News Photo by Steve Schulwitz The MidMichigan Health sign near the entrance of the hospital in Alpena promoted the new name of the hospital and healthcare system on its digital billboard on Wednesday. MidMichigan Health announced Wednesday that the hospital’s new name will be the MyMichigan Medical Center Alpena and the system will be rebranded as MyMichigan Health.

ALPENA — MidMichigan Health and MidMichigan Medical Center-Alpena will have new names, it was announced Wednesday.

In a press release, the health care system says it will now be known as MyMichigan Health and the hospital in Alpena is rebranded as the MyMichigan Medical Center Alpena.

The hospital also said in the press release it expects to add War Memorial Hospital Sault Ste. Marie to its list of hospitals in the system.

President and CEO of MyMichigan Health, Diane Postler-Slattery, said the new name is a better fit for the system, but said the level of service, care, and commitment to the communities it serves will remain strong.

“MyMichigan Health remains familiar but is more reflective of who we are, where we are going and how we serve our patients,” Postler-Slattery said in a release. “It’s so much more than a name change. MyMichigan keeps our patients at the center of all that we do. It instills and reinforces a sense of pride and ownership amongst our employees, volunteers and providers. And, it truly emphasizes our people, their stories and the personal human touch and exceptional patient experience we strive to deliver.”

Postler-Slattery said MyMichigan will continue to be a close partner with the University of Michigan Health system, and all of its other partners. She said the high level of care and the familiar doctors and nurses that provide medical care, will also remain intact

“But, while our name is changing, our purpose to ‘Create Healthy Communities – Together’ is not. It’s important our patients know the providers and staff who care for them remain the same,” she said in the press release. “Our partnership with University of Michigan Health also remains unchanged. We have worked collaboratively with our partners at the university and they are in support of the change. We will continue to include the block “M” in our logo and maintain the same rich blue and maize coloring, which visually connects all locations that are part of the MyMichigan family.”

She said it will take time for the new name to appear on signs, marquees, and other promotional material, but the new name and logo will begin to appear in the coming months.

“With a health system our size, the transition to our new name will take some time,” she said in the press release. “We appreciate the understanding and support from our community members that they may continue to see our old name for a few months on letterhead or facility doors, for example.”

MidMichigan Health System purchased the former Alpena Regional Medical Center, which was owned by Alpena County in 2016 for $125 million and has branded many of the local clinics in Northeast Michigan since, and continuing to do so.

The health care system is in the midst of constructing a $63.5 million patient tower that will feature 60 private rooms, including eight intensive care unit beds, eight labor and delivery rooms, and 44 medical, surgical, and telemetry beds. The addition to the hospital will also include 18 prep and recovery rooms, flex rooms, as well as five operating rooms.

The tower is expected to be completed in the spring.