HOSA Gives a Deep Dive into the Heathcare Field

If healthcare is a possible focus for your future, consider joining the FCHS HOSA Club. HOSA, which stands for Health Occupations Of America, bills itself as “a national organization of secondary and post-secondary students that supports career development in health professions and improvement of health services delivery to the general population.” This organization is for students who are interested in any type of health and medicine, even if it’s veterinary or physical therapy. HOSA goals are to promote physical, mental and social well being as well as leadership qualities.

HOSA began at FCHS around 2019. According to Nurse Aide teacher and HOSA sponsor Sharon Purnell, Fluvanna was open to starting a HOSA club because the school had created a strong CTE program featuring Nurse Aide I, Nurse Aide II, and EMT (Emergency Medical Technician) and wanted to provide more services to students interested in medical careers.

While students do not need to be in one of her health science classes to be a part of HOSA, students who do want to take the classes need to realize that students 9th grade and up are eligible for the Intro to Health class, while juniors may take Nurse Aide I, and seniors may take Nurse Aide 2.

HOSA meets in room 4314 on club days. Benefits from joining HOSA include meeting new people interested in your future job field, as well as the possibility of getting scholarships through medical programs. “My favorite part of HOSA is the people and open environment with the activities,” said 8th grader Gabrial Ramero.

“Watching the students’ reactions to blood pressure pumps, stethoscopes and many other things fills me with so much joy,” said Purnell, who also teaches Introduction to Health Sciences in addition to Nurse Aide I and Nurse Aide II.

This year, the club did a field trip to a local vet to work with the animals. They also did a canned food drive and fed seven families. “I would have to say my favorite part about HOSA is collecting money and donating, basically doing any charity work,” said junior Mykeala Rivera.

Purnell said that one of her goals is to do more hands-on learning this year so the students can really get an idea what it’s like in the medical field. While she said that HOSA is not currently doing any fundraisers, they are brainstorming possible places to volunteer.

“HOSA really helped me learn more about all sorts of medical fields, so I recommend joining if that’s something you know you would be interested in,” said Rivera. “Hosa teaches a lot of important stuff while being fun all at the same time. I definitely recommend checking it out if it sounds like something you’re interested in,” said 8th grader Gabrial Ramero.