New name helps Sudbury hospital 'catch up'

The blue "H" sign might still be on the top of the building.

But Sudbury health care officials announced Tuesday thatSudbury Regional Hospital has changed its name to Health Sciences North.

""The word hospital refers to disease, sickness," said Dr. Denis Roy, president and CEO.

"It is also derived from the word 'hospice' which is a place to die. We certainly don't want that."

Roy said, across the province, the word hospital is being phased out because it has a bad connotation.

He said he name Health Sciences North also better reflects the Sudbury centre's expanding role in research and doctor training.

Roy noted that over the past few years, health care in Sudbury has changed. The new hospital has brought all of Sudbury's medical talent together, including the teaching and research resources that come with the Northern Ontario School of Medicine, and the North East Regional Cancer Program.

"We need to call the Health Centre what it is," said Roy.

Russ Boyles, who chairs the board at Health Sciences North, said patient care will always be the Health Centre's primary goal. The new name simply incorporates all the other services it now offers, he noted.

"It isn't a regional hospital, so the name is catching up to where we are and where we want to go in the future."

Health centre instead of hospital

The new name is the culmination of a $100,000 rebranding exercise undertaken by the hospital last year. According to hospital officials, a wide range of stakeholders were consulted, including front-line staff, physicians, volunteers, community agencies and health care partners, both locally and across northeastern Ontario.

However, Roy said he doesn't like the word "re-branding."

"Branding is a change without change," he said.

"I mean, you can change your external aspect and not change what you do. The redefining is change, changing the way we do things."

Both Boyles and Dr. Roy said it will take time for the new name to catch on. But they expect that, eventually, patients will talk about going to a health centre instead of a hospital.