East Washingtonian - Your Hometown News Source

POMEROY–Garfield County Hospital District is proud to announce September's Employee of the Month, Josh Love, LPN. He was nominated by his co-workers who state, "Josh cares for his patients and pays attention to the small details."

Josh was born in Tucson, Ariz., and attended a public school from kindergarten through sixth grade. From middle school into his high school years, he was homeschooled until he received his GED in 2004. Josh's father was in the restaurant business and so naturally his first work experience was in the food industry. He acquired great customer service skills and learned the importance of hospitality in challenging situations.

In 2003, Josh met his future wife on an online art forum, and they married three years later. They moved to Idaho where he was employed at Antonio's Restaurant for two months before applying for a position at Northwest Children's Home in Lewiston as a resident treatment specialist. He loved working there and remained with them for nine years. It was in this role while caring for children ages 5-14 that Josh became interested in the medical field. His wife's family comes from a long line of nurses, and he felt this would be a good avenue to follow.

In 2014 he enrolled in a CNA program so that he could gain the experience he felt was vital to his new career. He earned his certification as a nursing assistant and worked at Prestige in Clarkston as a CNA. During this time, was accepted into the nursing program at Walla Walla Community College. Josh graduated with his nursing degree as an LPN in 2016 and began working for a family practice doctor in Lewiston through Tri-State Hospital over the next four years. Josh enjoyed working in the clinic setting. "I loved it, I really loved it. It was much different working as a phone triage and vaccine coordinator. It was definitely a different pace and the people I worked with were just fantastic. It was very hard to leave." Josh and his family were living in Pomeroy at the time but because of the gas prices and the commute five days a week, he decided to work closer to home. "Working in the community that I live in is kind of nice to do. I think that it's important."

Josh became employed with Garfield County Hospital District in April of 2023. He was instantly drawn to the attentiveness and lavish care that was given to each individual patient. "I like the fact that we get to spend a lot more time with the patients we have, especially compared to similar places like this. It's not just doing strictly medical stuff, but actually getting to know them and having a working relationship with people." He stated in previous jobs, he would dispense patient's medication and that would be the extent of his interaction, but at Garfield County Hospital, it's different. "It is very refreshing. They are not just a number and a name; they are an actual person that you get to know."

Josh's co-workers immediately recognized his devotion to the patients and staff. One of the CNAs had this to say: "Josh is one of the best nurses I've worked with. He listens and is always happy to check on a concern we've mentioned. Josh never hesitates to help answer call lights or help with patient care. He treats our patients with so much love and respect and they all adore him. He is invaluable on the floor and so very appreciated. He also has some of the best humor and is always keeping us laughing!" Other nursing staff stated, "Josh is a pleasure to work with! He is always eager to learn new things, acts as a great patient advocate, thinks outside the box, and puts above and beyond effort into his work!"

When asked what his future goals are he replied, "I'm a big fan of stability. Once I get into my routine, I like to do the best that I can and I'm very content with that." However, he is not opposed to returning to school someday to earn his RN and BSN. In his spare time, Josh likes to study theology and church is a very big part of his family's lives. He loves spending time with his wife and kids and building models.

Join us in congratulating Josh for being an outstanding employee and a great asset to GCHD!