Report: McKee Taps Womazetta Jones To Lead BHDDH

PROVIDENCE, RI — Gov. Dan McKee has chosen Womazetta Jones to serve as interim director of the state agency that oversees the embattled Eleanor Slater Hospital.

At least for now, Jones will lead the R.I. Department of Behavioral Healthcare, Developmental Disabilities and Hospitals in addition to her work as secretary of the Executive Office of Health and Human Services, WPRI-TV is reporting.

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Jones will replace Kathryn Power at the helm of BHDDH. Power recently submitted her resignation amid sharp criticism over her leadership, and today is her last official day on the job.

The state hospital consists of the Zambarano campus on Wallum Lake in Burrillville and the Reagan, Roosevelt Benton Center and Adolf Meyer buildings in Cranston. The hospital provides long-term acute and post-acute care to patients with complex medical and psychiatric needs.