#How COVID-hero nurse Maggie Rawlins became an SI swimsuit model

It’s not unusual for model Maggie Rawlins’ medical expertise to be called upon at photo shoots.

“I was on set once in the Bahamas and there was a car accident [involving crew members],” Rawlins, 28 and a registered nurse, told The Post. “Nobody was seriously injured but they asked me to give everyone a physical and make sure everyone was OK.”

But in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, her health-care pedigree took center stage — when the South Carolina native signed on to work in a Queens facility treating patients.

“It was a no-brainer,” she said of the decision to help where she was needed most. “I’ve been a nurse for six years, so it’s always been part of my story,” said Rawlins, who splits her time between New York City and Charleston, SC.

“It was definitely chaotic. I didn’t know what I was getting into,” she said of the monthlong experience. “But it was cool to see people from all over the country coming together. That was ­really inspiring.”

None of her patients or co-workers knew she was a model. “I was covered head to toe [in PPE],” Rawlins said. “And I don’t think anyone would have cared.”

But Sports Illustrated did. The magazine announced in March that Rawlins was one of its rookies for the annual Swimsuit Issue that hits newsstands July 19. Her backstory — not to mention her sizzling photos — catapulted the model into the national spotlight.

“SI definitely gave me a platform I didn’t have before,” she said during her Post photo shoot at the The Sentry. “I feel like I have been given more of a voice.”

Rawlins has gone on to model for Victoria’s Secret and landed campaigns with lingerie brand Intimissimi and an Anne Klein fragrance, as well as the June cover of Maxim.

It’s also given her a platform to highlight her work with OneWorld Health, which provides health care to underserved communities. Rawlins has traveled to Nicaragua and Uganda as a triage nurse with the nonprofit, and is set to return to Uganda in September.

So how does one go from checking blood pressure to sending hearts racing?

The 5-foot-7 blonde was scouted as a teen, but decided to skip modeling to pursue her real dream: following in the footsteps of her grandmother, a nurse who worked in labor and delivery.

Rawlins was working as a hematology-oncology nurse when a Miami modeling agency reached out to her through Instagram. She assumed it was a scam.

But a supervisor encouraged her to explore the offer — and keep her nursing credentials current. “It was great advice. Don’t lock yourself into only one industry,” said Rawlins. She’s now signed with The Lions Management.

Rawlins also credits her husband, ­George Douglas III — a childhood neighbor whom she married in 2016 — with being a stabilizing force as she ­entered the fickle modeling world.

“I always say he is my anchor. I think in an industry that I am in, it’s easy to get lost in it. I was a bit older [than models starting out in their teens] and I knew who I was. And I had George, [who] helped me keep things in perspective,” said Rawlins.

He’s also helped amp up her social life.

“I can’t bring him everywhere because they will instantly like him more than they like me,” Rawlins jokes. Last Fourth of July, the pair visited her friend in the picturesque Jersey Shore town of Avalon for the first time, and Douglas ended up being the life of the party.

“The other day he said, ‘Tommy and his fiancée are pregnant.’ I was like, ‘Who is Tommy?’ He was like, ‘Tommy from Avalon,’ ” Rawlins recalled. “We were there for less than 48 hours. He thinks he’s the mayor.”

The couple plan to return to Avalon this weekend — no doubt to congratulate dad-to-be Tommy, but also to celebrate the Fourth of July.

Still, she isn’t severing her South Carolina roots. Rawlins is best friends with former “Southern Charm” TV star Naomie Olindo, who is moving to New York City this summer. “I’m so excited,” Maggie said.

But first, Rawlins has to travel to Miami for the Swimsuit Issue launch.“I’m super-proud of the magazine, and I can’t wait to see it in print,” she said.

And she’s not ruling out swapping her bikini for scrubs again one day.

“I love nursing and it’s something I always identify with, and I was grateful to have the opportunity to step back into it,” she said “Never say never.”