Teresa Shawley: 'We have the ability to change the day for a patient'

Teresa Shawley has always been passionate about helping people. She enjoyed traveling for medical mission trips, but she knew a career in health care might not be in the cards.

“I was terrible at science class,” she says with a laugh. “I knew I didn’t want to pursue that side of it.”

Four years ago, she was working long hours in retail management when she stumbled across a job posting for an office manager in Environmental Services. She met with Director Ronnie Lightfoot, who saw her passion for people and knew she needed to work with patients.

He suggested that she apply for a position as an Environmental Services Guest Services representative, focusing on Environmental Services’ role in the patient experience.

“That was my introduction into health care – I loved it immediately,” Teresa says. “That has always been my focus: improving the patient experience and team engagement.”

In the years since, she has transitioned into roles as an EVS supervisor and an EVS manager.

“I like that I, and the team, have the ability to change the day for a patient,” she says. “We remind ourselves: Try to make a person smile today. That can be the difference between a good day and a great day.”

Teresa says the most satisfying part of her job is serving patients and her colleagues – helping all of them have the best days possible.

“If my team is having a good day, they can influence our patients more,” she says. “Feeding into that positive experience for employees is a big deal. We set the expectation that teamwork is important: We fail together or succeed together.”

Teresa says teamwork comes naturally as employees work to live out CoxHealth’s values.

“Our core values make me proud. Compassion, integrity, respect and safety – when I walk down the hall, I know anyone who has our badge on represents those four values.

“It’s reassuring to me to work with more than 10,000 employees who hold those values.”

Teresa says that CoxHealth’s family atmosphere has made it a great place to build a career. A month after she started, she began to foster a child. Soon after, she adopted him and his brother.

“There have been struggles and challenges,” she says. “I have always had the support of my team and my leaders to take care of my kids and my family. 

“This position has offered me a better work-life balance than retail. The best thing about working at CoxHealth is the family atmosphere and knowing that I can take care of my needs — both at home and at work.”