SIOUX CITY | UnityPoint Health -- St. Luke's and other UnityPoint Health affiliated hospitals are ahead with re-branding and will finish the process by the end of this year.
The hospital, formerly know as just St. Luke's, adopted UnityPoint Health, its parent health system's new brand, on April 16. UnityPoint Health was previously called Iowa Health System.
The name change doesn't affect the hospital's decision-making ability, but it does connect it more closely with other UnityPoint Health clinics and home health care services in Siouxland.
"In your region obviously we're not just representing the hospital," said Laura Sinnard, director of communications for UnityPoint Health. "We've got physicians. We got home health care that we provide to patients. Our brand is now all about the care coordination, so it's not just a name change. It's the development of the brand."
Iowa Health System initiated the re-branding process two years ago with the goal of adopting a name that would match its physician-driven model of care centered around the patient. For example, St. Luke's treats more than 77,000 patients annually, coordinating care from the doctor's office to the hospital and back home.
Iowa Health System, according to Sinnard, held focus groups in all of its regional communities. Representatives also talked one on one with consumers, physicians, nurses and senior leaders, asking them how they and their loved ones wanted to be cared for.
After the focus groups were held, Sinnard said, Iowa Health System representatives presented possible names and campaign information. UnityPoint Health and the tag line, "the point of unity is you," was chosen.
"It's all about surrounding the patient with the right care. Our name was chosen knowing that's the care model we are representing," she explained. "Health care's changing and it's more about coordinating new care to keep people healthy rather than just episodically taking care of them when they would come into a clinic or a hospital."
