People associated with the rehabilitation centre had given informal feedback on its name in the wake of global publicity about radical militant group Islamic State.
ISIS - standing for 1 Site 1 Service - is one of the acronyms by which the group is known.
''We have received feedback from families, patients and staff about the name of our rehabilitation ward at Wakari Hospital.
"We are considering a name change,'' the short statement from Southern District Health Board patient services director Lexie O'Shea said.
She was unavailable to answer further questions.
Prof John Knight, of the University of Otago's marketing department, said a name change would be sensible.
''Why retain a potentially inflammatory acronym when hardly anyone will remember what it stood for anyway?''
The change was desirable for two reasons.
The main reason was to avoid upsetting relatives, who were often already stressed, he said.
''A much less likely reason is to avoid upsetting fanatics who subscribe to beliefs associated with the other ISIS - but why take such a chance, however small?''
Last week, media reports said ISIS Building Inspections, with offices in Christchurch and Auckland, had changed its name after being the subject of police complaints in Auckland.
The inpatient ward at the ISIS Centre at Wakari Hospital provides specialist rehabilitation services to people with physical and neurological disabilities.
The community rehabilitation centre comprises a multidisciplinary team of physiotherapists, occupational therapists and others, who work in people's homes, and in the centre itself.
