From MRI scans to international stadiums: Bournemouth NHS worker juggles twin dreams
An extremity MRI system from Esaote is supporting a radiography apprentice’s passion for medical imaging, while he maintains his football career. By day, Josh Bertie is helping patients through MRI scans at Royal Bournemouth Hospital. By night, and on some weekends, he is pulling on a British Virgin Islands shirt and lining up against players from top football leagues around the world.
Balancing life as an NHS radiography apprentice with international football is not just busy; it is a carefully organised routine built on resilience, discipline and a love for both careers. However, his healthcare career did not begin in a scanning room; it started behind a desk.
“I was working in the clerical department booking patients in for scans,” he recalled. “Then my manager mentioned the radiographer apprentice course and asked if I would be interested. I decided to go for it and I haven’t looked back.”
From team leader to radiographer assistant then assistant practitioner, Bertie is studying to become a fully qualified radiographer while operating the hospital’s Esaote extremity MRI scanner. It has helped complete over 7,000 scans, freeing the main machines for more complex cases, and has helped build his confidence and love for MRI. “It’s definitely sparked my love for MRI. I think that will be my speciality when I qualify,” he said.
Bertie’s football journey has been just as focused. He moved to the USA, where he combined university study with football. In 2018 he earned his first call-up for the British Virgin Islands national team. One highlight came in June 2025, facing Jamaica in a 1–0 loss against stars like Leon Bailey and Demarai Gray. “These are players you normally watch on TV,” he said. “We were written off, but we held our own.”
Published on page 5 of the April 2026 issue of RAD Magazine.
