- Employee SpotlightGeneral Page Tier 3BlogOn a cold December morning, Lori Freedman, Medicare billing systems and audit coordinator, was on her way to work. As Lori pulled into her office parking lot, she saw an elderly woman standing next to a parked car who seemed nervous. Concerned, Lori approached her. “It took her a few minutes to explain what had happened, but she thought she had been involved in an accident,” Lori explains, adding that she recalls the road being icy that morning. “She probably narrowly missed the accident but the entire situation had upset her.” The woman insisted on waiting outside for her husband to pick her up. “I let her borrow my phone because we couldn’t figure out how to use hers,” Lori says. “After she called her husband, I offered her to come inside because it was cold, but she was still very upset by what had happened and wanted to wait until her husband came for her.” Half an hour went by and Lori couldn’t stop thinking about the woman. She told her manager what happened before heading outside to check on her. “I didn’t feel comfortable not knowing what had happened and whether her husband found her or not,” Lori says. The woman was still standing outside waiting for her husband. Lori decided to wait with her. “We talked probably for 20 minutes,” she says. “She told me she was from Germany, and she met her husband during World War II before they got married and moved to the United States. She was an amazing person and I could have listened to her all morning.” More time passed and the woman’s husband had not arrived. Lori was able to convince the woman to let her drive her home. Upon their arrival, the woman’s husband was relieved to see his wife safe and sound. “He was frantic because he didn’t know how to find her,” Lori explains. “They were worried about each other and it was so nice to get them together.” A few days later, the woman came back to the office to deliver a big tray of cookies as a thank you for Lori’s act of kindness. “We are all here to help people and our community,” says Lori. “My manager understood what was happening and I was glad I could help her. That’s why I love working here, because who I am as a person aligns with the organization’s mission and culture.” Lori, who was born and raised in Pennsylvania, moved to the Eastern Shore years ago. Once she had raised her children, she was ready to go back to work. And coming from a healthcare background, working at Anne Arundel Medical Center (AAMC) seemed like a perfect fit. Eleven years later, she says she knows she made the right choice. “I started in patient Financial Services in 2008 and I made a jump to Reimbursement for a couple of years before I came back to the department where I started,” she says. “The people who work here and even the projects we’ve chosen and community outreach we do has helped to sustain our culture.” Lori, who has won two Champion Awards, says that her colleagues and the people she gets to work with every day are what have kept her at AAMC for so long. “I left this department and came right back voluntarily,” she says. “I love the people I work with and I love the leadership we have. More than anything, I think my job is fun. All of those factors are important to me.” Pro tip: “At the heart of it, you truly have to love what you do, the people you work with and who you’re serving.” If you know a great individual or a fantastic team going above and beyond to make a difference, make sure to let us know! Looking for a career in health care? We invite you to join a diverse and collaborative team of professionals working together to innovate the future of health care for our entire region. Check out our career opportunities.
- Women's HealthGeneral Page Tier 3BlogWomen are more likely to experience bladder control problems, also known as urinary incontinence. Many women think that accidental leakage is a normal part of aging. While incontinence is common, it is not normal. The good news is there are many options for help, and most women who get treatment see their symptoms improve. Here are a few treatment and self-help options to help you manage incontinence. Maintain a healthy weight and diet. Carrying extra weight adds stress to your pelvic floor and impacts function of the nerves and muscles in your genital tract. Also, find a healthy balance of fluid intake to stay hydrated without overdoing it. This can reduce your trips to the bathroom. You also want to drink the right kinds of fluids. Beverages like coffee, tea and energy drinks with artificial sweeteners can irritate your bladder and create a sudden urge to ‘go.’ Live an active lifestyle. Fitness plays an important role in managing your incontinence. While high-intensity exercises can increase your risk of incontinence by placing pressure on your pelvic floor, regular physical activity keeps you normal. Kegel exercises, with or without the help of a physical therapist or professional trainer, can also help you better control your pelvic floor muscles and help with leakage. Try physical therapy for the pelvic floor. Pelvic physical therapy can help you strengthen your pelvic floor muscles and aid in function of the organs that support your pelvic floor. Physical therapy might include pelvic floor contractions for urge control as well as stretching and strengthening exercises to help decrease pain. Therapists can also help you with proper Kegel technique to make sure you are getting the full benefit of the exercise. Talk to your doctor about medication to help control symptoms. There are several medications available to help manage the muscle spasms in your bladder that cause incontinence. Your doctor can help you learn both the risks and benefits of using medication. Talk to your doctor about minimally invasive surgery treatment. If other treatments fail to improve your symptoms, your doctor may recommend surgery. Surgery to treat incontinence has advanced to include minimally invasive options. Minimally invasive surgery allows for a faster recovery and quick return to daily activities. Most surgical patients leave the hospital less than 24 hours after surgery. Urogynecology is a field of medicine dedicated to the treatment of pelvic floor disorders, including incontinence, in women. Places like Anne Arundel Medical Center (AAMC) Women’s Center for Pelvic Health have urogynecology doctors to help patients of all ages optimize and maintain pelvic wellness. Don’t let incontinence take away from your quality of life. Talk to a urogynecologist about a treatment plan specific to your symptoms. Author Kay Hoskey, MD, is a urogynecologist with AAMC Women’s Center for Pelvic Health. Her office can be reached at 443-481-1199. Originally published Aug. 28, 2017. Last updated Sept. 1, 2025.
