Providence Services, the Spokane-based parent of Sacred Heart Medical Center and a collection of other health-care entities in Eastern Washington and Montana, says it and its Seattle-based counterpart, Providence Health Systems, have begun studying the possibility of combining to form a single organization.


The boards of the two organizations, both of which are sponsored by the Sisters of ProvidenceMother Joseph Province, announced last week that they are establishing planning teams to do due diligence work on the possible combination. They said the two boards will meet jointly in December, at which time theyll consider final action on creating one integrated ministry.


What that might mean for Spokane-based Providence Services isnt clear.


Sharon Fairchild, Providence Services vice president for marketing and system development, says its too early to know where the new, combined organization would be based or what impacts the change would have on operations here, but there will continue to be local decision making at Providence-owned entities.


Whats important to realize is that there is a lot were bringing to the table, says Fairchild of the Spokane-based organization. Sacred Heart, she says, will be the biggest hospital in the network, and Providence Services big Pathology Associates Medical Laboratories Inc. (PAML) and its role in the Inland Northwest Health Services collaborative venture here also would be significant pieces in a combined organization.


Fairchild says the two organizations are studying the combination because they both recognize that everybody in health care is under pressure to reduce costs and improve patient care. By creating an integrated entity, the two organizations could share resources, adopt shared best practices, and take advantage of greater economies of scale, she says.


The combined entity would include 27 hospitals, more than 35 non-acute facilities, physician clinics, health plans, a university, and other health and education services. It would employ about 45,000 people, and its operations would be scattered throughout Washington, Alaska, Montana, Oregon, and California.


We have a shared heritage with our common sponsorship of the Sisters of Providence, a commitment to our shared missions and values, and a desire to ensure quality services for another 150 years, Richard Umbdenstock, president and CEO of Providence Services here, said in a prepared statement. Providence Services operates nine acute-care hospitals, including both Sacred Heart and Holy Family Hospital here, as well as several non-acute care entities, including long-term care and home-health care providers,PAML, and the University of Great Falls. It employs 12,000 people in Washington and Montana.


Providence Health Systems, based in Seattle, operates 18 acute-care hospitals, 12 long-term care facilities, 20 low-income and assisted-living facilities, and a health plan with 853,000 members. It employs nearly 33,000 people in Washington, Alaska, Oregon, and California.