What's your plan?

Friends often ask me what my plan is when I chat with them. They are those who have already migrated abroad. These immigrant friends have successful careers back in their native land. I wanted to ask them why they bothered to go to another country where there are blizzards and bland foods. But I dare not because they have already spent hundreds of thousand pesos just to seek greener pasture.

But not all of us can take living in a foreign land. You can't buy happiness. Furthermore, it's more expensive keeping up a decent lifestyle abroad. If you want to have a decent life there then you must work like a dog. I know some people abroad who needs subsidy or owes money from their relatives here in the Philippines. Sila na nga nasa US, sila pa nanghihiram ng pera dito sa Pilipinas. But if you work there as a nurse, your future is safe.

So, what m I waiting for? Review time for NCLEX!

Virtual Assistant

I am looking for a home-based job and stumbled upon this Virtual Assistant thingy. I was actually applying for a web developer at bestjobs.ph but the HR staff directed me to this position. I honestly have no idea what it actually does. I've already undergone a sort of series of tests via email and audio recording. I still have to wait for the telephone interview if I pass the recent test which is the audio recording. The remote kind of hiring process alienates me. I don't see them, they don't see me. If ever I get this job, my Christmas list will be granted.

So help me God.

Ideal Job/Employer

My ideal employer is a very compassionate and understanding one. I mean, s/he doesn't scold me when I want to take a leave out on a whim. Plus s/he doesn't count how many absences I make in a week and doesn't ever ask the reasons behind it. I want a job where I could sit throughout working hours with a laptop with an internet connection, playing all my games in Facebook and just surfing the net all day long. I also want an employer who provides me and my family insurance, education, diapers, milk, nanny, laundry, food, hospitalization, etc.

Are you wondering if there's such a job/employer? There is one I know of =)

Corny World

Firstly, my favorite rock radio station NU 107 changed its format a few weeks ago, now playing mainstream music instead of its former format of cool genre like rock, alternative, and grunge music. Second, The ex-girlfriend of our country's president Noynoy Aquino, Shalani Soledad, has joined Willie Revillame in the new noontime show Willing Willie as his co-host without prior training or rehearsals. Shalani is now ridiculed or mocked for her somnolent voice. Third, the new slogan of the Department of Tourism is now "Pilipinas Kay Ganda" (Philippines so Beautiful) which to me sounded like the title of the morning show in one of the biggest networks in my country. Thank God, I heard in the news that Pres. Aquino ordered that the slogan will be changed since so many Filipinos are not in favor of this.

Things to Do

1. Time to renew my passport, but first, I must find it :(

2. Get a part-time job, i.e., a home-based job, preferably

3. Pay the bills. My insurance agent already texted me about my premium balance. Good thing I don't have credit cards anymore (I used to have 3 credit cards) and no loans.

4. Brush up on nursing concepts. Maybe one of these days, I might be called for an exam or interview.

5. Look for a job online.

6. Control my diet. I want to look good, as always :)

Sembreak

My 3-months contract as a nurse reliever ended last month. NSO said our batch will be called for duty by next year when the census starts to increase again. Hopefully, I would be hired as a staff nurse to be able to fulfill the 1-year hospital experience as required by my prospective employer.

I was enjoying the first week of my vacation. But the following weeks became monotonous and left me penniless. I have so many plans in my mind to improve my career as a nurse. I want to apply for NCLEX and IELTS while I am on "vacation" mode. I could use my personal savings for those expensive exams.

Meanwhile, my father wants me to go to Saudi instead of "wasting" my energy for a minimum wage in my recent hospital job, because Saudi do accept nurses even without clinical experience. How cool is that! But my all my closest friends do not want me to work in Saudi because of sexual harassment experienced by them or their loved ones or acquaintance or other scary stories about male arabs chasing/abusing/raping women and men.

It's hard to imagine how my life's gonna be in that country with that kind of scenario. Does it mean I have to go out with a group all the time to protect ourselves from those potential danger? What if something happens to me (knock on wood, wag naman sana) in that country and the Philippine consul can't fight or can't even protect my rights and I would end up in jail or lose my head like what happened to Flor Contemplacion, or be scolded by our own consul just like what Philippine consulate in Hongkong, Mr. Labatt did to a distressed OFW who sought Mr. Labatt's help in HK?

