VHHS students place first at state HOSA conference

Seven Vestavia Hills High School students qualified to represent our local Health Occupation Students of America (HOSA) chapter in various medical competitions at the Alabama HOSA State Leadership Conference held Feb. 21-22 in Montgomery. Three won first place in their respective categories. Students who placed in the top six of written exams completed in Round 1 continued to perform skill assessments in Round 2 the following day. 

Ian Schultz placed first in sports medicine and Luke Byrd and Aaron Bard teamed together to place first in forensic medicine. 

Schultz, Bard and Byrd will move on to represent VHHS and the state of Alabama at the HOSA International Leadership Conference this June in Orlando, FL. This will be Bard’s and Byrd’s second appearance at the international competition as they placed second in forensic medicine at the HOSA ILC in Dallas last summer. 

HOSA is a student-led organization associated with health science program at VHHS. Both the club and curriculum serve students who are interested in being future medical professionals. Students learn content knowledge and develop skills sets that prepare them for a career in healthcare. Currently, the VHHS health science program focuses on sports medicine and will be adding a nursing pathway soon. 

Submitted by Hannah Peterson