to train physicians and employees, Smyly says.


He says that contract carries a six-figure value, but declines to be more specific.


In Palmer, Alaska, which is about 40 miles northeast of Anchorage, INHS has a similar-sized contract through which it will provide a broad range of consulting services to the hospital.


Smyly says the Palmer hospital essentially has bought a block of consulting hours from INHS that it likely will use first to improve its billing and insurance-reimbursement systems, and later to customize its electronic work-processes.


Formed in 1994, INHS handles the collaborative activities of Spokane-based Providence Services Eastern Washington, which operates Sacred Heart Medical Center and Holy Family Hospital, and Spokanes Empire Health Services, which operates Deaconess Medical Center and Valley Hospital & Medical Center.


INHS oversees a number of health-care services in addition to the records network, including St. Lukes Rehabilitation Institute, Northwest MedStar air-ambulance service, Childrens Miracle Network, and several others.