I promise to myself to stop procrastinating my plans. I talked to my friend, Steph, about those stuff and gave me encouragement and inspiration. Thank you, tsong!

Surprise!

After my 2-10 p.m. duty, Ron picked me up at the hospital to tag me along in his night out with his college friends at the Harbor Square in Manila. I was not prepared so I had to go with him in my nurse uniform.

Inside the car, he surprised me with a whole cake from Starbucks called the Midnight Black Cake.

The cake tastes like Ferrero Rocher, bittersweet and with a crunchy layer. My hubby never fails to surprise me.

Sick Leave

In the previous entry, I said that I was on a sick leave. Yes it's true that I was sick due to a nagging toothache. I was procrastinating the dental check-up due to a low budget. I'm ashamed to ask my parent to pay for it. My salary is pathetic. But in the last payroll I really got a nice paycheck.

So off I went to the dentist near CEU (Centro Escolar University) in Manila. This is not my personal dentist. The bf just recommended it to me because he's good and the fee is reasonably lower than my dentist. At first I was reluctant to be "handled" by the new dentist. I wanted to see for myself first the clinic.

Well, the clinic looked nice with 2 dental chairs, autoclave machine, clean area, cable tv, etc. The dentist knows what he's doing and explains to me my case.

After the rapport has been established, the procedure started. I got an oral prophylaxis, 2 dental x-rays (for my impacted wisdom tooth and the problematic upper molar which is the culprit of my pain), temporary filling, and 21 capsules of amoxicillin which cost me less than 400 pesos ($9) all in all! What surprises me most was the cost of the dental x-ray--only 50 pesos per tooth ($1.13)! I had a dental panoramic x-ray 9 years ago in SM Megamall and it cost me 4,000 pesos ($90).

Now, the toothache is gone and I was able to buy that skirt in Greenhills sa laki ng natipid ko sa dentist. I also bought Anne Rice's "Servant of the Bones." Happy :)

Big Mistake

The biggest mistake a noob can commit is to take a leave from her duty for 2 consecutive days. It happened to me due to a major burn out. In truth, this is the first time I have experienced a burn out at work. In my previous careers as a copy editor and administrative assistant, there are stressors such as deadlines, performance evaluation, colleagues, and bosses. But being a nurse is an entirely different dimension. Buhay ang nakataya. A nurse must always have a presence of mind and common sense no matter how toxic or stressfull the situation is, ensuring always the safety of herself and her patients. Most of the time, you have to sacrifice your meals and bladder break just to serve all the needs of all your ten (10) patients. If I'm lucky, I would handle 6 patients in the least, but 1 of them is either intubated (his/her life depends on a breathing machine called mechanical ventilator) or feeds via NGT (nasogastric tube that runs from the nose through the stomach). If the patient is intubated, that means I have to go to the patient's room and suction secretions as often as necessary. And I have to feed him/her via NGT so all the medicine tablets will be pulverized by me using mortar and pestle and I have to double check each feeding the patency and placement of the NGT to make sure it's still in the stomach by auscultation using a stethoscope. Aside from these cases, there are still your other 4 patients waiting for your nursing care and other stressors (human beings at their worst) which make your entire shift horribly challenging.

Now, if you happen to be assigned in a toxic ward in every effin' work day, handling the above cases, then burning out would be your body's way of crying out and your best defense mechanism is to take a sick leave in order to survive the next 2 weeks of your contract, right? I thought I could adjust to it because I'm now familiar with the environment and the people. Yes, I handled it well, I got no warning slip or incident report, at least. But when I get home, I just couldn't shake the stress off. It made my nights sleepless. My weight went down to 104 lbs (the only thing I'm happy about). Ikaw ba naman ang hindi makaupo or kumain in 15 minutes kasama na ang toothbrush and powder. I thought of giving up. I asked my close friends' advices. I was so unhappy last week.

