Block
HOW CAN HOSA PROMOTE EMOTIONAL AND MENTAL WELL-BEING
HOSA is an organization dedicated to building leaders and innovators who aspire
to one day work in the medical field and assist others in building and maintaining the
healthiest lifestyle possible. However, the medical field is not solely focused on physical
well-being; the mental well-being of patients holds profound effects on the physical health
of a patient, and must be cared for just as well as the physical body is. In order to build a
strong foundation of a healthy well-being, one must learn early in life the importance of
actively maintaining one’s mental health. The use of community coalitions, in addition to
educational efforts aimed at a younger demographic, can be used to create a stable and
healthy mental well-being that will last an individual a lifetime.
A mental disorder is defined as a certain emotion or mental action that occurs often
enough to interfere with a person’s daily life. For many, mental disorders are hard to
control or regulate without medication, and can take a toll on the physical and emotional
well-being of a person. Mental disorders are also often associated with substance abuse
disorders, which involves the use of drugs or alcohol in an excessive amount; a clear path
to an unhealthy physical and emotional state. In order to promote mental and emotional
well-being, participants of HOSA must be able to understand and communicate the fact
that mental, emotional, and physical health all correlate, and in order to keep one healthy
and functioning, the other two must be as well.
Community coalitions have often been used to treat and reduce drug and alcohol
use in underage children. However, community coalitions allow people from different
levels and statuses of society to work together for a common goal, and thus could be
highly beneficial to HOSA in raising awareness about mental and emotional health. HOSA
has a very strong following of students and leaders who wish to make the world a better
place, and when equipped with the knowledge necessary to promote mental and
emotional well-being, those students and leaders can make a difference. For example,
by providing speakers at club meetings or seminars who have experience with mental
and emotional disorders, HOSA can educate students, who will then use their new
information to educate fellow peers. Additionally, psychologists, psychiatrists, and
physiologists could work together in one single seminar, and show to students how the
state of emotional health affects physical health, or how physical health can take its toll
1
Block
on mental health, and so on. The use of comparisons between all three states could be
highly beneficial to students of HOSA, and eventually students universally, who have
become educated by the leaders that HOSA created.
However, community coalitions do not necessarily need to involve doctors, or well
established and successful people of society. Students of HOSA could work with their
chapter to create programs in which they are the educators who reach out and spread
their knowledge. Programs in which secondary level students provide informational
sessions in lower level schools, such as elementary, could be beneficial in more ways
than one. The obvious benefit would be that of the education of students at a very young
age of the importance of maintaining mental and emotional well-being, but students of
HOSA would also gain valuable experience and insight in being able to work with others
and share knowledge, as well as begin to understand the profound, and hopefully
positive, effect that their words and actions can have on others.
Society today is run by social media; it shares information faster than news, allows
for people to communicate with all demographics, and creates a platform for any idea or
opinion that someone feels should be heard. The current generation is extremely wellversed in social media, and it is important for HOSA to take advantage of the invaluable
knowledge that its’ students hold. By using platforms such as Facebook or Instagram,
students of HOSA can take initiative and provide information to people who may not have
access to it. The sharing of “quick tips” on a daily or weekly basis through social media,
on subjects ranging from stress management, to healthy eating habits, to organizational
tips, and so on, can provide people of all ages and demographics to understand the
importance of mental and emotional well-being, even if they are in a situation which
doesn’t allow them to learn from a doctor or teacher. This is especially important for
children growing up in a violent home or a place where education is not a priority; social
media is prevalent in all corners of society, and therefore can be an outlet for these
children.
Conclusively, in order to promote mental and emotional well-being, HOSA must
promote community coalitions, which would allow doctors to work with students, or HOSA
students to work with their peers and mentees. The power of social media could also
create a network of information which provides helpful tips to children who are especially
2
Block
vulnerable to the consequences of negative early childhood experiences. However, none
of this knowledge is useful without the full understanding of the relationship between
mental, emotional and physical well-being, and it is the job of HOSA to educate and create
leaders who will spread this knowledge, as well as do everything in their power to promote
and encourage the benefits of building a foundation of overall health.
3