Published September 04, 2025
Westerly Hospital celebrated its 100th anniversary with the recent unveiling of a timeline in its main lobby, a chronicle of a century of compassionate community care. The hospital opened its doors on Aug. 17, 1925.
The unveiling included proclamations from the Rhode Island House of Representatives and the Westerly Town Council, both praising the hospital’s century of excellence, innovation and growth of services.
Rich Lisitano, president of L+M and Westerly hospitals, said the timeline serves as a tribute to the long succession of caregivers who served the community, and also as a reminder that Westerly Hospital continues to provide care focused on quality and safety.
“Westerly Hospital holds a unique position in town history,” Lisitano said. “Since 1925 it has been a bedrock employer where skilled caregivers have provided care to families, friends and neighbors. As the new timeline depicts, the hospital’s story is one of recurring themes – of expansions, technological advances, outstanding physicians, skilled and compassionate nurses, and an overall team that has always put patients first.”
Looking to the future, Lisitano said: “Whatever form health care takes it is going to be delivered through community members, to their own community. So, just like the tradition that started here 100 years ago, the future is going to be about community members delivering tremendous care, quality and safety, and we’re looking forward to being a part of that for the next 100 years.”
The timeline includes more than 20 specific entries all under the heading of “100 Years of Milestones.” One, for example, chronicles the hospital staff’s heroic care of more than 70 victims from the Hurricane of 1938, even as the hospital lost electricity and roads were impassable.
Other highlights include the opening of a new wing in 1954 – a response to the “Baby Boom” – and additional expansion during the 1960s that increased bed capacity to 140.
In 2013, Westerly Hospital was acquired by Lawrence + Memorial Healthcare, parent of L+M, a move that began a new era of care; three years later, in 2016, both L+M and Westerly hospitals further strengthened their clinical programs and physician recruitment through affiliation with Yale New Haven Health.
With the support of YNHHS, the hospital expanded key services, including an inpatient Geriatric Psychiatry unit, a 2,600-square-foot pharmacy, a da Vinci Xi Surgical System for minimally invasive robotic surgeries, and an MRI unit that has enhanced diagnostic imaging capabilities.