Sabi nila, konting tiis lang, there are thousands of jobless nurses out there wanting to have a hospital job in this country blah-blah-blah. So I listened to their blah-blahs which are relevant blahs.

Salamat sa sick leave because it helped me regained my sanity.

Congrats sa Batch 6

Marikina Valley Medical Center is continuously hiring some of my batchmates as NA's and Nurses this year. Congratulations to Miko, Jelo, Erwin, Marc, Allan, Erika, and to some who will be called in in the next few days or so. They are the people who were never absent, never been late, and are always willing to work their butt off.

Congratulations, guys!

Dimsum Galore!

Yesterday, I and the bf went to our favorite place (Greenhills) to unwind. I've been off-duty since Sunday and just got my second paycheck yesterday. Daiso is my new favorite store and bought plastic boxes and a mickey mouse keychain. The Booksale has nothing for me that day. I was hoping to find One Hundred Years of Solitude (one of my friends borrowed my copy lost it) but to no avail. Hungry and tired from walking in the tiangge, we dined in Le Ching Tea House. We ordered hakao, steamed pork spare ribs, beef tripe, and beef brisket noodle. Ang dami nito pero taob lahat ng plato pati iced tea! Katakawan is our favorite sin.

Beef brisket noodle (ang sarap nito, promise!)

Hakao

Spare ribs (eto rin masarap!)

Chilli (eto ang nagpapasarap sa lahat!)

*Photos taken from here

Life of a Nurse Reliever

I'm working as a Nurse Reliever with a contract of 3 months. Reliever means you'll be reporting for work only if there is a need. Just like the staff nurses, I have a 2-week schedule plotted in the calendar. My schedule becomes insanely favorable when the census is low and that's the time that I would get a text message from the Nursing Service Office that I won't have a duty.

A while ago, the most anticipated text message came and I couldn't be any happier! That means I have 3-day vacation! No, make that 7-day vacation because I have been off-duty since Saturday! Yay! It has been like this most of the time. So, in every rotation (that's 2 weeks) I'll be working for an average of 8 days only.

The downside of it is that I earn so little I can't afford to pay my own insurance. I still have to rely on my dad on this. Thanks, Daddy. I'm just so grateful that I'm employed as a nurse now, instead of me paying for the training.

Anyways, Nurse Relievers are the ones being pulled from her turf to other areas. In my case, my homecourt is 4A. When the census is low in 4A, I will be pulled out to other areas like ICCU or 4B. I love working at ICCU because my focus is only on 1 patient. I just have to be careful in ensuring that everything that needs to documented is documented by me in the Kardex and chart, and that every abnormal condition of the patient is being relayed to the doctor.

So far, I have earned 1 strong warning in my almost 2 months as a nurse reliever. Hopefully, there will be no other warning or incident report for me. That's why after the shift, I always double-triple check the doctor's order, medication sheet, nurse's notes, Diabetic Sheet, etc. to make sure that I have closed my charting, I have carried out all the doctor's orders, I have signed the medication sheet, and I have relayed the CBG monitoring. Because the image of a nurse reliever is magnified and is under the scrutiny of every staff, supervisor, even NA's and orderlies in the area.

My Reviewer: Dosage and Calculations

Before going to the topic, here's an addendum to my previous blog about what's written at the back of San Mig Light's label: "When the work is done and it's time for rest, Let there be San Mig Light." Ngayon ko lang naalala :)

In our previous lecture, we discussed again dosage and calculations. Everything about this topic seemed much clearer to me now. We had a post-test, as usual, and I'm happy to pass all the exams.

Here are some of the questions on dosage and calculations:

1. IVF 1.5 liters to run for 94 cc/hr
a. no. of hours to be infused
b. gtts/min

2. IVF 1 liter to run for 25 gtts/min
a. no. of hours to be infused
b. cc/hr

3. 1 liter of an IVF to run for 3 hours with an infusion set that delivers 10 gtts/ml. 400 ml remains after infusing for 1 hr and 15 mins. Find the gtts/min needed so that the IVF finishes in the required time

4. 100ml of an IVF to run for 2 hours via soluset.

