Names carry significance in all cultures. Sometimes they tell where you are from, or what group you belong to. Most help to identify countries of origin. Organizational names are also important and signify reputations and history for decades, even centuries. There are few things that are of more value than a good name, giving a foundation to build upon. It is to be treasured and guarded for future generations.
Loma Linda has gone through a number of name changes in its 108-year history. It first started in 1905 as the College of Evangelists, and then became the College of Medical Evangelists when it added the medical school in 1909. While some wish we had kept the descriptive name of CME, it gradually became too limiting as more schools were added and the clinical services grew. The name change to Loma Linda University came in 1961, just six years after our 50th anniversary and four years after the first School of Dentistry graduation. In 1980, the Medical Center became a separate corporation due to the increasing complexity of health care and contracting in California.
In 1990, when we separated from La Sierra University, we began to call ourselves an “academic health center.” Then in 1997, we created a “parent” organization to serve as the “glue” to hold the entire campus together. This was called Loma Linda University Adventist Health Sciences Center, or LLUAHSC. While technically accurate and descriptive, this name was too long to either remember or understand easily. This is especially true for those who do not know us well. There are only a few administrators who actually work for LLUAHSC, while most employees are tied to one or several of the subsidiary organizations within Loma Linda.
As the organization continues to grow in size and complexity, now with six hospitals, eight professional schools, and more than 1,200 faculty including 800 physicians, the number of legal corporations has also grown. There are now some 32 different legal entities that make up Loma Linda. This has led to an increased complexity in names as well. When we need to talk about an individual entity, it is not too bad—Loma Linda University, Loma Linda University Medical Center, Loma Linda University School of Nursing, or Loma Linda University Medical Center – Murietta, for example. But when we are referring to the whole, it has become downright confusing. On one of our publications recently we started trying to list each of the Loma Linda organizations involved and the list became very long, with a different seal for every one.
So over the past two years, as we were preparing for Vision 2020, we recognized the need to have a unified name and “brand” for all of Loma Linda. As our reputation has grown across the country and world, we needed a “handle” that is easy to remember and refers to the whole enterprise. It needed to be something that includes the hospitals, the university, the faculty practice groups, and all the other activities. After careful consideration of many options, we have chosen Loma Linda University Health (LLUH). LLUAHSC will remain our legal name, but Loma Linda University Health will be our dba (doing business as), the name we use in our public relations and marketing activities. So when you see that name, know that it is still us, a growing complex with 14,000 employees continuing to do what we have done for 108 years. We are also placing a descriptor under the name—A Seventh-day Adventist Organization. We are proud of this identity and want to make clear who we are.
We are keeping our motto—To Make Man Whole—which was selected in 1955 at the time of our 50th anniversary and has become iconic for Loma Linda. Our mission statement was developed more recently and will also remain—Continuing the Teaching and Healing Ministry of Jesus Christ. Most organizations also have “tag lines” that further depict their activities. In marketing for LLUH, we have decided to use a tag line that the Medical Center has established with success—Many Strengths, One Mission. After searching for many good tag lines, everyone agreed that this was already one of the best, and describes us well, so we decided to use it for all of LLUH.
The final piece of Vision 2020 that we feel is imperative is to have a unifying concept, or theme, that makes us unique. I was surprised and pleased at how quickly our campus determined this should be our emphasis on wholeness and healthy lifestyles. So we are now expanding our traditional lifestyle programs and strengthening what we do on campus, as well as what we share with our patients and the community. In addition, we have our Living Whole program, which includes a number of wellness activities for faculty, staff, and students. While many talk about wellness programs today, no one features our unique understanding of spiritual awareness, a supportive community, and an emphasis on service to others. Let me share a link to an article on Loma Linda in The Atlantic this month that makes this point.
Few organizations have grown more significantly, yet remained the same for more than 100 years, than Loma Linda. When I read of the dreams and plans of our founders, they sound remarkably similar to what we have today. We still seek to excel in both education and health care. We send graduates around the corner and around the world in service. We continue to emphasize our spiritual values and understanding, with a major focus on whole-person care. While we upgraded our seal a few years ago, it still symbolizes our core features of education, research, and health care. We have simplified our core values to just five that are now shared across the enterprise—Compassion, Excellence, Integrity, Teamwork, and Wholeness.
I am particularly pleased with the increasing integration I see across this campus. We all recognize that we are stronger together, each benefiting from the activities and reputation of the whole. As we prepare for the lofty goals of Vision 2020, with a major building expansion on this campus, we commit ourselves to value and protect the heart and soul of this place. It has served us well for many years and will remain our foundation for the future.
Cordially,
Richard H. Hart, MD, DrPH
President
Loma Linda University Health
