A consortium of five hospitals and two community health centers ushered in a new era in Northwest and North Central Montana on Tuesday with the dedication of a 425-mile fiber optic network.

“This fiber network will vastly improve patient care and physician communication in the region while providing the opportunity for development and expansion of telehealth and telemedicine services,” Charles Pearce, chief information and financial officer for Kalispell Regional Healthcare, said in a press release.

Called the Health Information Exchange of Montana, the consortium built the $15 million network with $13.6 million from the Federal Communications Commission’s Rural Health Care Pilot Program and a $2.4 million cash match raised with help from local telecommunications providers buying excess capacity.

Consortium members include Kalispell Regional Healthcare, North Valley Hospital, Ronan’s St. Luke Community Hospital, Libby’s St. John’s Lutheran Hospital and Northwest Community Center and Cut Bank’s Northern Rockies Medical Center and Glacier Community Center.

A kickoff dedication ceremony was Tuesday morning at the Whitefish Train Depot. More than 70 representatives of partners that assisted with the project then took a train ride to East Glacier for the afternoon dedication on the front lawn of Glacier Park Lodge.

Kip Smith, executive director of the consortium, said the dedication was to include a visual, symbolic connection of the fiber optic network.

“We’re celebrating and recognizing all the folks who helped make this a reality,” Smith said.

The East Glacier festivities include tours of Kalispell Regional’s Winkley Women’s Center, a mobile mammography coach which has benefited from the new network with improved clarity of images and faster turnaround in providing results to women in the rural communities it serves.

According to Smith, some files such as digital radiography that took 20 to 30 minutes to transmit now travel the same distance in a couple of minutes.

This new cable provides a 100 megabit connection, an upgrade from the former 1.5 megabit connection. Since connecting to the new network, medical providers report much quicker access to patient electronic medical records, making critical information available at the point of care and resulting in more efficient patient interactions.

“This opens the door to do a lot more telehealth services,” Smith said. “That’s where we see some real opportunities.”

As an example, he said some Flathead Valley specialists spend hours driving to remote communities. This network would allow video conferencing with specialists remotely consulting with and examining patients with assistance of a provider on the other end.

The public has become more comfortable with this type of communication with the growth of social networks and use of Skype. Smith said other regions using these kinds of video medical consultations found that patients and providers adapt to it very quickly.

“We’re not there yet,” he said. “But this provides the infrastructure for us to get there.”

The consortium formed in 2006 and construction began in 2008. Smith said that, like most projects of this magnitude, this one faced a few obstacles along the way but was able to overcome them with help from many entities.

As an example, BNSF Railway was instrumental in helping with the Whitefish-to-Conrad route that follows its tracks.

Flathead Electric Cooperative and Mission Valley Power leased pole space for aerial routes. Alamon Telco, the University of Montana and Cyan Optics offered technical advice.  

The consortium so far has completed the fiber optic line over the Continental Divide between Conrad and Whitefish. Smith said construction continues by G4S Technology on the Whitefish-to-Missoula and Kalispell-to-Libby legs with completion expected by the end of the year.

When complete, the fiber-optic network will enhance professional health-care education between the University of Montana, Salish Kootenai College, Flathead Valley Community College and Blackfeet Community College.

Smith said it ties higher education together with an opportunity to expand distance learning programs.

Jane Karas, president of Flathead Valley Community College and chairwoman-elect of the American Association of Community Colleges, called the network an advantage for Montana providers and educators.

“The Health Information Exchange of Montana is a powerful and strategic tool that builds on our partnerships with the University of Montana and Blackfeet Community College for nursing and allied health care training,” Karas said in a press release.

In the future if money becomes available, Smith said the consortium would like to expand with a route from Whitefish to Eureka and Eureka to Libby to make a complete loop. He said the group also would like to install backup connectivity from Conrad to Great Falls to Helena to Missoula.

“It’s a dream at this point,” Smith said. “But it’s all part of our goals.”

Reporter Candace Chase may be reached at 758-4436 or by email at cchase@dailyinterlake.com.