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Senior Health Care

Comprehensive Care Program for Older Adults

We strive every day to ensure that older adult patients receive immediate access to the best care with an assurance of the greatest level of patient safety and quality. Our goal is to optimize treatment and recovery, as well as assist patients to return safely to their lives with a focus on the quality of life and maintaining independence. With this in mind, Kent Hospital has developed a team of specialized experts in geriatrics to deliver direct care and to infuse education about older adult needs and best practices for care throughout our hospital. This service allows us to:

  • Reduce the risk of hospitalization for older adults
  • Reduce or minimize avoidable complications
  • Reduce the incidence of unnecessary transitions or interventions that have no evidence supporting their benefits
  • Focus care on what matters most to each older adult
  • Provide coordinated care across settings
Contact Information

Geriatrics Consultation Service
455 Toll Gate Road
Warwick, RI 02886
P: (401) 737-7000, ext. 34893

Geriatric Medicine

As people age, it becomes more common to have a number of health issues at the same time and to be taking several medications to deal with those problems. These diseases and medicines can have a different impact on older people.

That’s why it’s so important to have a doctor who focuses on medical issues and diseases of aging, and of old age.

A geriatrician is a medical doctor who most often treats people over the age of 65 who are either healthy or have multiple medical issues. Board-certified in either family medicine or internal medicine, geriatricians have completed the additional training to become certified in geriatric medicine.

Our geriatricians work as part of a team that includes a geriatric nurse practitioner and a social worker, as well as registered nurses, pharmacists, and physical therapists. We manage all the health issues of an older patient, designing care plans to deal with the whole person.

Acute Care for Elders (ACE) Inpatient Unit

Kent Hospital’s ACE unit is just one specialized program in Care New England’s comprehensive Older Adults Program, meant to diagnose, treat, and manage many of the specific issues that are impacting the health and quality of life for our community’s aging population.

While no one wants to be in the hospital, our unit is best equipped to meet each patient’s unique needs. We have structured our program here to ensure that patients have access to a broad interdisciplinary team including hospitalists, social workers, pharmacists, occupational and physical therapists, nurses, and geriatric medicine specialists (physicians or clinicians who specialize in the care of older adults).

Our goal is to help patients return to good health, preventing functional decline while in the hospital, by working with patients and caregivers to develop the best long-term approach to wellness. Our team works with patients and families to create a hospital care plan that is focused on each patient’s individual needs and meets the goals of care.

Learn More ACE Inpatient Unit

Ana Tuya Fulton, MD, FACP


Ana Tuya Fulton, MD, FACP, AGSF, is executive chief of Geriatrics & Palliative Care for Care New England and Chief Medical Officer for Integra Community Care Network, LLC. A major focus of her clinical and academic work is on improving end of life and transitional care for persons with cognitive impairment.

Specialty Programs

In addition to routine and emergency health and wellness services, Kent Hospital and Care New England offer a variety of specialty programs. Our Geriatric Consultation Team works collaboratively with the providers in a number of inpatient and outpatient specialty programs to ensure that older adult patients are receiving the best care possible. The team will work collaboratively with each patient’s primary care provider to develop appropriate treatment plans both in the outpatient and inpatient settings, as well as in the patient’s home or skilled nursing facility.

Palliative Care Program

Palliative care is specialized medical care for people with serious illnesses given at the same time as other medical therapies, including curative treatments. This care focuses on providing relief from the symptoms, pain, and stress of a serious illness to improve the quality of life for both the patient and his or her family.

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Conversation Project
In 2012, Care New England joined a national initiative, The Conversation Project, along with 10 other pioneering organizations, to support an effort by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) to better prepare health care providers to receive and respect patients’ wishes about end-of-life care. Care New England has incorporated many principles of The Conversation Project, which strives to engage with patients to better understand what matters most to them as they face serious medical illness while helping them achieve their personal goals.
Cardiology – Brigham and Women's Cardiovascular Associates at Care New England

Care New England offers a comprehensive cardiology program in collaboration with Brigham and Women's Cardiovascular Associates at Care New England. Services are provided for patients of all ages, with convenient office locations at Kent Hospital and the Women's Heart Health of Women & Infants located on the campus of Women & Infants Hospital.

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Orthopedics and Joint Program
Care New England’s Total Joint Program offers all the services patients need in one location, from pre-surgery testing to inpatient physical and occupational therapies, to help at home for patients and caregivers. We have assembled a solid team of experts all focused on returning you to your activities as soon as possible.
General Surgery
Kent Hospital is committed to providing a patient-centered surgical experience for patients of all ages and their families. Under the leadership of Guy Lancellotti, MD*, chief of surgery, Kent offers 12 operating suites and a new, state-of-the-art Ambulatory Surgery Center, all staffed by a skilled surgical, anesthesiology, and nursing team who are committed to providing a safe and comfortable surgical experience, supported by the latest technology and advanced diagnostics.
Hernia Care
Kent Hospital offers highly specialized, hospital-based care for people with all types of hernias, with a multidisciplinary approach that includes surgical care, physical therapy, and nutrition.
Bariatric Surgery

At Care New England’s Center for Surgical Weight Loss, we understand that obesity can be a difficult disease to live with and a frustrating problem to treat. That’s why we are committed to helping patients of all ages on their journey to better health.