- News & Press ReleasesGeneral Page Tier 3BlogAnne Arundel Medical Center (AAMC) and Doctors Community Health System (DCHS) have combined to form a new health system. AAMC and DCHS announced today that the name of the new, integrated health system is Luminis Health. The new health system will reimagine community care, improving access and population health while expanding services throughout Maryland. “For years, Anne Arundel Medical Center and Doctors Community Health System have shared a dedication to compassionate care, delivered when and where people need it most,” said Victoria Bayless, president/CEO of AAMC and CEO of Luminis Health. “We’re carrying that same commitment into the future as Luminis Health, a health system that is here to embrace progress and awaken a new era in care for our communities.” “We are committed to lighting the way to the highest quality, personalized health care to meet our patients’ needs,” said Gary Jobson, board chair, Luminis Health. “The benefits of combining and creating the new health system include more entry points for coordinated care across the region, improved access to care close to home, enhanced quality and improved health outcomes.” “Luminis Health will serve as a beacon of hope and healing to strengthen our local communities,” said Paul Grenaldo, president of DCHS. “Those important phrases truly represent elements of each organization’s great traditions while looking towards the future as to how we can be of greater service to people throughout Maryland.” After sharing their intent to partner in May, AAMC and DCHS signed a definitive agreement at the end of June and closed July 1, 2019. Luminis Health will launch its new brand in spring 2020, which will include a new logo and visual identity. The full integration is expected to take up to two years. In November, health system officials will host public town hall meetings in Anne Arundel and Prince George’s Counties. To view the town hall schedule and to learn more about Luminis Health, visit LuminisHealth.com. What is the meaning behind the new name? Luminis (pronounced lu·mi·nous) is symbolic of light. It signifies the health system’s commitment to being a beacon of hope and healing for its communities. Light is quite literally energy that you can see — and by joining forces and moving forward as one, AAMC and DCHS are igniting new possibilities for how and where health care is delivered. How did you pick this name? Over the past several months, health system officials have asked for input from community members and internal stakeholders through surveys, research and interviews. Luminis Health was born from that input, but more importantly, all of the research will help define the new health system brand. The new brand will be revealed in spring 2020. Will the name of the hospitals change? Starting Sept. 17, the new health system will be known as Luminis Health. The next step is to determine how the new system name will apply to both hospitals’ existing entity names while respecting the legacies of each. This process will continue to include an enormous amount of research to make sure voices of both AAMC and DCHS stakeholders (i.e., employees, physicians, board members, community members, volunteers, etc.) are heard. How will this affect patients? Right now, access to care will remain the same, without any immediate changes. Patients can continue to see their preferred providers, and insurance coverage and access to patient portals will not change.
- Women's HealthGeneral Page Tier 3BlogLena Dunham. Whoopi Goldberg. Susan Sarandon. These are just a few of the high-profile women who have publicly discussed their experience living with endometriosis. Endometriosis is a gynecologic condition that occurs when tissue that normally lines the inside of the uterus grows elsewhere in the abdomen. Endometriosis is very common, affecting as many as 10 percent of American women of childbearing age, or more than 6.5 million women in the United States. While the cause of endometriosis is not clear and there is not a defined gene, there may be a familial link. According to a 2008 study out of Yale University School of Medicine, women with an affected mother or sister have as high as a 10-fold increased risk of developing endometriosis. Although some women don’t experience symptoms with endometriosis, many report intensely painful menstrual cramps and pain during sex. Over time, untreated endometriosis can lead to chronic inflammation and scarring in the abdominal cavity, resulting in debilitating pain beyond the menstrual cycle. Severe endometriosis can involve other organs such as the bowel and bladder, causing non-gynecologic symptoms such as pain with bowel movements and urination. Endometriosis is traditionally diagnosed by confirmation of implants seen in surgery. However, it can often be diagnosed on symptoms and physical exam alone. Endometriosis before and during pregnancy One of the biggest concerns women with endometriosis have is whether they can get pregnant. There is a strong link between endometriosis and infertility. As many as 40 percent of women struggling with infertility are diagnosed with endometriosis. If you know you have endometriosis, it is important to meet with an infertility specialist prior to getting pregnant because you may require treatment of endometriosis before any fertility treatments. Treatment must be a multi-pronged approach It is important to understand that there is no “silver bullet” cure for endometriosis. For women who receive a diagnosis of endometriosis later in life, they often develop a hypersensitivity to pain, which is not easily treated with medication or surgery alone. Successful treatment of endometriosis requires a team of specialists in both surgical and nonsurgical fields. Drug treatments: Medicine for