When Leah M. walked into UPMC as an environmental services (EVS) employee in 2019, she never imagined she’d find herself in a career in a clinical health care setting. Fast forward six years later, and Leah is starting her very own nursing journey at UPMC with the goal to support and educate patients on renal health and dialysis at UPMC Presbyterian.
“When I started at the hospital at 19 years old, I had never even heard of dialysis. I began learning from the nurses and technicians around me and fell in love with the environment,” Leah shared.
Before Leah graduated from UPMC Shadyside School of Nursing this past spring, she had various roles that led to her advancing her career with UPMC. Leah started with UPMC Presbyterian in an EVS role in 2019 and then transitioned to the dialysis unit as a machine/water technician. She continued to grow in her role and was promoted to a clinical dialysis technician I in January 2021, and then again promoted to a clinical dialysis technician II after receiving her Certified Clinical Hemodialysis Technician (CCHT) certification in July 2023.
"Initially, I wasn’t in a patient-facing role and wasn’t sure if I wanted to be. But being in the clinical setting, around patients and nurses, made me realize that nursing was what I wanted to do."
“At UPMC Presbyterian, we care for both outpatient and inpatient dialysis patients, and I enjoy both the long-term relationships with outpatients and the variety of care with inpatients. … Initially, I wasn’t in a patient-facing role and wasn’t sure if I wanted to be. But being in the clinical setting, around patients and nurses, made me realize that nursing was what I wanted to do,” Leah explained. “I applied to nursing school, and even during school, I wasn’t sure what type of nursing I wanted to pursue. I enjoyed my experiences in the Emergency Room, Intensive Care Unit, and Labor and Delivery, but ultimately, I chose to stay in the renal unit. I love educating patients about end-stage renal disease and learning more about kidney disease every day.”
After realizing that she wanted to pursue a career in nursing, Leah applied to UPMC Shadyside School of Nursing as a part-time student, which gave her the opportunity to work and grow at UPMC while managing her busy schedule outside of work.
“Balancing both was challenging, but I had a lot of support from the school and my managers, which made it smoother than I expected,” Leah said.
UPMC Schools of Nursing help accelerate career goals of existing employees, like Leah, and others wanting to begin a lifelong career in a variety of nursing specialties. With multiple locations throughout Pennsylvania and various program lengths to accommodate differing learning and lifestyle needs, UPMC Schools of Nursing make the path to becoming a registered nurse easy and efficient.
“My unit was incredibly supportive. They never pressured me to work more or to stay on the unit after graduation. They were genuinely interested in my progress and always asked about school."
“The school has amazing teachers, resources, and clinical experiences. We rotated through many UPMC hospitals, including UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital, UPMC Children’s Hospital, UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital, UPMC Montefiore, UPMC Presbyterian, and UPMC Shadyside. It gave us exposure to a wide variety of patients and care settings, which helped keep us open-minded about the many nursing paths available,” Leah explained.
After going through clinical rotations at various UPMC hospitals and units, she ultimately decided that her passion for helping others was calling her back to the renal unit at UPMC Presbyterian, thanks to the overwhelming support from her coworkers, colleagues, and long-term patients.
“My unit was incredibly supportive. They never pressured me to work more or to stay on the unit after graduation. They were genuinely interested in my progress and always asked about school. One of my clinicians, Nicole, was especially supportive. I’d often talk to her about my fears and uncertainties, and she always encouraged me. When I finally told them I was staying in dialysis, they were thrilled.”
As a new UPMC Schools of Nursing graduate, Leah has the hands-on knowledge to further help patients with a variety of renal conditions. The prior knowledge that Leah gained while working on the renal unit at UPMC Presbyterian has aided in her learning and has granted her the opportunity to continue to develop long-term relationships with many of the patients that require expert renal care.
“We see patients three times a week for about four hours each session. Some days are very busy, with up to 40 treatments, and others are slower. I like the fast turnover and the open layout of the unit, where I can see all the patients easily. It’s a routine treatment, which gives me confidence, but the variety of patients keeps it interesting,” explained Leah. “Many of our patients are very knowledgeable about their condition, which makes care collaborative, too. I’ve grown passionate about kidney disease education and hope to work on community outreach to help prevent end-stage renal disease.