5. Dopamine* 2 amps (ampules) in 500 ml D5W to run for 12 mcg/kg/min. Patient's weight is 60 lbs.

6. ISDN* (Isosorbide Dinitrate or Isoket) 2 amps in 100 ml D5W to run for 2 mg/hr.

7. KCl* (Potassium Chloride) 30 mEqs in 1,000 ml IVF. How many ml of KCl will you incorporate?

8. Drug available is 20 mg/5 ml. Prescription is 40 mg. How many ml will you give?



*In answering items #5-7, you must know by heart the stock dose of those emergency drugs:

Dopamine is 200mg in 2ml ampule
ISDN/Isoket is 20mg/ampule
KCl is 40mEqs in 20ml vial


Solution #5:

Formula:

Order (mcg/kg/min) x weight (in kg) x 60 min/hr)
---------------------------------------------------------
concentration of drug in IVF

Order: 12 mcg/kg/min
Pt's. weight (must be converted into kg): 60 lbs /2.2 kg = 27.2 kg
Dopamine 2 amps (must be converted into mcg):
200mg x 2 amps x 1,000 mcg = 400,000 mcg
Concentration of Dopamine in 500 ml D5W:
400,000mcg
--------------- = 800 mcg/ml
500ml

Solution:
12 mcg/kg/min x 27.2 kg x 60 min/hr
--------------------------------------- = 19,584 / 800 = 24.48 or 24 ml/hr
800 mcg/ml

Your final answer needs to be rounded off to eliminate the decimal numbers because we're talking about the drip rates here (there's no such thing as 24.4 drops, right?)

Tips: So you won't be bugged by what formula to be used in solving these IV drip rates of emergency drugs, just look at the units of measurement in the order. In this case, the order is "12 mcg/kg/min,"

so the formula will be:

mcg x kg x min
-------------------
concentration

the divisor, which is the concentration is always solved by:
drug x no. of amps (x 1,000 if needs to be converted from mg to mcg)
--------------------------------
no. of ml of IVF



Solution #6:

Order: ISDN 2 mg/hr
Concentration: 2 amps of ISDN 20 mg in 100 ml in D5W = 20 x 2 =40 mg / 100 = 0.04 mg/ml

2 mg/hr
--------- = 50 cc/hr
.04 mg/ml


Now, try answering the other items :)

Backtracking

I miss all the fun I had back then when I was 20-something, the age when you feel you're invincible.

Back then, twice a week kami nagpupunta ng Tagaytay. Twice a month kami nakakapag-beach sa Puerto Galera. Safe pa tumawid ng dagat ang mga katig na bangka dati. Hindi pa laganap ang global warming.

Weekly din ang inuman kasama friends sa bar, sa bahay, sa gasolinahan, sa beach, sa bar ng barkada, at kung saan-saan pa. Lahat ng happenings ginagawang okasyon para mag-inom--bday, graduation, despedida, departure, arrival, mga ganon.

Hindi pa uso facebook noon, Friendster pa lang. Pero sa barkada namin hindi uso Friendster. Dapat Friendster Live! Ang dami namin nakikilala sa gatherings pero hanggang inuman lang. Favorite ko ang San Mig Light. Sa likod ng sticker ng San Mig ang mantra namin ng friend ko: "When the night is ___ and it's time for rest, Let there be San Mig Light" or something like it. Iniipon namin label ng San Mig kada inuman dahil sa mantrang nakasulat sa likod nun.

Madalas kami mag-emote, umiyak, mang-away ng mga umaaway sa friends namin. Minsan, we do things para makapaghiganti sa mga heartbreakers na yan. Tao lang din kami na marunong masaktan.

Nakakapagod din naman ang ganung buhay. Nakakasawa din ang puro fun. Nakakasawa din ang puro heartbreaks. Hindi pa ako marunong mag-alaga ng relasyon noon. Selfish and childish ako. Puro ako lang dapat masunod. Ka-immaturan kumbaga.

