Emmaus High School (EHS) students became the first to attend the Pennsylvania Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) State Leadership Conference from March 11-13.

This year, sophomores Lilly West and Adhira Reddy founded the EHS chapter of HOSA, leading a group of individuals to attend the conference at Hershey, PA.  

HOSA is a national organization that provides a unique introduction to the medical field, where similar students around the region, state, or national level can compete against one another in specific topics, including “Medical Math,” “Dental Science,” “Healthcare Issues Exam,” etc. These events can be either a solo test, a team activity, or hands-on clinical skills training. 

Both West and Reddy were inspired to start HOSA because of their interest in the medical field, which opened new opportunities for them beyond the programs offered at EHS. 

“Even if you’re 100 percent sure you want to be a nurse, or a doctor, or a physician’s assistant,” Reddy said. “There’s a bunch of different things they [HOSA] all cover.”