Joshua A Collins
November 2025
Joshua A
Collins
,
BSN, RN
Ortho Trauma
Parkview Regional Medical Center
Fort Wayne
,
IN
United States
He was so responsive, caring, and made us feel like we were the only patients he had to assist (and I know he had to be running from room to room).
My son had a very traumatic accident at football practice that left him being taken by ambulance to Parkview Regional Medical Center. He broke his femur in several places, and after a couple hours' stint in the ER, we were moved to the fourth floor for orthopedics and trauma, where we met our day nurse, Josh Collins.
When we met Josh, we were only a few hours removed from the horrible accident on the football field. Our biggest hurdle in front of us at that time was having to move my son out of the ER bed and into his new bed on the ortho floor, then removing his traction from his leg to replace it with a new traction (maybe the Bucks traction?). He was very unsettled about moving beds and was in so much pain. Josh assured him right from the start that he would not do anything to him without telling him what he was doing first. He assured my son that he would get his dose of pain meds before they attempted to move him, and allowed several minutes for the medication to begin working before we began moving him.
Josh was never in a hurry, never flustered, always composed. My world felt like it was upside down. My son was yelling in pain; it felt like we had so much to accomplish, and moving him felt impossible. I was in the Army for 9 years and served on two combat deployments, but I had never felt this level of hopelessness and anxiety in my life.
I remember looking at Josh each time I felt overwhelmed. Certainly, if he looked calm, then I would be too. And every time I looked at him, he was as calm as could be. He took the time to explain everything to me. How we would lift my son without causing him pain, how we would move him, how we would remove the traction, etc. Josh was not rushed, flustered, nor did he even look concerned amidst the chaos. He was compassionate but composed. He moved with a purpose, but not in a way that would make you think he was unsettled.
We looked forward to seeing Josh each day at shift change. When my son broke his leg, having to watch him lie in bed for almost a full 24 hours in agonizing pain before surgery was the hardest thing I have ever had to do as a parent. When surgery was over, I thought the road would be downhill, until they told my son he had to have a cath put in because he could not go to the bathroom. My son was mortified.
Josh and another nurse, Bryce, whom I will be nominating for a DAISY Award as well, volunteered to administer my son's cath because they knew he was comfortable with them. My son's mother and I went into the hall and felt so bad for him and everything he had been through that day. Needle pokes, surgery (15" rod in his leg with screws and metal straps to hold the bone in place), all of the pain associated with this, and now a cath. But the second we stepped out of the room, we heard Josh and Bryce casually talking with our son. A few seconds later, I heard my son laugh, which I had not heard in over a day. My heart felt so full as a parent.
Josh and Bryce spent several minutes in the room speaking with my son, calming his nerves, answering all of his questions, and explaining the procedure. They administered the cath, which my son quickly advised me was terrible, but also said if it were not for Bryce and Josh, it would have been so much worse. I am also pretty sure Josh ended up staying late on his shift to ensure my son was comfortable with the process.
Josh was incredible over the course of the 2-3 days we were in the hospital. He was so responsive, caring, and made us feel like we were the only patients he had to assist (and I know he had to be running from room to room). When we were moved to the ortho floor, I'm sure we were still in shock. We had so many questions about everything that our son would face ahead, but Josh was exactly what we needed at that time. He answered our questions, assured us everything would be great, and went the extra mile for whatever our son needed. I cannot thank Josh and this staff enough for everything they have done. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you, Josh!!
When we met Josh, we were only a few hours removed from the horrible accident on the football field. Our biggest hurdle in front of us at that time was having to move my son out of the ER bed and into his new bed on the ortho floor, then removing his traction from his leg to replace it with a new traction (maybe the Bucks traction?). He was very unsettled about moving beds and was in so much pain. Josh assured him right from the start that he would not do anything to him without telling him what he was doing first. He assured my son that he would get his dose of pain meds before they attempted to move him, and allowed several minutes for the medication to begin working before we began moving him.
Josh was never in a hurry, never flustered, always composed. My world felt like it was upside down. My son was yelling in pain; it felt like we had so much to accomplish, and moving him felt impossible. I was in the Army for 9 years and served on two combat deployments, but I had never felt this level of hopelessness and anxiety in my life.
I remember looking at Josh each time I felt overwhelmed. Certainly, if he looked calm, then I would be too. And every time I looked at him, he was as calm as could be. He took the time to explain everything to me. How we would lift my son without causing him pain, how we would move him, how we would remove the traction, etc. Josh was not rushed, flustered, nor did he even look concerned amidst the chaos. He was compassionate but composed. He moved with a purpose, but not in a way that would make you think he was unsettled.
We looked forward to seeing Josh each day at shift change. When my son broke his leg, having to watch him lie in bed for almost a full 24 hours in agonizing pain before surgery was the hardest thing I have ever had to do as a parent. When surgery was over, I thought the road would be downhill, until they told my son he had to have a cath put in because he could not go to the bathroom. My son was mortified.
Josh and another nurse, Bryce, whom I will be nominating for a DAISY Award as well, volunteered to administer my son's cath because they knew he was comfortable with them. My son's mother and I went into the hall and felt so bad for him and everything he had been through that day. Needle pokes, surgery (15" rod in his leg with screws and metal straps to hold the bone in place), all of the pain associated with this, and now a cath. But the second we stepped out of the room, we heard Josh and Bryce casually talking with our son. A few seconds later, I heard my son laugh, which I had not heard in over a day. My heart felt so full as a parent.
Josh and Bryce spent several minutes in the room speaking with my son, calming his nerves, answering all of his questions, and explaining the procedure. They administered the cath, which my son quickly advised me was terrible, but also said if it were not for Bryce and Josh, it would have been so much worse. I am also pretty sure Josh ended up staying late on his shift to ensure my son was comfortable with the process.
Josh was incredible over the course of the 2-3 days we were in the hospital. He was so responsive, caring, and made us feel like we were the only patients he had to assist (and I know he had to be running from room to room). When we were moved to the ortho floor, I'm sure we were still in shock. We had so many questions about everything that our son would face ahead, but Josh was exactly what we needed at that time. He answered our questions, assured us everything would be great, and went the extra mile for whatever our son needed. I cannot thank Josh and this staff enough for everything they have done. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you, Josh!!