Twenty-four Future Health Professionals (HOSA) members are planning to compete in this year’s HOSA area competition on Feb. 19-20 at R.L. Turner High School in Carrollton.

“HOSA competition is a way for HOSA members, who are future health care professionals, to express their strengths in a formal yet competitive form,” junior Daniya Sheikh said.

The events range from Medical Photography to Biomedical Debate. The competition has a variety of events and brings together diverse students who have an interest in the medical field.

“This is my first year in HOSA, so I don’t really know what to expect other than it is really competitive,” junior Nelson Lee said. “I am still really excited.”

Competition takes a lot of work. The material students need to know varies from being aware of the Latin roots and diseases that make up the Medical Terminology event to the knowledge of dealing with disasters for the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Skills event.

“It is definitely something that you have to spend time outside of class on,” HOSA sponsor Leigh Ann Field said.

The arduousness of the competition depends on each event. Competitors in events such as Healthy Lifestyle, Forensic Medicine, Epidemiology and Medical Math need to study for online competition in order to compete in Area. Other events include two on-sight rounds. For example, the Emergency Preparedness event, called Public Health, asks students to create a trailer and presentation on a certain topic to create awareness. Round one of Public Health is the trailer, which is essentially a preview of Round Two, the presentation itself.

“The first round of my competition is an online test that tests your knowledge of the human body and certain aspects of how to obtain a healthy lifestyle,” Sheikh said. “Round two of my competition is to present a goal and how I achieved that goal.”

Overall, HOSA competition is a way to immerse yourself into the health career world and gives students the opportunity to gain the benefits of leadership qualities and work.

“It is good to inspire a sense of competition in students for when they enter the workforce,” Lee said. “To be economically successful, you need ambition.”