Lee Memorial Health System Board of Directors has approved a new name and graphic logo that will help represent the system’s direction in health care over the next 100 years.

“It’s simplistic, memorable,” Lee Memorial Health System Chief Strategy Officer Kevin Newingham said of Lee Health. “The logo itself, we believe, is easily identifiable.”

The logo includes updated colors that reflect health and vibrancy, as well as the geographic region the system is located in with hues of blue and green.

“We just believe it speaks better to what we really are as a healthcare provider and where we will be in the future,” he said. “We will be known in the community as of October as Lee Health, the master brand of the organization.”

Although some minor changes will start occurring within the Lee Memorial Health System, Lee Health will become effective on Oct. 3 to coincide with the system’s 100th anniversary. The new name will appear on signage, as well as material the system distributes.

Newingham said while they are celebrating the first 100 years, they are positioning themselves for the next 100.

“Over the years we conducted a lot of research and got a lot of feedback from our community,” Newingham said.

The research consistently revealed that there was a lot of confusion in the marketplace regarding Lee Memorial Health System. He said the reality was that they had a facility, Lee Memorial Hospital, that carried the same name as the health system, which caused confusion when distinguishing the difference between the two.

“The unifying logo lent to confusion in the marketplace,” Newingham said.

“They didn’t understand what hospitals were and were not apart of the health system.”

Newingham said they are not electing to change any names of the individual campus hospitals, but rather have a desire to identify them as an umbrella brand with a common unifying logo that the organization lacked previously.

He said the system’s 100 year anniversary was not the reason to change the name and graphic logo, but rather the evolving landscape of healthcare. Newingham said healthcare is not just about taking care of the sick and injured, but also focusing on wellness and disease prevention.

Since the board of directors approved the change on May 12, Newingham said they have received an overwhelming positive response from their employees, as well as the community.

“By and large the response has been very positive because they live that change that is taking place every day,” he said.