Renown Health

My reaction as well. It sounds like a name that came out of endless corporate meetings (I’m picturing a scene from The Office in my head). I think the local news said it took them a year to come up with the whole new image/name/brand or whatever you call it these days. Nothing like groupthink…

Still waiting for the ‘cycles to quiet down.

I’ll continue to call it Washoe Medical Center just like I continue to call the hospital off Vista Blvd “Sparks Family Hospital”.

I’m with JWH, it’ll be Washoe Med until hell freezes over. I guess it’s fairly obvious what they were going for: Reno-own, Reno’s own Health. I guess the only identity crisis that rivals this one is the University’s change from an ‘N’ with a wolf to an ‘N’ with the tagline “Statewide. Worldwide.”
Along other lines with your October surprise question, don’t you find it interesting that Musharraf and Karzai are visiting Bush together next week, less than a month after Osama Been Hidin’s reported death and days after a French newspaper leaked the report? By the way, I remember reports of an October surprise before the 2004 election, and the only thing that came up was Bin Laden’s endorcement ofKerry. Maybe I’m forgetting something …

I also find it interesting that Pakistan has basically taken a “hands off” approach to the area where bin Laden is believed to be living. Hmmm…when did that happen? Just a few weeks ago, as I recall. Sounds like they may have already gotten word of bin Laden’s demise and figured they didn’t need to antagonize the natives any longer. Just my 2¢.

Oh…and I hate Washoe Med’s new name too. They said this was a well-polled name. Just exactly WHO did they survey? Certainly no northern Nevada residents!

hmmm it just doesnt make any sense. It sounds like an insurance company.
I would have liked to see a name that puncuated a part of Reno’ history, such as Myron Lake Memorial (who founded Reno).
But at least they didnt use a name with the word Sierra in it.

I’m not so crazy about that name, either. I guess they never asked any of us. Course the name was picked in Denver.

Would you mind me telling you what the plebian professionals who have to wear the nametag are thinking about it?

Already we’re known in the community as RETARTED REGIONAL. The panoply of jokes about the new name is huge.

“Mayo Clinic was so jealous of our new name, they are changing theirs to SUPERFABULOUS MEDICAL CENTER.” Southwestern Medical Center, University of Texas in Dallas will be renaming themselves “YIP-YIP-YAHOO!!! HOSPITAL. And the University of Minnesota is going to call their tertiary care center PRETTY-GOOD-HOSPITAL-MOSTLY”

Otherwags have decided that Monty Python (who famously came up with the “Ministry of Silly Walks”) has created a “Central Administration for the Application of Stupid Names” and that RENOWN HEALTH was the only one left when the marketing geniuses went to choose ours.

Alternatively, folks are beginning to imagine that RENOWN sure sounds like the name Big Pharma is going to pin on their next pill for erectile disfunction. Instead of the hallmark blue it will be purple with big yellow stripes. “Take one… and be RENOWN for the night!”

A nurse confronted a neurosurgeon who was rounding in a set of scrubs from our competing hospital. She admonished him that he was breaking with the new spirit, and that soon RENOWN is going to have the OR personnel in the signature purple scrubs. He just looked at her like this was awful. Then, she went on to explain, your bonnets and booties are going to be bright yellow. (Now he was looking genuinely apalled). “And THEN” she said, “they’ll give you the big red rubber nose to wear with it.” Everyone cracked up laughing.

You gotta laugh or you’ll cry.

Seriously… when our unit is slammed with transfers from ICU, post op patients, and direct admits from ER… we aren’t allowed to call in another nurse. Budgets being what they are, of course. But the boys in the penthouse can spend incredible amounts on this frivolous foolishness (including website makeovers, the verbiage and images on our hospital vehicles, our name tags, every sign throughout the campus, big media events, consultants, PR experts…) it’s enough to make you want to weep.

Oh, give me strength.

I agree – I hate change when it is just not necessary. To this day, I call the Hilton, I mean the Grand Sierra Resort, the MGM. I will always refer to Washoe as Washoe Med. It was more related to the community being called Washoe than it will be being called “Reno-wn” furthermore, if you are native to Nevada, as I am as well, you appreciate the use of the colors, Blue & White. They resemble our state colors, they were clean, nice. Now – PURPLE & GOLD?? What are they, a football team?? Are we going to paraded our nurses in next years Marti Gras? BRING BACK WASHOE MED!!! This week I had the joy of being in the Urgent Care when the nurse told me the name was changing, but no one knew what it was. She said it was because they wanted to create a different image of Washoe, rather than that of the county hospital. Well, I am curious, other than the name, what really changed? Nothing.

Change is always difficult. Let’s see if they can practice what they preach.

I am wondering how much this idiocy is costing?

I am also wondering what the purpose of this name change was?

