Small acts, big impact
National Nurses Week honors the essential contributions of nurses in delivering quality care
Joshua Braddell, DNP, CRNP, FNP-C, a board-certified nurse practitioner, has worked at The Wright Centers for Community Health and Graduate Medical Education for the past decade. A University of Scranton alumnus, he also has served as an adjunct nursing faculty member at his alma mater for the past 10 years.
Sometimes, it’s the little things – a warm smile, a bag of groceries, or a kind word during a difficult moment – that make the biggest difference in someone’s life.
For Joshua Braddell, it was those small but meaningful acts of care that sparked his nursing career nearly a decade ago – a commitment now reflected in his trailblazing role as the first non-physician medical director at The Wright Center for Community Health.
Joshua Braddell, DNP, CRNP, FNP-C, a board-certified nurse practitioner, was named the first non-physician medical director at The Wright Centers for Community Health and Graduate Medical Education. Braddell works at The Wright Center’s Mid Valley community health center in Jermyn and is also the founder and clinical program director of The Wright Center’s Nurse Practitioner Postgraduate Fellowship.
“When you can treat something simple like strep throat, but also help patients with their heating bills and hand them a bag of food on their way out, it makes you feel like you’re truly caring for the whole person,” said Braddell, a board-certified registered nurse practitioner who works at The Wright Center’s Mid Valley community health center in Jermyn. “I’ve never been to a doctor’s office where I needed a bag of food, let alone saw one there. At The Wright Center, we’re meeting people where they are and addressing their real needs. Being part of The Wright Center allows me to turn those small moments of care into meaningful change for our patients and our communities.”
He is one of more than two dozen nurses at the Scranton-based organization, which honors the essential role they play in delivering high-quality, whole-person primary health services – both during National Nurses Week and every day.
Braddell finds great reward in providing hands-on care that preserves patients’ dignity, particularly those in opioid recovery.
“Seeing patients through recovery is one of the most rewarding parts of my work,” he shared. “I approach each patient with empathy, understanding their struggles, and use all available resources – working as a team with case managers and community partners – to help them move forward. The biggest challenge is often overcoming stigma, as many patients fear judgment or feel embarrassed about their past. My approach is simple but powerful: treat them as equals, with respect and dignity, and focus on what we can achieve together.”
Braddell’s parents, both nurses, and his experiences growing up in Little Falls, New Jersey, shaped his deep-rooted desire to help others.
“Watching my younger brother struggle with severe asthma attacks and being hospitalized multiple times really opened my eyes to the challenges many families face in accessing health care,” he recalled. “Seeing my brother unable to breathe or play sports due to his condition left a lasting impact and inspired me to pursue a path in science and nursing, knowing I wanted to help people in need.”
After earning his Bachelor of Science in Nursing at the University of Scranton in 2008, Braddell returned to New Jersey for a job as a staff registered nurse at Meadowlands Hospital Medical Center Hudson County in Secaucus, now called Hudson Regional Hospital.
The hospital’s constant flow of hard-working immigrants, commuting daily into New York City for minimum-wage jobs, deeply impressed upon him the vital importance of improving access to health care and reignited his passion for serving those most in need.
In 2009, he returned to Scranton, accepting a position as a staff registered nurse in the emergency department at Geisinger Community Medical Center. While working, he pursued a Master of Science in Nursing degree at the University of Scranton, where his then-girlfriend, Sarah Yazinski, a Moosic native, worked. Married in 2012, he and his wife, now a document specialist at The Wright Center, have three children and live in Waverly Twp.
“Despite the financial sacrifices involved in relocating, I was drawn to the mission of providing care in a community where it was desperately needed,” Braddell said of his decision to return to Northeast Pennsylvania. “Everyone deserves high-quality health care, regardless of their circumstances.”
After earning his master’s degree in nursing in 2015, Braddell joined The Wright Center as a family nurse practitioner, serving patients at its Clarks Summit and Mid Valley community health centers. He also became an adjunct nursing faculty member at the University of Scranton, where he continues to educate future nurses.
In 2018, Braddell was promoted to director of nurse practitioners and physician assistant services at The Wright Center, and in 2021, to his current pioneering position. He also continued his education at the University of Scranton, earning his Doctor of Nursing Practice degree in 2022.
He also founded and serves as clinical program director of The Wright Center’s 12-month nurse practitioner postgraduate fellowship program, guiding a multidisciplinary team to expand access to patient-centered primary care while preparing nurse practitioners to serve Northeast Pennsylvania’s underserved communities. About 88% of the nurse practitioners employed by The Wright Center trained there under his leadership.
“Josh embodies the highest ideals of professionalism, public service, resilience, and innovation in needs-responsive community health services,” said Dr. Linda Thomas-Hemak, president and CEO of The Wright Centers for Community Health and Graduate Medical Education. “As a family medicine nurse practitioner, he advocates for prioritizing strong primary care foundations to support multigenerational families, public school districts, other community-based organizations, and our community-based hospitals. He also actively leads our recruitment of nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, and mental health providers.”
Braddell has also spearheaded initiatives to improve access to preventive screenings, such as a collaborative community partnership to provide mobile mammogram services that have significantly improved breast cancer screening rates for patients with transportation barriers. He also expanded colorectal cancer screenings through another community partnership and increased cervical cancer screenings by dedicating clinical days to performing Pap smears.
Despite an often-chaotic schedule, Braddell serves as a volunteer coach with Abington Little League and Abington Youth Soccer League and is a Parent Teacher Association member at Waverly Elementary School and Abington Heights Middle School.
He credits the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration’s National Health Service Corps (NHSC) Loan Repayment Program for enabling his return to the region 16 years ago. The program provides loan repayment assistance for qualifying educational debt in exchange for a minimum two-year commitment to serving in Health Professional Shortage Areas – a geographic area, population group, or health care facility, like The Wright Center, that has been federally designated as having a shortage of health care professionals.
“The financial burden of pursuing advanced degrees while working full time can be overwhelming,” Braddell said. “The NHSC Program allowed me to focus fully on what matters most – providing compassionate care to those who need it most in Northeast Pennsylvania. It was also instrumental in my ability to remain in an area that I had grown to love as an undergraduate student at the University of Scranton, and where my family and I could continue to serve our communities.”
