Margaret M. Furtado, M.D., M.S., R.D.N.

Bristol Location

Dr. Furtado, who grew up in Bristol, Rhode Island, was born in the Azores, Portugal, and immigrated to the US with her parents and sister at the age of 3. Although, she was always intrigued by medicine, her first career was as a registered dietitian/nutritionist (RDN), where she spent 23 years working in various areas of clinical nutrition, including diabetes, kidney disease, nutrition support, and the field of obesity medicine, where she was privileged to have worked for over 13 years with leaders at Massachusetts General Hospital, Tufts, Hopkins and the University of Maryland. This led to her writing 3 books on bariatric surgery and nutrition and speaking engagements both nationally and internationally. However, despite her career success, Dr. Furtado could not ignore her lifelong dream to become a physician, so she enrolled in medical school and graduated from the University of Antigua, having completed her clinical rotations in New York hospitals. She was thrilled to return to RI for her internal medicine residency at Roger Williams Medical Center, which she completed in 2024.

Being a big advocate for holistic health, Dr. Furtado spent a month in Baja, Mexico, in 2005, to become a certified yoga teacher. She also found significant benefits in acupuncture, especially after an over-worked right shoulder while doing low pushups in yoga left her with bursitis, and derived tremendous benefits from massage, as acupuncture. Dr. Furtado is thrilled to incorporate her background in nutrition and experiences in holistic health into her primary care practice to assist her patients in achieving optimal health and vitality. She is fluent in Portuguese and Spanish and is thrilled to be practicing at the Bristol office.