I try to have a collaborative approach to disease management and prevention, with an eye towards the most value for the patient's dollar.

I have been lucky enough to be a family physician since 2010. Since then, I have worked to provide cost-effective and compassionate care for my patients. I'm also committed to advocacy for my patients and fellow MD's outside the office, though my role on the Massachusetts Academy of Family Physicians. I enjoy traveling, hiking, gardening, and computer gaming, when my young children allow any of them.

I grew up on the South Shore and attended Holy Cross for college where my concentration was pre-medical sciences and sleep research. During summers in college I worked as an EMT and following college I worked in a collaborative Brigham and Women’s Hospital/Harvard Medical School lab studying allergy and asthma. While at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and Lahey Clinic my focus was on primary care internal medicine. In 2006 I was the recipient of the “Patient Care Award” which is Lahey Clinic’s highest physician honor. I joined South Shore Medical Center in 2006.

It is truly an honor to participate in the care and lives of my patients. My passion is driven by the bonds I build with my patients over the course of their lives and the enjoyment and satisfaction I hold in treating them to be as healthy and pain free as possible. It is to the extent that I feel that  "I truly have the best job in the world."

I partner with women to provide education, resources and choices regarding their bodies, healthy pregnancy, labor and birth. It is a privilege to care for women and families and to be present at their birth. Each labor and birth are unique. Even after 33 years as a midwife, I am amazed at the beauty of birth and the strength of women.

I started the first midwifery practice at South Shore Health in 1987 and have enjoyed being director and now co-director of the midwifery group and watching our program grow over the years. Outside of work, I love spending time with my husband and children. I also love running my dog on the beach, paddleboarding and gardening.
 

I want each patient I care for to feel heard, safe, well-informed and active participants in their healthcare.

Midwifery has been an (almost) lifelong passion of mine. I saw my aunt give birth to my cousin when I was 10 years old and knew instantly that caring for women and babies was what I was meant to do. I started as a labor and delivery nurse in 2011 and completed midwifery school in 2015. I have attended births in the hospital and home setting. I love caring for women in pregnancy and all other stages in their lives. In my free time, I enjoy hanging at our family beach house on the Jersey Shore, snowmobiling in Pittsburg, NH and spending time with my husband and 2 daughters. 

My treatment philosophy is to help educate individuals on their role in disease prevention and develop relationships with patients—working as a team to manage both chronic and acute health issues. I believe that each individual has their own unique set of circumstances that influence their health and working together to overcome barriers is an essential part of providing healthcare. I consider it a privilege getting to know patients and families and always look at the big picture when caring for individuals. Outside of work I love spending time with my family, going to the beach, gardening and hiking. I am teaching myself how to ice skate so I can play hockey with my boys! 

My philosophy is to develop an ongoing patient-physician relationship focused on comprehensive health care incorporating preventative care, chronic disease management, and treatment of acute illnesses and injuries.

As a family doctor, I am dedicated to treating the whole person. I aim to develop long-term relationships to understand each patient, and to provide continuing health care for the individual and family. I integrate care for patients of all genders and every age from newborns to seniors, and I advocate for the patient in our complex health care system. I have had the fortune to work as a general practitioner in New Zealand which allowed me to gain insight into alternative health care systems and approaches to preventative care and disease management. Outside of work, I enjoy traveling, cooking, and reading.

My treatment philosophy and focus is to diagnose and treat patients ages 15 – 100 whom have a variety of breast issues including but not limited to infection, pregnancy related breast issues, genetic risk for cancer, abscesses, skin disorders, abnormal breast imaging, breast lumps, and past or current personal history of breast cancer.

I've been an RN since 1981, working in Internal Medicine, Oncology, and Ventilator Care. I've been a NP since 1996. I'm a graduate of Columbia University in Adult Health and Oncology. I worked in New Jersey for 20 years in Internal Medicine and combined Oncology prior to relocating to Massachusetts in 2003.

Certified by ANCC, ONCC, ANCC.

I have been a vascular surgeon for more than 25 years since completing my training at the then Deaconess Hospital in Boston. A native New Englander, I returned to my home state to practice, and was Chief of Vascular Surgery at Brown/Rhode Island Hospital until I left to join the team at Brigham Vascular Surgery in October 2016. Having led an academic department for many years, I sought to bring that level of experience with state-of-the-art vascular care to the community hospital setting and was recruited specifically to lead the division at South Shore Hospital. Since my arrival, South Shore Health has supported this vision for vascular care, opening a new Endovascular OR Suite for complex aneurysm repair; developing a multidisciplinary limb preservation team together with Podiatry, Plastic Surgery, and the Wound Care Center; and organizing community outreach and education events to allow for screening and prevention of vascular disease.

In my occasional free time, I am an avid boater and the South Shore has proven to be the perfect environment for me to pursue my other passion!

William Tollefsen, MD is the EMS and MIH Medical Director for South Shore Health. Dual-boarded in Emergency Medicine and EMS Medicine, Dr. Tollefsen works clinically as an Emergency Physician at South Shore Health in addition to his role as EMS Medical Director.

One of few physicians in the country to receive the prestigious "FAEMS" recognition, Dr. Tollefsen is also the Medical Director for OEMS Region IV, serving 61 cities and towns of the Metro-Boston EMS Council. As the current EMS Medical Director for eight municipal and three private ambulance services on the South Shore, Dr. Tollefsen interacts and provides oversight for over 400 Paramedics.

Dr. Tollefsen graduated from New York Medical College and completed residency training in Emergency Medicine at Harvard University, Brigham and Women's, and Massachusetts General Hospital. He completed a fellowship in Emergency Medical Services and Critical Care Transport at the University of Massachusetts, where he worked as an Emergency Physician and Flight Physician for UMASS LifeFlight. He completed an MBA at the Isenberg School of Management at UMASS Amherst, and holds a Master of Medical Science degree from the Boston University School of Medicine.

A former pre-hospital provider, he is actively involved in EMS system design, paramedic education and Critical Care Transport Systems. He works closely with multiple EMS, Fire and Law Enforcement agencies throughout Massachusetts.

His research interests include systems of care, resuscitation, airway management, and paramedic education.