Highlands on the East Side

Is Highlands on the East Side a licensed assisted living residence in Rhode Island?

Yes. Highlands on the East Side at 101 Highland Avenue, Providence, RI 02906 holds an active Rhode Island Assisted Living Residence license, number ALR01496, for 86 beds, on the Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH) licensee list updated October 23, 2026, together with a Special Care Unit license for Alzheimer's and dementia care.

You can confirm the license yourself in RIDOH's assisted living finder or the license verification site by searching the name or license number.

What did RIDOH's recent inspections of Highlands on the East Side find?

RIDOH has posted reports from 16 survey visits at Highlands on the East Side since February 2023: 9 found deficiencies and 7 found none. The most recent, on July 23, 2026, was a survey — deficiencies cited (resident assessments and service plans).

The latest posted routine (biennial) licensure survey was on January 30, 2025 — deficiencies cited (resident records, resident rights, dietary services). Most other visits are unannounced complaint or incident investigations, which RIDOH opens whenever a report or complaint comes in; a high count can reflect a large or busy residence as much as a problem.

Areas cited across those reports include resident assessments and service plans, residential care services, medication administration and storage and resident records. A cited deficiency requires a written Plan of Correction that RIDOH reviews; it is not a fine or a license action.

For context, the median Providence County residence with posted reports has 3.5 survey visits with deficiencies over the same period; Highlands on the East Side has been cited more often than that.

SOD = Statement of Deficiencies; POC = Plan of Correction. Results are read from RIDOH's scanned reports; the linked PDF is the authority. Showing the latest 8 of 16. All posted reports for Highlands on the East Side →

Does Highlands on the East Side offer memory care in Providence?

Yes. Highlands on the East Side holds a RIDOH Special Care Unit license for Alzheimer's and dementia care with 28 licensed beds — about 33% of its 86 beds. Rhode Island requires a residence offering dementia care to hold that separate license, to be licensed at the F1–M1 level, to keep a registered nurse available for consultation at all times, and to provide a secure environment.

Across Rhode Island, 34 residences hold a Special Care Unit license, with a median of 32 dementia beds; Highlands on the East Side's unit is close to the statewide norm.

Where is Highlands on the East Side located?

Highlands on the East Side is at 101 Highland Avenue, Providence, RI 02906, in Providence, Providence County. Hospitals families there commonly use include Rhode Island Hospital, The Miriam Hospital and Roger Williams Medical Center.

Providence is the state capital and its medical hub: Rhode Island Hospital and Women & Infants share the hospital district south of downtown, and The Miriam sits on the East Side.

There are 6 other licensed assisted living residences in Providence: Arbor Hill, Capitol Ridge at Providence, Charlesgate Senior Living Center, Saint Elizabeth Court, Wingate Residences on Blackstone Boulevard, Wingate Residences on the East Side.

Veterans and surviving spouses are served by the Providence VA Medical Center and may qualify for VA Aid & Attendance toward assisted living costs; the state also runs the Rhode Island Veterans Home in Bristol.

How does Highlands on the East Side compare with other assisted living in Providence County?

With 86 licensed beds, Highlands on the East Side is about typical in size among the 35 licensed assisted living residences in Providence County (number 13 by bed count); the county median is 72 beds.

17 of those 35 residences hold a Special Care Unit license and 8 hold a Limited Health Services license, for 2,703 licensed assisted living beds in the county.

Closest in size among Providence County residences, from the same RIDOH records:

How much does Highlands on the East Side cost per month?

Rhode Island does not publish prices for individual residences, so ask Highlands on the East Side for its written rate schedule. This site's 2026 research puts typical assisted living in the Providence metro at $5,500–$7,800/mo, with memory care at $7,000–$9,500/mo.

Expect a base monthly rate for the room or apartment plus a separate care-level charge; ask how the residence assesses care needs and how much notice it gives before raising either.

Providence is generally toward the upper end of Rhode Island pricing; inland towns such as Woonsocket, Coventry and West Warwick tend to run lower.

Rhode Island Medicaid's long-term services and supports program can pay for assisted living services at participating residences for people who qualify, while room and board stays the resident's responsibility. Ask whether the residence participates and how many Medicaid beds it has; see our Medicaid assisted living guide.

What should you ask when touring Highlands on the East Side?

Start with the areas RIDOH has already cited at Highlands on the East Side — resident assessments and service plans, residential care services and medication administration and storage — and ask what changed after each Plan of Correction; then cover overnight staffing, the full rate schedule and what would force a move.

• How soon after move-in is the written service plan finished, and who reviews it when needs change?
• What personal-care help is included in the base rate, and how is a change in care level decided?
• Who administers medications on each shift, and how are errors and missed doses tracked?
• Can family see care notes, and how quickly are changes documented?
• How many staff are awake on the overnight shift, and for how many residents?
• Is the residence licensed F1 or F2, and M1 or M2 — and what does that mean for my parent?
• What happens if a resident runs out of private funds — do you participate in Rhode Island Medicaid?
• Can we visit at mealtime and in the evening without an appointment?

Tour at different times of day, sit in on an activity, and take the residency agreement home to read before you commit.

How does moving into Highlands on the East Side work?

Before anyone moves into Highlands on the East Side, the residence assesses their needs, and RIDOH's rules require a written service plan — services, frequency and who provides them — within seven days of move-in.

• Residency agreement and disclosures. Get the agreement, the rate schedule and the discharge terms in writing and compare them before paying a deposit.
• Medication plan. Ask whether your parent will self-administer with help (an M2-level service) or need staff to store and administer medications (M1).
• Nurse review. A nurse reviews each resident's condition on a regular schedule; ask how often and who the nurse is.
• Special Care Unit admission. Ask what criteria move a resident into Highlands on the East Side's 28-bed Special Care Unit from its assisted living rooms.
• Payment. Most residents pay privately; long-term care insurance, VA Aid & Attendance and Rhode Island Medicaid (at participating residences) can offset costs.

If Highlands on the East Side has no opening, ask to join its waitlist and keep touring — availability at larger Rhode Island residences changes month to month.

Frequently asked questions