Allina name change reflects focus on patients' health

Allina Hospitals and Clinics, one of Minnesota's major medical systems, is changing its name to represent a move toward keeping people healthy rather than just treating illnesses, according to officials.

CEO Ken Paulus said the new name — Allina Health — is a major shift that's intended to challenge Allina's employees to think about patients' overall health.

"We've got a responsibility to provide very high quality health care," Paulus said. "By keeping people healthy, by preventing illness, by managing chronic disease more effectively, we can effectively lower costs at the same time."

The name change represents a move towards keeping people healthy as well as responding when they get sick or injured, Paulus said.

"It challenges our employees, our caregivers, our doctors and nurses and staff to think very differently about what success looks like, what we're here to do and what our mission is," he said.

The federal health care overhaul is encouraging medical centers to improve patient care as a way to stem rising health costs.