Joshua Johnston

It was a friend who first told Joshua Johnston 15 years ago that his sense of humor would make him a great fit for the medical staffing industry, and a recruiter was quick to agree. Their hunch, Johnston says, “was absolutely wrong” — at least at first. It took a year or two to get comfortable in the field, he says, to learn to focus on forming relationships with clients instead of strictly talking dollars and cents. The transition, though tricky, was worth it. Today he serves as the VP and COO of Omaha, Nebraska-based LRS Healthcare, which provides travel nurse, allied health and medical staffing solutions throughout the US.

Now, Johnston is energized both by the ability to help others grow their careers and helping healthcare professionals and facilities meet and surpass their goals. In the coming years, he envisions exponential growth for his LRS Healthcare team. “Probably the most exciting part for me is to continue to work with the group that’s helping build our company from the ground up,” Johnston explains. “In five years, I could see us being twice, if not three times, the size we are now.”

Of late, Johnston’s proudest achievement was speaking at the 2019 SIA Healthcare Staffing Summit in front of experts in the field. “I was also really impressed at how many people were so willing to come up after that panel and ask more questions and continue to expand the conversation,” Johnston says. “I thought that was really interesting, humbling and a fun experience.”