Professor Rowena Johnson is a Consultant Musculoskeletal Radiologist with expertise in diagnostic imaging and image guided treatments of elite athletes. She works with numerous international athletes and clubs including within the Premier League, Championship football, Lawn Tennis Association, British Olympic team, British Athletics, British Triathlon, international rugby and cricket, and the Royal Ballet.

She is the Chair of Sports Medicine Imaging at the Carnegie School of Sport, Leeds Beckett University which is the largest provider of sport in UK higher education. The Research Excellence Framework (REF) which is an independent national assessment of research excellence ranked 89% of the school’s research (overall quality profile) as world-leading or internationally excellent, 100% of the research impact as outstanding and very considerable in terms of reach and significance, and 100% of the research environment rates as world-leading or internationally excellent.

She is experienced in international elite sports imaging including the Pan American and Para Pan American Games. She also treats adolescent athletes having worked at Great Ormond Street Hospital and Sick Kids, Toronto.

She has a wide breadth of experience also having worked at the University of Toronto Hospitals, and as a consultant at the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre, Oxford University Hospitals. Her clinical practice covers all aspects of musculoskeletal imaging including nerve injuries, trauma, spine abnormalities, bone and soft tissue tumours, bone infection and rheumatological conditions.    

She is the Chair and Clinical Lead of the Royal College of Radiologists Education. She oversees the clinical radiology annual congress, national and international meetings and the online education platform. She has also been appointed to the Royal College of Radiologists Faculty Board. 

She has led iRefer, the Royal College of Radiologists’ flagship publication. This is an internationally recognised framework for patients to have the optimum investigation and intervention for all radiological specialties including musculoskeletal, and ensure high standards of care.

Recent and Current Appointments

• Vice-Chair International Society for Clinical Densitometry, UK/Ireland Panel
• Scientific Advisory Council, International Society for Clinical Densitometry
• European Society for Sports Traumatology, Knee Surgery and Arthroscopy (ESSKA) Basic Sciences Committee
• Faculty, MSc Musculoskeletal Sciences, Oxford University 
• Professional Support and Standards Board, Royal College of Radiologists
• Professional Learning and Development Committee, Royal College of Radiologists
• Advisory Editor in Musculoskeletal Radiology, Clinical Radiology Journal
• Editor, Royal College of Radiologists Newsletter
• Previous full time Clinical Editor, British Medical Journal
• Life appointment as a Medical Member of the Ministry of Justice

Publications, Lectures and Teaching

• Tutor in Medicine at The Queen’s College, University of Oxford.
• She lectures internationally on imaging in sports injuries, and has organised several courses including on behalf of the British Institute of Radiology.
• Her research interests include hip/groin and hamstring injuries, and the development of novel imaging diagnostic and therapeutic techniques in sports medicine.
• Contributor, 5^th edition of Gray’s Anatomy for Students

Society Memberships

• Royal College of Radiologists
• British Society of Skeletal Radiology
• European Society of Radiology