Ms. Bonita Deen, Texas HOSA Board of Directors Past President, has been teaching for eleven years and is serving Brownwood ISD as the high school’s Practicum of Health Science/Clinicals teacher.
Victoria Ramos, Senior HOSA President, reflects on her experience as a junior clinical student and Ms. Deen’s determination to deliver experiential learning amid the COVID restrictions.
“I think Ms. Deen handled it very well. She’s insanely busy all the time, and she worked to make sure we got the essence of how it would’ve been to go to clinical. One time we watched a cat get spayed over Zoom. I think she did really well because we did as much as we could,” said Ramos.
This year, Ms. Deen rotates her junior clinical students in groups allowing one group to rotate the various departments within the hospital and the other group to rotate between private health care facilities in Brownwood.
“The goal of my class is to help them decide what health care professional they want to be, and if they get experience seeing or doing anything in that field, it will either tell them, ‘Yes, I want it. I love it.’ or ‘No, this isn’t for me.’” stated Deen.
Aishwarya Nigayle, Junior HOSA Vice President, is one of the clinical students rotating around the hospital this semester. Her favorite department, so far, is accounting.
“I never really thought about the financial aspects of a hospital. That team’s whole job is to keep the hospital from getting into any kind of legal trouble. They have to follow procedures and have plans set in place to run the hospital and protect the patients, employees, and everybody else,” said Nigayle.
Ms. Bonita Deen and Ms. Valarie Skull, HOSA sponsors, recently organized another accomplishment for Brownwood High School’s HOSA which was hosting the annual Fall Leadership Conference for students from all over Texas to familiarize themselves with what it takes to be successful as a HOSA club and as a high school student, in general.
“It was great! The kids were awesome. The presenters were awesome. Everybody said they really enjoyed getting to be in person and learning what we had prepared to present,” said Deen.
Ramos enjoyed the opportunity to represent her HOSA club and fellow officers on stage as she delivered a welcome speech to the 338 registered attendees.
“I really liked the environment. There are so many different types of people that you meet which is great because they’re all super nice and our passions for healthcare careers bring us together,” stated Ramos.
Nigayle assisted with facilitating the event and gathering a group of professionals, including her father, to participate in a “COVID Roundtable Talk” to answer questions and inform the attendees of their real experiences within the healthcare field.
Brownwood High School’s health science program continues to make strides in the community and prepare students for a life of service in their desired fields.
Ramos aspires to play tennis at Howard Payne University while furthering her education as a biology major in preparation for medical school and, as of right now, a career as a pediatrician.
“I was always really good with my younger cousins whenever we would hang out, and I guess that’s how I learned to be more comfortable around children. It’s just fun because you can be a little more relaxed,” stated Ramos.
Nigayle, along with many other students, greatly appreciates Brownwood High School’s health science program and feels well-equipped to pursue medical school and, possibly, specialize in infectious disease, which she cleverly views as being a “disease detective.”
“I like that our program is small. I think it’s easier for Ms. Deen to teach us and make the lessons more personalized for each one of us,” stated Nigayle.
Ms. Deen and a plethora of other dedicated teachers inspire Brownwood High School’s students to strive for excellence inside the classroom and in the community.
{Story by Jordan Favors}
