After a decade spent away pursuing his goal of becoming a radiologist, Dr. Justin Broadhead is excited to be returning to his hometown and joining the staff of Meridian Imaging PA.

Broadhead, whose long educational journey began at Meridian Community College in 2003, recently completed a one-year fellowship in abdominal imaging at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB).

“I am excited to be coming home to Meridian,” Broadhead said. “I have seen my family during the past 10 years, but I really have not had much of a chance to interact with them for a long period of time. I was in med school and then in Louisville, and for the past year, I have had a fellowship at UAB. It will be nice to spend some time with them.”

Broadhead grew up in Lauderdale County without any aspirations as a teenager of going to medical school. After graduating from Northeast Lauderdale High School in spring 2003, he enrolled in MCC. Not sure of his ultimate career goal, he ended up studying radiologic technology and graduated from the MCC program with an associate degree in 2007.

“I enjoyed my time at MCC. I got a good education there,” he said. “I don’t think you really need to go off to a big university in the first years of college if you don’t know what you want to do or what direction you plan to go, plus it is a really good opportunity to take advantage of MCC’s Tuition Guarantee program.”

After graduating from MCC, Broadhead began working as a radiologic technologist at Rush Foundation Hospital. He gained three years of experience working in outpatient orthopedics and another three years of inpatient hospital experience, including diagnostic and therapeutic radiology examinations.

“I have always been a visual learner. Seeing pictures, graphics, maps, and things like that helps me to comprehend and understand things better, but I also picture what I am learning in my head,” Broadhead said. “So, I always thought it just made good sense to go into a career field where being able to visualize things would be beneficial.”

Radiologists use diagnostic imaging to examine the structure and function of a patient’s body and to help diagnose illnesses, injuries, and diseases.

While working with the radiologists on a daily basis as a radiologic technologist,  Broadhead grew more interested in the profession.

“When I was an X-ray tech, I would talk with the radiologists, and they would tell me about their jobs, what they would see on the imaging, what they would diagnosis this patient with or that patient with, and what treatment they would recommend,” he said. “I thought they had a pretty cool job, and that kind of spurred my interest in radiology.”

He enrolled in classes at the University of Southern Mississippi in 2007 while still working for Rush and earned his bachelor’s degree in general biological sciences in 2010.

Although he was not sure at first about medical school, he began studying for the Medical College Admission Test. He took and passed the MCAT and was accepted into William Carey University’s College of Osteopathic Medicine in 2011. He was among the second class of students to graduate from William Carey’s medical school in 2015.

After graduation, Broadhead completed a one-year internal medicine internship at the University of South Alabama College of Medicine in Mobile and then began a four-year residency in diagnostic radiology at the University of Louisville School of Medicine in 2016. After completing his residency in 2020, he moved to UAB to complete the one-year abdominal imaging fellowship.

During his free time, Broadhead enjoys reading, golf “though I am not very good at it,” and video games. He also is learning about investments and the stock market because investing has become his newest hobby.

On July 1, Broadhead joined the staff of Meridian Imaging PA, which provides diagnostic and interventional radiologic services for Anderson and Rush hospitals and clinics throughout east central Mississippi.

“I am looking forward to working with the radiologists there because I know they will help me learn and progress in my field,” said Broadhead, adding that he is especially excited to once again be working with Rush Foundation Hospital physicians and staff since he has a long history with the hospital.

“I am ready to be finished with my education and eager to start seeing patients,” he noted.