endometriosis should tackle one of two issues: ovulation and inflammation. Supplemental hormones, most commonly in the form of birth control pills, suppress ovulation, which suppresses the endometriosis flare during menstrual cycles. There are also safe hormonal alternatives, such as Depo-Provera injections or the hormonal IUD. Over-the-counter medications such as ibuprofen suppresses inflammation and provides pain relief. For patients with more severe pain, certain medications can damper the pain signals in the brain. It is important to note that opioids often do not help endometriosis pain and should be avoided. Surgical treatments: I often do not recommend surgery as the first-line treatment for endometriosis. However, if the pain is severe and medication is not working, surgery may be the next option. There are many surgical options with endometriosis, like removing ovarian cysts (cystectomy), removing endometriosis implants, removing one or both ovaries (oophorectomy), and removing the uterus (hysterectomy). What kind of surgery you need will depend on your age, health status, whether you intend to get pregnant in the future and many other factors. Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy (PFPT). Many patients with chronic pelvic pain due to endometriosis are excellent candidates for pelvic floor physical therapy. With chronic pain, the muscles in the vagina often tense up, resulting in significant pain during sex or with movement. Pelvic floor physical therapy is a safe and effective co-treatment for pelvic pain and should be offered to women who exhibit signs of vaginal muscle tightening or tenderness on exam. Be your own advocate Although there is no specific way of preventing endometriosis, there are ways you can impact the condition and manage your symptoms. The first thing I always tell women is not to ignore the pain. Pain that starts only during menstrual cycles can eventually become worsened or become constant due to amplification of your brain’s interpretation of pain. This can be very difficult to treat. Second, don’t be afraid or embarrassed to seek help from an expert. If surgery is recommended for you, always get a second opinion before proceeding. Be an advocate for yourself, your body and your life. Finally, get support and talk with other women who also live with endometriosis. The more women who speak up about endometriosis, the more attention this condition will get and the more we can advocate for better resources for women and healthcare providers. Author Jessica Ton, MD, is a specialist in minimally invasive gynecologic surgery with Anne Arundel Medical Group (AAMG) Gynecologic Specialty Surgeons. To schedule an appointment with her, call 443-481-3493.
- Behavioral Health, PediatricsGeneral Page Tier 3BlogIn today’s world, the pressures of being a teenager can be overwhelming. Not only are teens consistently pressured to do well academically and excel in extracurricular activities, but they also face pressure to be part of the crowd. On top of that, add in the struggles of peer harassment or even being the subject of online harassment. Life can quickly become one of misery. A school day can feel like an eternity and, at home, the effects of that day are far from over. Teenage peer-to-peer harassment occurs frequently, but the conversation at home and in school is rare. It can lead to feelings of low self-esteem, anxiety, school refusal and depression. You and your teen should know how to identify harassment. Here are some important things to know: Harassing behaviors often start in childhood. These behaviors among young children are often characterized as “boys will be boys” or as children just being playful. Harassment does not start in a day. It is a behavior that develops over time. Correcting the behavior early on will lead to more appropriate behaviors during your child’s teenage years. Harassment is also verbal. Jokes, innuendos, slurs, name-calling and insults can have a traumatic and lasting effect. Oftentimes, verbal abuse starts in the home. Assess your family’s communication and stop using names and negative labels. It is important to model appropriate language and actions. Boys face harassment, too. We often think about harassment when it comes to girls, but boys do fall victim. Boys are less likely to talk about harassment or even consider the actions that have been taken against them as a form of harassment. Look for changes in behaviors, like becoming solitary or avoiding people or places they used to enjoy. Be sure to keep an open dialogue. Here are some tips to help you: Don’t dismiss your teenager’s concerns. Make them feel comfortable to talk to you if someone is repeating negative behavior toward them. Knowing that you are on their side will ease pain and embarrassment. Talk about social media. Smartphones, online messaging and social media sites make it easy for people to harass. You should also talk to your teenager about unwanted sexual advances, which can happen on any digital platform. Know the policies of your teenager’s school. Contact the school if your son or daughter is being harassed. Be sure to talk regularly with your child and with school staff to see whether the bullying has stopped and not increased. Teens are likely to feel that some behaviors are just normal teenage behavior that they have to deal with. Yet, the behaviors are truly making them feel uncomfortable and negatively affecting their self-esteem and sense of belonging. If your child comes to you with concerns of harassment, be sure to listen, come from a place of understanding and then, together, formulate a plan to stop it. Author For more information about Behavioral Health Care at Luminis Health or to schedule an appointment visit Luminis.Health/BehavioralHealth.
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