Hanggang sa darating ang araw na biglang mababago ang lahat. Kakabahan ka kase baka hindi mag-work ang lahat ayon sa plan mo pero you gotta do it para maiayos ang lahat sa iyo. You need to get out of your comfort zone, to be away from your friends.

Everything changed when I went back to school to pursue nursing. Hindi ganun kasaya, hindi siya fun pero at peace naman ako. May sense of contentmen, may sense of fulfillment. Pagod sa duty pero ayos lang.

Nakakapagod din pag ganun ang buhay. Pagkatapos ng gimik, what's next? Where to after here? Vicious cycle.

Learnings in the Ward

Being almost 3 months in the ward is not enough for me to adjust in the ward. Honestly, I feel stupid in my job most of the time. I hate to bug the staff nurses with my questions. But after the Nursing Supervisor talked to me regarding my first strong warning on a documentation error and advised me to "always ask if in doubt." I don't care anymore if nakukulitan ako basta kapag hindi ako sure or hindi ko mabasa ang sulat doctor ng mga doctor, nagtatanong talaga ako. Sabihin na nilang toxic ako. Minsan, some of the doctors do get annoyed by me if I notify them about my patient's conditions. What's important is that I made them aware and that's one of my toughest jobs--to deal with tyrant doctors.

I've got so many learnings to share with you in the next few days. I need to sleep now. I don't have a duty tomorrow but I will be attending a lecture in the hospital. Goodnight guys!

My insatiable appetite for books

I've never skipped a trip to Booksale whenever I'm in SM, Greenhills or Cubao. Broke or not broke, I go there just the same, satisfied to just see or peek the best novels out there or if I'm lucky (like I was last week!), I take home some of my favorite novels/authors.

I'm reading now "Memoirs of a Geisha." It made me cry in the first chapter, spoiler alert! I won't tell why. Hihi! Sad story of the 2 siblings being . . . Ok, I'll stop there.

I have so many books in my mind that I OUGHT to have, fiction, non-fiction, medical nursing, and whatnots. I already saw some of it in the shelves. Probably in my next payday I'll go grab a copy if they're still there.

My iPod shuffle is back from the ashes!

I used to have a 1st-generaion 8GB iPod and an iPod shuffle. The shuffle was a gift to me from my Dad and the 8GB was just an upgrade. The 8GB died because it was accidentally dropped during my nursing review at SEAMED. What was left of me was the Shuffle but was also busted --it can't be recognized by any PC. The Shuffle was officially pronounced "busted/corrupted" by an Apple service center in Greenhills 3 years ago.

The other night when I couldn't bring myself to sleep and I've got to sleep because I supposedly have duty at 6 a.m., I tried listening to it again, after almost 3 years of hibernation in my drawer.

Irritated by the same old RnB songs in my playlist, I tried to tinker the iPod and plugged it in my Mac.

Lo and behold, it was recognized by my Mac!

I thought it's a miracle because the Apple service center used an iMac in diagnosing my iPod a couple of years ago. In an instant, I deleted all the songs in it and happily added songs which give meaning to every moment of my present life. Yihee!

Books and Wristwatch

I've found another nursing book and a french guide book with CD at the Booksale:

The book (above) contains nursing procedures for easy reference and NCLEX-type questions to refresh my aging memory. What I like about it is its glossy pages.

I've tried reading the French book with accompanying CD for correct pronunciation of French phrases. This is to prepare me for Canada. Joke! I just want to learn new language. I still prefer US in case I would work abroad.

and a nice fancy wristwatch at the tiangge in Greenhills:


The wristwatch is actually a steal, with its nice elegant style for just a cheap price! For a price of Php200, pwede na pang-duty and pamporma.

Top

Here's another kikay stuff I wanna share with you:

Got this from Girlshoppe. The beadwork is so cute and elegant plus I look slim on it. The bruise on my right arm is caused by my anti-HBS screening. Ouchie? Not! Hehe!

New Skin

Hello! Since we have a new (and better, I hope!) president, I'm changing my blog's layout. It's easy to the eyes and has a better aura :)

Monthsary!

