After more than 118 years, the name of St. Joseph Hospital is changing.
The name is now PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center. PeaceHealth officials said the change “more accurately reflect(s) the range of healthcare services now provided by the hospital, as well as its clinics, centers, laboratory and medical group. As the community served by the hospital has grown over the past century, so have the community’s healthcare needs and PeaceHealth’s efforts to meet those needs.”
In an announcement about the change, Nancy Steiger, CEO and chief mission officer, said the new name is the result of updated branding. “We are PeaceHealth – one system serving many communities – and we are a Medical Center that includes the hospital, PeaceHealth Medical Group, PeaceHealth Laboratories, our foundations, specialty care services and Centers of Excellence, such as the Cardiovascular Center, Cancer Center and Center for Joint Replacement.”
Steiger said the mission does not change, but that the new name is reflective of St. Joseph’s role as the medical center for a regional network of care including clinics, specialty care and a critical access hospital in San Juan and Skagit counties. The critical access hospital on San Juan is proposed near Friday Harbor Airport. Construction is expected to begin in 2011, with the grand opening in 2012.
“Since 1891, we have been a healthcare ministry, founded by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace. That doesn’t change. What does change is our name, in a way that reflects how we deliver on that in 2010,” Steiger said in the press release.
Steiger said the medical center includes all the dedicated physicians who provide healthcare services for our communities.
“We value our community partners, and the working relationships with physicians that been have so essential in meeting the healthcare needs of all our patients and will continue into the future.”
The new name was announced to PeaceHealth employees earlier this week and building signs are now being updated. Because the organization is committed to minimizing costs for the transition, the new name will be phased in over the remainder of the year as existing inventories of stationery and other items are consumed.
PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center, a not-for-profit full-service hospital sponsored by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace, is part of the PeaceHealth system with hospitals in Alaska, Washington and Oregon. In addition to the hospital and PeaceHealth Medical Group, the center includes a joint venture outpatient imaging service and PeaceHealth Laboratories.
