Seven Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) students were selected to participate in the Texas HOSA State Leadership Conference this year: senior Rylan Nunez, senior Axel Guzman, junior Brandon Abante, sophomore Bryson Greene, senior Ajda Mulla, junior Sophie Stevens and senior Adelyn Rusli. The conference took place at Kalahari Resort in Round Rock from April 29 to May 1, with preparations for students starting early on in the year.
“[Our] project was in Medical Innovation and it started as a tiny idea during a post-band lunch and turned into a full-on masterpiece,” Greene said. “I brainstormed with my team, researched like crazy and designed something I was genuinely proud of. There were moments of confusion but also those ‘this is actually kind of genius’ moments.”
Greene designed a project with Nunez, Guzman and Abante. The group came up with a medical innovation called the Urolithase Bot, which was designed to remove kidney stones in a safe manner.
“If I had a dollar for every hour we spent preparing, I could probably fund my first semester of medical school,” Greene said. “It was a grind, but a rewarding one. Working with fellow like-minded individuals has never felt better.”
At the area meet in February, the Medical Innovation category the group participated in was announced last, with only the top three places moving on to the State round. The group was finally announced as the third place group, advancing them to State.
“When our group was announced to advance to State, my first thought was ‘Thank God,’” Guzman said. “I was just so relieved that our hard work had paid off and we didn’t have to go home empty handed.”
Upon arrival at the State round, the group was one of the first groups to share their presentation to be judged. After that, though, all seven State qualifiers enjoyed the Kalahari Resort and waterpark with students across the state.
“My experience at the HOSA State Leadership Conference was amazing,” Abante said. “Being able to see all the different backgrounds of schools all over the state of Texas was awesome.”
The closing ceremony concluded on May 1, ending the students’ experience.
“Although we didn’t advance to nationals, I was super happy with our performance,” Guzman said. “We had tons of improvement from the run that got us to State. It just goes to show how competitive it is at the next level.”
Rusli competed in the event of Behavioral Health, consisting of a hundred question test and a free-response question. She placed second at State, advancing to the HOSA International Leadership Conference in June.
“My event focuses on skills surrounding psychology, the mind, mental health and substance use disorders,” Rusli said. “[My experience] was really wild. I was so shocked when they announced the results.”
The State qualifiers urge students unfamiliar with HOSA to try the club.
“Being a part of HOSA has allowed me to have many more opportunities in the health science field,” Rusli said. “It has also allowed me to be a part of a community that not only possesses a passion for health science but is also supportive and encouraging. Overall, I’m very glad that I chose to join HOSA.”
