By Tom Momberg
North Shore LIJ Health System, the state’s largest private employer and health care provider, will soon be known as Northwell Health.
The new name is a part of a rebranding that the 21-hospital health system is launching in 2016, and President and CEO Michael Dowling said the name serves as a strong reflection of the company’s past as well as a beacon of its future.
“It’s unique, simple and approachable, and better defines who we are and where we are going,” Dowling said in a statement.
The new branding and marketing efforts will work to build recognition of the Northwell name, distinguishing it in such a large health care market.
The hospital said the names of each individual hospital in the greater metropolitan area would remain intact.
Dowling said the new name and rebranding are in part a response to the shift in the country’s health care system.
“We wanted a name that underscores our focus on keeping people well and better managing their health rather than only treating them when they are sick or injured,” he said. “The future of health care is about guiding and engaging consumers in a very different way.”
The large system of clinics was left with a long confusing name after North Shore Health System’s 1997 merger with Long Island Jewish Medical Centerand has grown since then to be the 14th-largest health system in the country, providing medical care, a graduate school, educational outreach and research.
The health system said its previous name made it sound like it was limited geographically. Executives brought in marketing and communications firm J. Walter Thompson to help it develop a broad renaming and marketing strategy.
“Leveraging the new Northwell Health name, we will build strong recognition regionally and nationally, with the goal of elevating our reputation among both consumers and medical professionals. We have a powerful story to tell and we believe our new name is the ideal platform to deliver that message,” Chief Marketing and Communications Officer Ramon Soto said.
