Registered nurses at the newly renamed Michigan Medicine — formerly Ann Arbor-based University of Michigan Health System — are unhappy with the health system's rebranding, calling it costly and unnecessary.
In a press release on the Michigan Nurses Association website, the nurses voiced concerns that the new name "wipes out a well-established brand that has earned community respect and worldwide recognition." They also felt the new Michigan Medicine name does not reflect the system's broader mission.
"To me and others, 'medicine' has negative connotations. You only seek medicine once you are already sick," Heather Roe, RN, vice chair of the University of Michigan Professional Nurse Council, part of the Michigan Nurses Association, said in the statement. "UMHS' mission is broader than that. We deserve a name that makes it clear that we support health comprehensively, not just through medicine but also with prevention, research, education and other professional supports including nursing."
The health system said the name change is intended to reflect newly streamlined executive leadership — Marshall Runge, MD, will serve in a combined role as dean of the medical school and executive vice president for medical affairs and CEO of Michigan Medicine. The combined leadership role is intended to foster collaboration between the health system and medical school, enhancing both research and patient care, according to the health system.
However, the nurses association feels the name "implies negative limits to UMHS' mission," and that it leaves out nurses and other providers who are not physicians. The nurses launched a petition to protest the name change, calling for signatories to urge the system to reinstall its old name. View the petition here.
More articles on leadership and management:
Vote-a-ramas and talkathons: 5 things to know about what's happening to the ACA in Congress this week
University of Michigan Health System renamed Michigan Medicine
Meet the 15 physician members of the 115th US Congress