Last fall the D.C. Council approved spending $79 million to assist in the sale of the beleaguered Greater Southeast Community Hospital to Specialty Hospitals of America, and today, Specialty announced that they will give the hospital a new name and logo in an effort to break with the medical facility's checkered past.

The hospital's staff are currently being asked to vote on a choice of three new names: Capitol Medical Center, Capitol Regional Medical Center or United Medical Center. The winner will be unveiled at a ceremony planned for Thursday, May 29.

“When our work is done, this institution will emerge as a center of excellence for the entire National Capital area while providing residents of Southeast Washington with a powerful and dynamic health care resource that they truly deserve,” said Eric F. Rieseberg, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Specialty Hospitals of America in a statement today.

Beyond just a new name, Specialty is touting improvements they have already made to the hospital, which include more than $5 million in technological upgrades to the hospital’s radiology department, replacing the facility's roof and backup power generators, and overhauling the hospital’s Emergency Department operating procedures. In 2007, District health regulators cited Greater Southeast for endangering patient care and safety due to severe staffing, supply and equipment shortages. Concern over the facility's management led to unanimous action by the D.C. Council to facilitate the sale of the hospital.