5 Utah hospitals acquired by Catholic health system now have new names

Five Utah hospitals across the Wasatch Front now have new names.

The name changes were announced this week, after CommonSpirit Health completed its acquisition of the hospitals formerly owned by Steward Health Care, transitioning the medical centers from for-profit institutions to faith-based facilities.

Their new names pay homage to their new owners’ Catholic heritage:

• Davis Hospital and Medical Center in Layton is now Holy Cross Hospital — Davis.

• Jordan Valley Medical Center is now Holy Cross Hospital — Jordan Valley.

• Jordan Valley Medical Center-West Valley Campus is now Holy Cross Hospital — Jordan Valley West.

• Mountain Point Medical Center in Lehi is now Holy Cross Hospital — Mountain Point.

• Salt Lake Regional Medical Center is now Holy Cross Hospital — Salt Lake.

CommonSpirit is owned by Catholic Health Initiatives Colorado and managed by Centura Health. In a news release, the health care system said the deal, first announced in February, will “reinvigorate purpose- and values-driven health care in Utah.”

The five hospitals’ new “Holy Cross” names are a tribute to The Sisters of the Holy Cross, who opened Holy Cross Hospital (which later became Salt Lake Regional Medical Center) in 1875 to care for injured railroad workers and miners, according to a news release. It was one of the first hospitals in the Salt Lake Valley, and it was the first hospital in Utah to admit and care for AIDS patients during the epidemic.

“Our caregivers in Utah have built a rich legacy of high-quality, compassionate care that has spanned generations,” Centura Health’s president & CEO, Peter D. Banko, said in the news release. “We look forward to extending that legacy by building whole person care and flourishing communities for many years to come.”

Hospital employees in good standing were offered jobs at the newly named facilities, the release said.

“Additionally,” the release continued, “close collaboration with Utah hospital leaders and caregivers is ongoing to ensure a seamless transition for patients and neighbors with no disruptions to their care.”

As Catholic-affiliated hospitals, these facilities will not offer elective abortions, vasectomies, tubal ligation, in vitro fertilization and other reproductive health services to align with their new owner’s “ethical and religious directives.”

[Read more: As 5 Utah hospitals change hands, will it mean less reproductive care?]

But whether or not patients will now face a loss of reproductive health care at these facilities is unclear; their previous owner, Steward Health Care, declined in February to answer whether the hospitals previously provided such care, and state health officials have no mechanism to track the procedures that any hospitals offer, The Salt Lake Tribune found.

Steward did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday.

More than 35 medical group clinics also changed hands through the deal. The umbrella of newly acquired hospitals and clinics in Utah will now be called Holy Cross Medical Group, the release states.