WARWICK – Dr. Peter Graves of West Greenwich has been named chief of emergency medicine at Kent Hospital.

Graves had been serving as interim chief of emergency medicine at Kent since March 2012.

Graves has played a critical role in the redesigned Emergency Department, which sees close to 65,000 patients a year. In October 2011, Kent announced major initiatives in its emergency department, establishing it at the time as the first and only hospital in the state to eliminate the practice of ambulance diversion.

“Dr. Graves is an extremely decisive, well-regarded clinician within our organization and has been a key member in transforming our emergency department for the betterment of our patients,” said Dr. Michael Dacey, chief clinical-integration officer for Care New England. •