The Health Occupations Students of America – Future Health Professionals (HOSA-FHP) chapter at Seton Hall was officially chartered this spring. The executive board explained that it is not just a club for students who aspire to be healthcare workers or work in health-related fields, but also for those who want to help others.
“I was president [of my high school HOSA chapter] back in senior year, and I was heavily involved in HOSA overall in high school,” said Jyothi Maruthanal, a sophomore biology major and co-president of HOSA-FHP. “It’s a club with a variety of purposes and is a great way to network with peers and to support those with similar goals. We wanted to create a chapter of the club at Seton Hall to allow the experience to be brought to others as well.”
Jessica Moran, a sophomore business major and vice president of HOSA-FHP, reminisced on her days of participating in her high school’s HOSA club.
“In high school, HOSA was a big part of my life and I wanted to continue that here at Seton Hall, especially since now we have so many healthcare-related programs,” Moran said.
In light of the current COVID-19 pandemic, Moran talked about how the role of HOSA-FHP changed and how the club tried to do its part to help essential workers on the frontlines.
“We wanted to find a way to give back during this crisis, so HOSA-FHP partnered with the Summit Area Sewing Squad and was able to raise more than $1,000 through social media efforts so they could make masks for more people,” Moran said.
Despite the future being so uncertain right now, Maruthanal said HOSA-FHP has started to decide which events it would like to host, formulating a plan on how to hold these events both online and in person as it prepares for any situation to be thrown its way.
To any incoming freshmen who are interested in joining this club, Augusta Saverimuttu, a sophomore biology major and PR chair of the club, said, “HOSA-FHP is definitely a great club if you are interested in the healthcare field. You meet such amazing people who ultimately have similar goals and genuinely want to see you reach your goals.”
Moran added that the club is “open to anyone who wants to help people and learn new things.” She also said that the club offers CPR training classes, which is useful for everyone, not just those interested in entering a healthcare field.
Alexander Krukar can be reached at alexander.krukar@student.shu.edu.
