JEDI Champion of the Month: PJ Dominiski

In February, we recognize PJ Dominski! PJ is co-chair of the LGBTQIA+ Employee Resource Group. She has been instrumental in developing our monthly Diversity Messages, reviewing policies, supporting efforts to develop an LGBTQIA+ health center and in many other aspects of our efforts to make Lifebridge Health a place where all our team members experience a sense of belonging. Sterling Kelly, chair of the LGBTQIA+ ERG, had this to say: “PJ took over all of our marketing needs and communications. She continues to think creatively on ways to grow and move the ERG forward.” Learn more about PJ below. 

Q1. How long have you been with LifeBridge Health and what is your current role?
I started in January 2022, so I’ve been at LifeBridge Health for just over a year! I am a web content writer on the marketing team. 

Q2. You bring so much passion into the work you do…what motivates you? 

In my work as both a writer and as co-chair of the LGBTQIA+ ERG, one of my primary motivations is the desire to make healthcare spaces as inclusive as possible for members of marginalized communities, particularly for transgender people. Many of the standard practices and much of the predominant language in the field of healthcare exclude and erase the reality of transgender lives, so seeking care is often a traumatic and foreboding experience for trans people. In my work I strive to produce content and promote efforts which will help dissolve barriers for members of the LGBTQIA+ community at large – especially transgender women of color, who face the most extreme disparities and discrimination.

Q3. As Co-Chair of the LGBTQIA+ Employee Resource Group, what are some of your aspirations for the ERG?
I hope to see the resource group evolve into an engine for cultural and material progress within the organization. LifeBridge Health is supportive of the LGBTQIA+ community, but much work remains to be done in order to improve the lived experiences and outcomes of LGBTQIA+ team members and patients alike. I also want the group to serve as an outlet in which members of the community can feel safe expressing the day-to-day struggles they face as well as find solidarity and camaraderie with fellow LGBTQIA+ individuals. Looking out for and protecting one another is crucial to my conception of what community should be, and as a microcosm of the larger LGBTQIA+ community, I want the dynamic of my group to reflect this belief.

Q4. Since starting at LifeBridge Health, what have you found most rewarding?
Regarding the LGBTQIA+ community, helping to organize LifeBridge Health’s presence at Baltimore Pride and working to develop an LGBTQIA+-focused health center have been extremely fulfilling. In my role as web content writer, I’ve enjoyed interviewing providers and team members from many different corners of the LifeBridge Health system. I love to learn and engage in meaningful conversation, and there’s been an abundance of opportunities for both. I’ve also loved collaborating with my fellow marketing team members, all of whom I look up to and admire – it’s been a privilege to work with such a brilliant, passionate and supportive team.