Washoe has the only Trauma center for miles and with managed health care many have no choice of hospitals. It is not like the entire population is hospital shopping!

If you go to their website, they answer the question “where will all the washoe medical stuff go?” They say it will go to help out in the phillipines? Maybe they cut a good deal with them Phillipines cause they wanted The washoe med logo? Maybe it’s an incentive for others to go over to the phillipines for the same health care that washoe medical said?

Still.. I think “Renew” sounds a lot better. Renown sounds rather pompous. So what if people come from other cities for health care. Renew sounds better for the sake that it IS health care, and you go there to Renew yourself..

Also, My favorite is for those people who have to answer the phone. If you call, have you ever heard someone say “hello, washoe medical?” and not “Hello, thank you for calling Renown Health care, this is (insert name), how may I be of assistance?”

Oh and one other thing.. if your birth certificate says washoe medical, you don’t have to change it. So to me, like the rest of Reno, it will still be Washoe Medical.

Yes, this name change is frustrating for alot of people: patients, public, and healthcare providers alike. HOWEVER, this facility IS a private institution, do they not reserve the right to change their name/logo/recognition?

I do agree, however that everyone will still call this facility Washoe Med. That is just how Nevada works. Maybe pharmacists, physicians, resident programs, occupational and physical therapists, radiology personnel, nutritionists, laboratory personnel, nurses, as well as other ancillary staff could have been brought in and employed with the same money budged for this name change.

I still call the Silver Legacy ‘Project C’, so just imagine how long it will take me to adjust to this change…

Renown?!

Arrogant…pretentious…

If you are truly renown for your skill and expertise then you don’t need to shout it.

Retarded Regional may have been a little more on the right track.

“Why Not”’s comment that more employees and support staff could have been brought in with the money budgeted for the name change from Washoe Medical Center to Renown is close to the mark, except that it’s my belief that big poo bahs were able to set aside the money for the name change out of the savings from salaries of jobs that were eliminated (my employment of almost 33 years ended this way). Those of us whose positions were eliminated were just sent out the door with no offers of assistance with finding other positions within the system (and there were open positions). I know my online applications were completely ignored. Once we were out the door, it was as though we never existed. I no longer receive mail from Washoe Med. (I’ll never call it Renown.) My husband who was recently a patient has received -of all the nerve- requests for donations from the Foundation. We are telling them that now that I no longer have insurance, I may need to make use of them as an indigent patient, so don’t be expecting a donation anytime soon.
I have no reason to have any lingering loyalty for
Wasoe Med. They don’t give a damn about their employees no matter how many fake cheerful employee events they sponsor. When push comes to shove, it starts from the pocketbook, not the heart.

I know of three positions in my former department that were eliminated and have heard that when they reorganized Security, they brought in an outside company and let many of the former security positions go. I keep running into people who had worked there for awhile who no longer work there. One woman whom I have known for years told me she was suddenly told that she did not have the qualifications that the job she had been doing for years required. She said that happened to 18 people in her department. She now works at KMART. They were ruthless with clerical positions. I don’t know how they managed to keep it quiet. And it wasn’t a layoff; positons were eliminated. Maybe that’s why they are so short-staffed.

I am employee at Washoe Med Center and it will remain that name to me–not Renown, or as we employees have been calling it, rent-to-own. If they want to be more “renown”, then they should have asked us employees what we thought of the name and especially should have given us a wage increase (we got nothing at all–not even a pen). We only got a cheap plastic badge that we are not allowed to proudly display our pins of commitment or from our nursing school & courses completed. $12 million spent on a silly and unwanted name change and our equipment is still faulty. Example: the defibrillators have to have the switch changed each time we use it or it won’t work; I had a trauma pt one night and the diebold (where we get our meds) died and it took 3 monitors to find one that worked before the pt could be transferred. They are living in a dream world, not reality. It hurts us all. Shame on you, all you suits that don’t listen and don’t seem to care. You can put pink lipstick on a pig, but it’s still a pig through and through. Get real!

I used to work for Wahoe Health System and the money used for this stupid name change could be better used to pay the nurses and employees who work there, maybe they could have quality staff stay with them and not have as many travelers taking care of patients (nurses who do not care) and acutally use that money to make a difference at the hospital to the employees and patients. The care has not changed and the attituide of the worthless managers have not changed. What a crime they have committed to this community!!!

If you want to hear the story of the name change straight from the vice president of marketing for Renown, we just posted a podcast with Phyllis Freyer. http://twelvehorses.typepad.com/reno_horse_power/2006/11/episode_25_phyl.html

It’s the “eastern influence,” (foreigner influence $$) who are in the background of this name change which basically trashed the history behind this region. See the Washoe tribe here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washoe_tribe