Delaware internist Thomas Kelly joins Bayhealth Total Care

Bayhealth welcomes internal medicine physician Thomas F. Kelly, MD, MPH, BSN, to the team at Bayhealth Total Care in Milton. 

Kelly previously served as a physician and medical director with the State of Delaware, and founded and operated a private practice in Sussex County. He joins family medicine physician Bryan Villar, MD, and family nurse practitioner Nicole Steinberg, FNP-C, at the Bayhealth Primary Care, Total Care - Milton practice. Kelly is now accepting adult patients ages 18 and older for primary care.

This practice is part of Bayhealth Medical Group, a partnership of highly trained physicians and advanced practice clinicians, their staff and an administrative support team that operates medical offices throughout Delaware. It is located at the new Bayhealth Total Care facility on Route 9 that is also home to numerous specialty care practices, an outpatient center with state-of-the-art diagnostics and imaging, and an emergency and urgent care center.

“Dr. Kelly is a highly experienced physician dedicated to his patients’ needs, and we’re thrilled to welcome him to our staff,” said Lawrence Ward, MD, MPH, FACP, Bayhealth vice president, physician services and clinical integration “By having Dr. Kelly and his colleagues caring for our community members through our new practices at Bayhealth Total Care, we’re expanding access to excellent primary care and specialty expertise in Sussex County.”

Before joining Bayhealth, Kelly was the sole practitioner at Shore Community Medical in Rehoboth Beach, which he co-founded with his business and life partner Ahmed Elmanan in 2011. Kelly provided primary care to thousands of patients in southern Delaware through this private practice that they operated for close to 12 years.

Kelly previously served the State of Delaware for almost 10 years in various leadership roles. He was acting medical director, as well as chief physician and director of health care services for the Division of Developmental Disabilities Services, Delaware Department of Health and Social Services. He was the primary care internist and staff physician at the Stockley Center in Georgetown. During his state tenure, he founded Healthy Delawareans with Disabilities, an initiative focused on partnerships with local organizations to enhance healthcare services and access to foster better health for community members with disabilities and prevent secondary conditions. Kelly is also a former medical director at Deer’s Head Hospital Center in Salisbury, Md., operated by the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

Kelly began his extensive healthcare career as a medic serving active duty with the U.S. Air Force Reserve and as a nurse, having graduated from Columbia University School of Nursing in Manhattan, N.Y. He worked as a public health nurse, nursing clinical coordinator and health educator in hospitals, clinics and medical facilities throughout New York City.

While working as a nurse, he earned a master of public health degree in community health education from Hunter College in Manhattan, followed by his doctor of medicine degree from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore. Upon completion of his residency at Brown University School of Medicine in Providence, R.I., Kelly earned his board certification in internal medicine from the American Board of Internal Medicine.

Kelly cares for patients ages 18 and older at Bayhealth Primary Care, Total Care - Milton, located on the second floor at 18383 Hudson Road, Milton. To schedule an appointment, call 302-725-3499.

For more information, go to Bayhealth.org/Medical-Group.