GOSHEN — The Goshen health care system is dropping its affiliation with IU Health and re-branding itself as Goshen Health.
The change will come Oct. 7 when new signs are unveiled, advertising is circulated, and with health screenings at First Fridays and even a healthy snack station at the Goshen High School football game that night.
“We would like to announce today (Tuesday) that we are changing our name to Goshen Health and re-branding with a new logo and tag line ‘All For Life,’ and a new look,” said Randal Christophel, president and chief executive officer of IU Health Goshen. “We are in the process of ending our affiliation with IU Health. We expect to have this done by the end of the year.”
Christophel admitted the change has “not been much of a secret” in Goshen for months.
The Goshen health organization, a network of health services and physicians with the hospital as its centerpiece, joined Clarion Health Partners in 2000. That name was changed in 2011 to IU Health and all the affiliates joined in that rebranding.
Distance and changing circumstances contributed to the decision to drop the affiliation, according to Christophel.
“Strategically we are very invested in improving the health of our population across this northern Indiana and southern Michigan geographical area. So we are very focused on communities and patients throughout this broader region. Likewise IU Health is very focused on central Indiana, so when we joined them 16 years ago we hoped to build out a broader partnership across northern Indiana. Since they decided to refocus their efforts on central Indiana, it just became apparent that we are highly committed to two different geographical areas.”
Goshen is not the first northern Indiana hospital to exit IU Health. In March LaPorte Health System switched from IU Health to Community Health Systems Inc.
LaPorte Health System operates hospitals in La Porte and Starke counties.