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Diagnostic Imaging

The Diagnostic Imaging Center at Kent Hospital offers convenient and patient-friendly access to state-of-the-art imaging services. In addition to our two new advanced multi-sliced low dose CT scanners that can also provide cardiac and interventional scans, we provide advanced high field MRI services, and digital mammography services using the most advanced Tomosynthesis systems.

Learn More

Laboratory Testing

For the convenience of our patients, Care New England has laboratory testing sites throughout Rhode Island and southeastern Massachusetts.

Learn More

Healthy Aging and Serious Illness

We strive every day to ensure that older adult patients receive immediate access to the best care with an assurance of the greatest level of patient safety and quality. Our goal is to optimize treatment and recovery, as well as assist patients to return safely to their lives with a focus on the quality of life and maintaining independence. With this in mind, Kent Hospital has developed a team of specialized experts in geriatrics to deliver direct care and to infuse education about older adult needs and best practices for care throughout our hospital. This service allows us to:

  • Reduce the risk of hospitalization for older adults
  • Reduce or minimize avoidable complications
  • Reduce the incidence of unnecessary transitions or interventions that have no evidence supporting their benefits
  • Focus care on what matters most to each older adult
  • Provide coordinated care across settings 

Meet the Team

The clinicians in our Geriatric Medicine Program work collaboratively with surgeons, hospitalists, orthopedics, nurses, and other specialists at Kent Hospital to manage older adults while they are in the hospital with an emphasis on wellness promotion and improvement in daily functioning. The team develops a treatment plan, in cooperation with each patient’s hospital team and family, which can be carried out during the hospital stay and later in the home in conjunction with the patient’s primary care provider. 

The team will collaborate on maximizing the quality of life for each older adult and understanding what matters most to each individual to create a care plan to meet those goals of care. As a Conversation Ready sponsor organization, Care New England puts patient-centered care and quality of life front and center.  Additionally, as an Institute for Healthcare Improvement, Age-Friendly Health System, Kent focuses on delivering care to older adults that is individualized and focused on the best practices to improve care delivery.   

As a NICHE Designated Hospital (Nurses Improving Care for Health system Elders), Kent Hospital is committed to older adult care excellence and to providing patient-centered care for these patients. Our 16 geriatric resource nurses have completed extensive training designed around the care needs of patients age 65 and older, offering care in an environment that is geriatric friendly by making sure that patients are moving appropriately, eating well, and getting the necessary sleep for healing and recovery. 

Ana Tuya Fulton, MD, FACP, AGSF, Executive Chief of Geriatrics and Palliative Care, Care New England  and Chief Medical Officer of Integra Community Care Network, LLC

Dr. Fulton is a graduate of the George Washington University School of Medicine and completed a residency in internal medicine, chief residency, and geriatric fellowship at Brown University. 

An associate professor of medicine and associate professor of psychiatry and human behavior at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Dr. Fulton received a Geriatric Academic Career Award from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). Dr. Fulton’s major focus of clinical and academic work is on improving end-of-life and transitional care for persons with cognitive impairments. Dr. Fulton is the Care New England site director and co-project director for the Rhode Island Geriatric Workforce Enhancement Project (RI-GWEP). 

Mary Beth Welesko, MS, APRN-CNP, FNP-BC, GNP-BC, ACHPN, WCC

Mary Beth Welesko, MS, APRN-CNP, FNP-BC, GNP-BC, ACHPN, WCC, is a family nurse practitioner and gerontological nurse practitioner who provides medical care to geriatric patients across the continuum of health care settings.

Leyda Urugutia-Cante, BSW

Leyda Urugutia-Cante, BSW, is a social worker with Integra Community Care Network and Kent Hospital. A graduate of Rhode Island College with a degree in social work, Leyda is also a certified nursing assistant and a medical assistant. Leyda has worked as an advocate for patients and their families and is fluent in both English and Spanish.

Rachel A. Roach, APRN-CNP, MSN, Geriatric Nurse Practitioner

Rachel Roach, APRN-CNP is a geriatric nurse practitioner with more than 20 years' experience. She is a graduate of Simmons College Graduate School for Health Studies. Her clinical experience includes outpatient, acute care, house calls, and long-term care. An experienced educator, Rachel has served as the Co-Director of the Geriatric Intern Rotation at RI Hospital as well as faculty in the Geriatric and Palliative Medicine Fellowship programs at Brown University.