Life Changing Is … the Power of Positivity

Jay L., Housekeeper

“Be helpful. Don’t let it be just about you. It’s bigger than you.”

When he’s not working his job at UPMC Shadyside, Jay L. coaches basketball. And he applies some of the lessons he teaches players to his job.

“We teach character: Just do your job,” Jay says. “When no one’s watching, you never know. Make sure everything is good, and be helpful. Don’t let it be just about you. It’s bigger than you – help everyone. If everyone helps everyone, things get done very quickly.”

Jay came to UPMC in August 2021. He was a bit nervous before starting, but his coworkers and patients helped him acclimate quickly.

“The smile and the energy in speaking to people was a plus, and then I just learned my way,” he says.

It hasn’t taken Jay long to make an impact. He’s a fixture at UPMC Shadyside, showing up every day ready to work.

His job requires cleaning and taking care of patient rooms. He enjoys building a relationship with patients, whether their stay in the hospital is short or long.

“That’s the thing that gets me up every morning,” he says. “Especially when they know your name, that’s just the best thing.”

He has the same kind of close relationship with his coworkers. He says they care about him and make him feel better on difficult days.

Jay tries to make every day at work a good one. It’s another lesson he instills in his basketball players: the importance of being positive.

“I love being positive,” he says. “Even though it seems like things are going down, don’t look at it that way because it’s going to get better. That’s one thing I want to do when I go to the hospital, is stay on a positive note.”

At UPMC, Life Changing Medicine means positive characters and positive attitudes.

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