Nov. 11, 2019 – Town of Polk, WI – It was in June 2019 when WashingtonCountyInsider.com first posted a story about St. Joe’s Hospital changing its name to Froedtert West Bend Hospital.
Now, five months later the hospital releases a statement about the name change.
Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin St. Joseph’s Hospital, 3200 Pleasant Valley Road, West Bend, will change its name to Froedtert West Bend Hospital effective Monday, Nov. 18. The names of two other sites within the Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin health network will change, as well:
- St. Joseph’s Hospital will be renamed Froedtert West Bend Hospital.
- St. Joseph’s Health Center, on the hospital’s campus, will be renamed Pleasant Valley Health Center.
- Community Memorial Hospital will be renamed Froedtert Menomonee Falls Hospital.
The name of Froedtert Hospital, in Wauwatosa, will not change.
The name changes are being made to more clearly convey that these hospitals are part of the Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin health network, reflecting the network’s evolution as an integrated academic health system where care is provided system-wide with an academic approach. All network hospitals continue to expand their clinical capabilities and expertise.
“More strongly aligning the identity of all of our hospitals with the Froedtert name underscores our collaboration and reflects our growth as the only academic health system in the region,” said Allen Ericson, president Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin St. Joseph’s Hospital. “By emphasizing the community location and the Froedtert name, we want to assure local residents that they have access no matter where they receive their care to the high-quality services associated with the Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin heath network.”
The hospitals will continue to bear the Froedtert & Medical College of Wisconsin brand, which represents the longstanding relationship between Froedtert Health and the Medical College of Wisconsin. Affiliated hospitals in Kenosha and Pleasant Prairie already reflect new names.
History of St. Joe’s
The name of St. Joseph’s Hospital dates to the late 1920’s when the cornerstone of the original hospital was ‘laid in November 1929 and in spite of a rigorous winter, building progressed rapidly and the dedication ceremony took place July 2, 1930.’
At the time St. Joe’s was located on the corner of Silverbrook and Oak Street in West Bend.
Former nurses and doctors recalled a community hospital where staff was family.
The news of a name change felt like the next shoe to drop according to former St. Joe’s staff including Carol Daniels.
“I knew that would happen; there’s no way they would not advertise their business,” said Daniels of West Bend.
Shirley Laufer, 80, has been retired from St. Joe’s for 13 years.
“It’s a sign of the times,” said Laufer. “To anybody that’s new in the area they consider it Froedtert but you think St. Joe’s you think West Bend. I still think the name St. Joe’s kinda gives you an idea of where it’s at and to people who live in the area will always know it as St. Joe’s.”
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