A new logo for Canberra Health Services has been revealed, which was included as part of a $1.5 million rebrand of the government organisation.
The new logo, which will be used on hospital signs and official communications, is a purple "C" with a dot on top.
The new brand will start rolling out within Canberra Health Services in the coming weeks and staff and other health stakeholders have been briefed on the new design.
Canberra Health Services said the branding project had already improved recruitment.
"The campaign landing page on the CHS website received more than 24,000 page views and 417 people expressed an interest in working at Canberra Health Services. New recruits directly told us the campaign was what influenced their decision to apply," a spokesman for the organisation said.
The new logo was publicly released by the Canberra Liberals.
The rebrand has attracted the ire of the opposition, with health spokeswoman Leanne Castley saying the organisation should be focusing on systemic issues within the hospital system ahead of a rebrand.
"This new logo will do nothing to fix these alarming underlying cultural issues," she said.
"The rationale that CHS had a 'brand identity crisis' and a rebrand would lift consumer perceptions and satisfaction and CHS' ability to attract high quality staff is hard to believe and I don't think this rebrand exercise at a cost of $1.6 million will achieve that."
A spokesman for Canberra Health Services said the brand project was about more than a logo.
"The new brand will better meet Canberrans' expectations about how we communicate with them about public health services. We engaged with more than 1000 consumers, team members and stakeholders through focus groups and direct meetings to deliver a brand that meets Canberrans' expectations and makes it easier to understand and navigate our health system," the spokesman said.
Health authorities have previously said the rebrand will boost the organisation and make it competitive. It was prompted following an audit that found the organisation's lack of brand had affected its operations.
The audit found people had difficulties finding their way around the hospital due to poor signage, they found the public health system confusing and were unaware of Canberra Health Services' other community health organisations.
It found there was outdated and inconsistent branding across health facilities, websites, communications and uniforms had affected staff morale and lowered the expectations of patients.
The rebrand also includes the design of new uniforms, signs to help people find their way around the organisation's facilities, improved communications and recruitment advertising.
Canberra Health Services chief executive Dave Peffer has previously said the investment would improve the healthcare experience for Canberrans.
"Simplifying how Canberrans navigate our services and programs will move us closer towards patients being able to access the right services in the right place," he said.
"Likewise, the work we're doing in recruitment will improve our ability to attract high-calibre new team members, all with the goal of providing better patient care for our community."
Ms Castley said a brief provided to Health Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith said "there may be concerns from the public and stakeholders on their perception of the value of the brand project in delivering benefit to consumers".
"I believe these warnings have been completely vindicated," she said.
Canberra Health Services said a recruitment project to identify people in Australia and New Zealand had found 250 people who had registered their interest in working at Canberra Health Services.
"A small team travelled to New Zealand earlier this month to interview prospective candidates. They interviewed 51 candidates over two days, 17 of which have been offered contracts. The successful candidates were all experienced nurses, ranging across a variety of clinical areas," a spokesman for the organisation said.
"The team is in Ireland this week for a couple of days, then to the UK to interview prospective nursing team members. They currently have 158 interviews planned with prospective candidates.
"Canberra Health Services will always prioritise the delivery of safe and patient-centred healthcare to Canberrans. This brand project aims to support our recruitment effort to attract more staff to the ACT so we can continue to improve wait times, perform elective surgeries and deliver more services in the community."
with Jasper Lindell
