Kent Hospital to get new name as part of rebranding

By JOHN HOWELL
Posted 3/3/20

By JOHN HOWELL Since it opened in 1951, the hospital on Toll Gate has been known as Kent. But that's going to change as soon as this April as part of a rebranding of the state's second largest hospital, president and CEO Robert Haffey told the Rotary

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Kent Hospital to get new name as part of rebranding

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Since it opened in 1951, the hospital on Toll Gate has been known as Kent.

But that’s going to change as soon as this April as part of a rebranding of the state’s second largest hospital, president and CEO Robert Haffey told the Rotary Club of Warwick Thursday.

The name change is all part of a program costing in the range of $2 million that includes the reconstruction of the hospital entry, a redesign of the lobby that is being funded by the auxiliary and the addition of an in-hospital pharmacy. The hospital has also started doing robotic surgeries as part of its extension of services and objective to draw from a larger market. The focus of the rebranding is on the quality of care and services provided by the hospital, easy access and central location in the state.

And what’s the name?

That hasn’t been decided yet, although from Haffey’s description the process of rebranding has been given a lot of thought. The name was one consideration to defining the perception of Kent and its services through focus groups where people, not knowing at the outset that the survey was about Kent, were asked questions about medical services and their choices of hospitals.

As for the name, Haffey said, a list of about 20 was proposed and then whittled down to remove names that were already taken before being shared with units in the hospital. Haffey thought a preferred name would emerge, but that wasn’t the case. No one name was favored over the others.

“Everybody chose a different name,” he said.

Haffey said the final choice will come down to him.

One suggested name that he assured has been ruled out is “Harbor Medical.”

“We’re not even near a harbor,” Haffey said.

Haffey, who came to Kent from the Philadelphia area in September 2018, said Rhode Islanders have been warming and welcoming. He’s learned that distances mean a lot here.

“I was told people don’t like to travel too far,” he said, “and I believe that.”

Haffey sees Kent’s location at the apex of interstates 95 and 295 as a “funnel” providing quick access to the hospital. Interstate 95 and Route 4 likewise act as corridors from the south.

“We can draw from a larger area,” he said.

Haffey gave an overview of hospital services, facilities and affiliations. He touched on Kent’s association with Brigham and Women’s in its STEMI or ST-elevation myocardial infraction program and its relationship with Brown University. He said Kent has 130 Brown residents, positioning Kent “as a major teaching hospital.”

Soon after arriving at Kent, Haffey introduced Relationship Based Care (RBC) to a 10-bed orthopedic unit at the hospital. RBC is an operational blueprint for improving safety, quality, the patient experience, employee engagement and financial performance that now has been fully implemented at the hospital.

He spoke of how night staffing has been increased so that incoming patients are not being temporarily boarded in the emergency department. The change is aimed at reducing emergency department wait times.

In a question-and-answer session, Haffey said he is not aware of any ongoing discussions between Care New England, of which Kent is one of three hospitals, and Lifespan, which is the largest of the state’s health care providers, or an out-of-state group. Care New England had been in discussions with Partners Health Care of Massachusetts. When those talks broke off, at the governor’s request, discussions opened with Lifespan. After several months, Care New England withdrew from the table.

However, Haffey sees mergers and acquisitions as inevitable.

“I think by the end of the day we need to partner,” he said. “Small systems don’t work.”

Comments

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  • davebarry109

    How about calling it 'RI hospital was booked'.

    Tuesday, March 3, 2020 Report this

  • Justanidiot

    how about almacs. "turn left at where the almacs er was"

    Tuesday, March 3, 2020 Report this

  • wwkvoter

    "Dice Roll Medical Center" ?

    Tuesday, March 3, 2020 Report this

  • Deborah58

    How about Narragansett Bay hospital

    Wednesday, March 4, 2020 Report this

  • Buddi46

    Last stop before dirt nap

    Wednesday, March 4, 2020 Report this

  • Mike02886

    Welcome to the " Your third choice in Hospitals" located on Toll Gate Rd in Warwick RI. For when RI Hospital and Miriam are too far or unavailable.

    Thursday, March 5, 2020 Report this

  • TheSkipper

    You guys don't get it. the perfect name would be- "FUBAR, Central Hospital" .

    Thursday, March 5, 2020 Report this

  • RISchadenfreude

    "One-Way" is already taken by Fatima.

    Thursday, March 5, 2020 Report this

  • wwkvoter

    after they bulldoze it and name the field after those unfortunate souls who were set free there...

    Friday, March 6, 2020 Report this

  • mthompsondc

    "Rebranding" a hospital is inane, and highlights a lot of what is wrong with U.S. medicine. I hope the Beacon creates a save-get key on its computers that will spit out "formerly known as Kent County Memorial Hospital," because I bet you're going to be typing it alot.

    Saturday, March 7, 2020 Report this

  • thepilgrim

    Changing names won’t change their crap medicine.

    Saturday, March 7, 2020 Report this

  • thepilgrim

    Changing names won’t change their crap medicine.

    Saturday, March 7, 2020 Report this