Women’s Health Services
Gynecology
Greater Lawrence Family Health Center offers services to persons with a vagina in the inpatient and outpatient setting. Family medicine physicians, nurse practitioners and certified nurse midwives offer gynecologic care at all of our 8 clinical sites. We provide the following services:
Preventative Health
- Pap smears for cervical cancer screening
- Breast exams and referral for mammograms
- STD testing for infections like HIV, syphilis, Chlamydia, gonorrhea, and others
Birth Control
- Discussions about all forms of birth control from condoms, to pills, and implants
- Placement and removal of long acting birth control like the implant in the arm or 3 types of IUDs (T devices in the uterus)
- Permanent sterilization (surgery to cut or remove the fallopian tubes)
Evaluation and Treatment of concerns
- Itching or burning of the vagina or labia
- Abnormal pap smears and colposcopy
- Abnormal vaginal bleeding including endometrial biopsy
- Pelvic pain including pain with sexual activity
- Decreased libido (decreased interest in sex)
- Hot flashes and vaginal dryness that may be associated with menopause
- PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome)
- Frequent vaginal infections such as yeast or BV (bacterial vaginosis)
- Bartholin Cyst treatment (swelling with pain near the vagina)
- Gender affirming care
- Infertility
Call 978-686-0090 today to set up an appointment with one of our clinicians.
Prenatal Care
Appointments that work with your schedule
- Our offices are open in the evenings for prenatal care visits Monday-Thursday to accommodate your busy schedule
- Prenatal care group visits are offered on various weekdays
- For the care of your newborn or other urgent needs, we are open on the weekends and also available by phone 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
Prenatal Care in your preferred language
- The majority of our prenatal care providers are fluent in both Spanish and English. Many providers offer care in other languages, as well
- We utilize translation services 100% of the time, if needed
Assistance with your needs
We want to hear from you and help to address your barriers to a healthy pregnancy.
Our prenatal care teams can help you and your family with:
- Transportation to medical visits
- Housing
- WIC
- Access to healthy foods
- Access to psychiatric and specialist care
Low Risk Prenatal Care
Family medicine physicians, including residents in training, provide prenatal care at all of our 8 clinical sites. We deliver babies at both Lawrence General Hospital and Holy Family Hospital. At GLFHC you are able to choose to have prenatal and postpartum visits with Certified Nurse Midwives. Alternatively, you can continue seeing your own primary care clinician at Greater Lawrence Family Health Center during your pregnancy – as most of our physicians and nurse practitioners offer prenatal care. In many circumstances, the resident or attending clinician that you become familiar with will attend your delivery.
We would also love to meet with you before you are pregnant to help you plan your pregnancy!
WE DELIVER AT TWO HOSPITALS
High Risk Prenatal Care
Family physicians with additional training in obstetrics provide prenatal care to some of our higher risk pregnant patients. Our doctors have special training to take care of chronic conditions and pregnancy-related conditions such as:
- Substance use disorders
- Mental health conditions such as depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder
- Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes
- Diabetes of pregnancy
- High blood pressure
- Thyroid conditions
- Lupus or other autoimmune conditions
- Twin pregnancies
- HIV
- Hepatitis and other liver disorders
- Cesarean sections
- ….. and many others!
We work closely with specialists at Tufts Medical Center to get you the prenatal care you need close to home without requiring frequent travel to Boston.
Should you experience a miscarriage, we are also able to provide treatment with medicines by mouth and surgical treatment in both the office and the operating room, depending on your preference.
Centering Pregnancy
GLFHC’s Centering Pregnancy visits give expecting mothers more time for education about childbirth, breastfeeding, child care, and their pregnancy — at no additional cost!
How the Program Works
- For the first 20 weeks, patients see their regular GLFHC provider for prenatal visits.
- After the 20-week mark, patients begin seeing their Centering Pregnancy provider, who will be the one to deliver their baby. They also get paired up with 9 to 10 other women who are at the same stage of pregnancy for prenatal education.
During each Centering Pregnancy visit, patients:
Learn about and discuss important topics for moms
- Complete a health assessment
- Are examined by their prenatal doctor
- Socialize with other moms in their group
Plus, all Centering Pregnancy patients tour the Labor and Delivery unit at Lawrence General Hospital! Patients get to see the delivery and postpartum rooms, make sure they know how to get into the right part of the building on their big day, meet the nurses who will be taking care of them and ask questions to ensure they feel comfortable.
Benefits of Centering Pregnancy
- No waiting
- Pre-planned appointments
- Getting to know the doctor who will deliver the baby at Lawrence General Hospital
- Improved health for both mother and child, including less risk of pre-term or early delivery
- Connecting with other moms in the community
- More time spent with the prenatal doctor
- Having fun!
Our time with our Centering Pregnancy patients doesn’t stop once their children are born, either! Moms and babies are encouraged to continue to visit Greater Lawrence Family Health Center for care with their family doctor.
First Steps Forward
First Steps Forward is a Massachusetts DPH-administered program that focuses on supporting pregnant and parenting women with substance use disorder. To pregnant and parenting women with substance use disorder, we provide:
- prenatal care
- peer recovery support services
- addiction treatment
- psychiatric care and therapy
- parenting support
- pediatric care
The care provided by our team is trauma-informed. Our goal is to enhance our participants’ autonomy and provide support as needed to ensure healthy parents and optimal child development. Our First Steps Forward staff include people with lived experience who are in recovery, and people who have been specially trained to work with women who have substance use disorders.
We will help to support you as you make important life choices for yourself and your child/children. We hope to get to know you and your needs during your pregnancy and continue to offer support to you and your baby after their birth and in the early phases of childhood. We also work with other organizations and resources in the area to make sure you and your child get the best care possible. We are happy to meet you where you live and work, ensure that you have a safe living environment, assist with transportation and healthy food options, and address any other specific needs you may have.
If you or a family member/friend are interested in our program, please contact us at 978-686-0090 or reach out to your primary care clinician at GLFHC. Our team will work with you to create a personalized health plan, meeting you where you are and respecting the strength you bring to your life and family.
Lactation/Breastfeeding Support
We have a team of lactation specialists to help support your feeding choices.
Prenatal Breastfeeding Education: We provide lactation support before you even deliver so that you can learn the ins-and-outs of breastfeeding and feel prepared when your baby arrives.
Postpartum Breastfeeding Support: Following the birth of your baby, we offer breastfeeding support groups with one of the only IBCLC-trained physicians in the state of Massachusetts! We can help with issues such as:
- Optimizing infant latch
- Evaluating for tongue tie
- Pumping/expressing breast milk
- Low milk supply
- Oversupply
- Slow newborn weight gain
- Nipple pain
- Mastitis
- Clogged milk ducts
- Dysphoric milk ejection reflex
- Safety of medications in breastfeeding
- Weaning lactation
… and much more!