Cape Town - With her Bachelor of Science in Nuclear Medicine in the bag and with financial support from the Klipheuwel Wind Farm, Keishia Joseph is on track to be the first member of her small Grabouw community to become a nuclear medical radiographer.
This 22-year-old is currently completing her community service at the Red Cross Children’s Hospital in Rondebosch, Cape Town and looking forward to her career in the specialised medical field that uses small amounts of radioactive materials (radio-pharmaceuticals) to look at specific organs and see if they are functioning properly.
Klipheuwel Wind Farm economic development specialist Tsholofelo Moote said: “Keishia is an example of our country’s tremendous talent pool that can be harnessed if sufficient access to tertiary bursary funding and mentorship is made available.”
The Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT), where Joseph completed her studies, only accepted a maximum of seven students each year which showed how hard Joseph worked to beat the competition in this specialised field.
Her passion for science grew and was nurtured by her high school physical science teacher, Sonia Manthey-Joseph.
She said the inspiration to pursue a career in Nuclear Medicine Technology stemmed from the field being inclusive of both science as well as health care.
Joseph explained the primary difference between nuclear medicine and radiology was that nuclear medicine created images using internal radiation waves from inside the body while radiology developed images through applying external energy waves to the body.
Moote said Joseph was one of 28 students who have been funded through the Klipheuwel Wind Farm bursary programme since its inception in 2016, and they have gone into various careers in education, tourism, economics and dentistry.
The programme covers tuition fees, travel and accommodation costs, book allowances and even a stipend.