Students at the College of Nursing and Health Innovation have restarted an organization this semester that offers health-care knowledge and experience opportunities to its members.
Health science sophomore Joel Bumanglag said the national student organization Health Occupational Students of America gives members the chance to attend conferences and participate in different competitions on state and national levels that address various health care issues.
Nursing freshman Katy-Marie Becker said she worked with Bumanglag and sophomore nursing student Amanda Cram to reinstate the organization at ASU. It was originally started at the Tempe campus but died down in recent years.
Becker, the chapter treasurer, said one of the reasons they decided to restart HOSA was because more than 100 students showed interest in the organization last semester. The club currently has about 15 members, Bumanglag said.
HOSA is open to all ASU students, but specifically caters to students who would like to pursue a career in health care. Becker said HOSA can benefit students because a lot of the organization’s competitions correlate with their pre-requisites.
These competitions, which include public speaking about current health-care related issues, medical terminology and medical photography, encourage students to learn more about their career field and give them a better idea of what the career is like, according to the organization’s Web site.
Becker feels that all nursing students will benefit because HOSA “allows people to network because a lot of (the competitions’) judges are already nurses and doctors.”
The national conferences also offer students the opportunity to engage in other events, including educational and social learning activities, tours of health care facilities and exhibit presentations by professional health-care associations, according to the organization’s Web site
Students from the ASU chapter of HOSA plan to compete at the national conference this spring, which will be held in Tucson from April 14 through 16.
Bumanglag, the chapter’s president, said that once membership increases, community service projects like getting involved with local food banks and volunteering at hospitals will be a big focus of the organization. He said giving back to the community is essential.
“I want to get a sense of community with other health-care related majors on campus,” Bumanglag said.
Erika Vega, a freshman nursing student, said she thinks other students will want to get involved if the organization is promoted more because it will allow students to get together, talk about their future professions and socialize.
“It’s a really good information resource,” she said. “It can help you network and get you plugged in somewhere.”
Contact the reporter at jehoagla@asu.edu
