By Indian Hill High School Student Experience Journalist Vandita Rastogi
Indian Hill High School is filled with fun extra-curricular activities, including sports, theatre, and even career-related clubs. One such club, the Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA), was started just this past year by sophomore student, and my brother, Pranav Rastogi. In the year of this pandemic, participation in such clubs has opened the eyes of students to what it’s like to be a healthcare worker in all aspects of the field. Check out the interview below to learn more about why he started the club and what their recent successes mean to him.
Vandita Rastogi (VR): For those who don’t know what HOSA is, could you please describe what the club does?
Pranav Rastogi (PR): HOSA is a competition club that specializes in the healthcare sciences and allows students to compete in various fields through many lenses. That encompasses a variety of things, from hygiene and nutrition to specialized fields such as dental science, veterinary medicine, and even sports medicine. Oftentimes, the healthcare field is denoted as a hyper-specialized field that only focuses on the biological form of humans. While this is partially true, healthcare covers the applications of even the most extensive biological forms. It also provides for unique applications to learn at a more in-depth level. For example, instead of only learning about forensic science and memorizing the nuances, HOSA allows you to apply those terms to a case from the real world. In fact, had we been competing in-person the forensic science event would actually allow students to examine a fake crime scene, conduct tests, and report their findings, which is an unparalleled opportunity.
(VR): What differentiates HOSA from other career-related clubs?
(PR): Most career-related clubs focus on a broad range of careers, and I’m not going to say HOSA doesn’t do that. In fact, it encourages that. The true difference is what you do with that knowledge. Say, for example, an athlete learns about sports science/medicine and because they are really interested in biology and sports; it’s the perfect intersection. For most clubs, that’s the end of the road, and it definitely provides a good foundation to pursue an opportunity in that specific field. What HOSA does is provides you with that learning opportunity and then allows you to apply it to real-world studies, and that’s truly the difference.
(VR): You’ve had great success in your first year, sending competitors to the state level. How do you expect to expand on that in the future?
(PR): This year was definitely a successful year, and I’m very excited for our future. One thing I believe that can be enhanced is the student experience. To me, this year wasn’t as exciting as it should’ve been and most of it can be attributed to the pandemic, whether directly or indirectly. However, I want to expand on this by improving personal interactions — whether this be more shadowing opportunities, doctors coming in to speak about their professions, volunteering, etc. Hopefully, these experiences will provide an opportunity for students to use direct knowledge in their respective competitive events and pursue healthcare-related fields in the future.
(VR): Is there any other information you would like to add for potential members?
(PR): HOSA will always have something you are truly interested in. If you’re interested in dental science, you can compete in that event. Likewise, there’s an event covering Public Health, or even Physical Therapy. And even if you’re undecided on what you want to pursue after high school, you can explore general topics. There’s something for art enthusiasts, the bold public speakers, and even those who love to write or want to learn how to write more technically. The club strikes the perfect balance of being able to explore your passions with a variety of events, but also not so broad that the club doesn’t feel focused or specialized enough.
If you’re interested in joining the HOSA scholars, contact Pranav Rastogi at [email protected] and follow their Instagram @ih_hosa. This is a great opportunity for those interested in medicine but don’t know where to start, or those who want to further their experience in the healthcare field through real-world experiences and applications.