Ron and I have been together for almost 4 years. The love and passion hasn't changed--I don't know why but that's the way it is and I'm thankful for it. Our relationship is far from perfect because we're totally different individuals who have different wants and views that sometimes we disagree on personal or geeky matters. He's more geeky and nerdy than me. Peace, honey!

We celebrated our monthsary by doing what we both love doing--eat out! We went to Greenhills and tried the "Good Burger" burgers. Good because their patties are either veggies or chicken which are good for the heart. We love the Margherita burger. It has basil, mozzarella cheese, and grilled tomatoes. The sight of the melting cheese and the smell of the grilled tomatoes and basil are really mouth watering.

Photo taken from here

Then, my friend Maui called me up and came over to Greenhills all the way from Paranaque. She tagged along her roommate Riza. We shopped around the tiangges and Maui surprised me with another birthday gift! I saw it in Style on Air (SOA) and she surprised me with this while I was ogling at the cute accessories of SOA:

I'm so blessed! Thank you, Lord :)

Physical Exam

Went to DLSMC for my physical exam. The total package cost me P650: anti-hbs, hbs-ag, ua, fecalysis, cxr, pregnancy test, cbc. The anti-HBS or hepa-B titer which I had 2 days ago cost me P581. Dang! Patience is a virtue. I should have waited for HR's text.

The hepa-B titer was supposed to be for PGH volunteer program. Perhaps it's not my destiny to be in PGH. How many attempts did I take to apply for that institution? staff nurse, APCN, EVRP--laging nauudlot, always something's coming up. I dunno. Maybe my first course (BA ES) in UP naming mahal is enough? I dunno.

Moving forward, I'm not excited about my upcoming nursing job. Or this is anxiety, maybe. God please help me cope with everyday stress at work. Please guide me and lend me your wisdom so I won't get incident report or something like it.

Note to self: take multivits and neurobion :)

Erratum

I just want to correct the email address I've posted previously of Cardinal Santos. It's csmccareers@gmail.com (not csmcareers@gmail.com-kulang ng letter "c").

Job Hunting

To start off, I just want to share what my friends experienced in PGH application. I advised them to come before daybreak to make it to the quota of available slots. OA daw ako, etc. True enough, they weren't able to pass the requirements in PGH. Pano ba naman, 1 day before pa lang ng schedule madami na daw pumila. Strange but true. Kung sa U.S., OA ang pila sa Harry Potter books and ipods, dito, nursing jobs ang blockbuster. Pero naman kase, PGH yon. Just like in issuance of working visa in the US, once every 2 years lang ata sila mag-open, manpower pooling pa. Meron din sila volunteer program, need mo magpa-Hepa B titer or vaccine for that.

Anyway, may good news pa din naman. I was able to pass my application in VRPMC along EDSA near Boni Ave. They require a rating of 80% and above, pero madaming nakalista sa log sheet na below 80%. Tama yun, try lang ng try. Go ng go, at least nagpasa ka. The usual requirements for nurses are needed. PAg kulang daw, pwede naman to follow on the day of examination pag tinawagan ka.

Sa Cardinal Santos naman (Wilson St., Greenhills), they gave us their email address (csmcareers@gmail.com), just email your resume and put in the subject heading position you're applying for (ex. Applicant for Staff Nurse position). I just emailed mine a while ago. Your resume must contain all seminars and trainings you've attended, etc. etc. that would convince them that you're the best nurse in the land.

Frustrated kami ni Leah sa San Juan Medical Center and UERMMMC (tama ba 3 m's?) kase sa SJMC, gov't. hospital, closed daw. Pero they accept volunteers (wala na ko plan bumalik dun kung volunteer din lang kase syempre kelangan ng backer--paging ERAP Estrada! hehe!). Sa UERMMMC, hindi sila open for outsiders for staff nurse position (bwiset!). Ang lapit lang sana sa place ko.

I'll hit the road next week pag may pera ako and energy. Hangga't hindi ako pumipirma ng job contract sa Delos Santos eh I would consider other options pa din. Opportunities don't knock on your door, you should look for it.

Johns Hopkins

2 years ago, I dreamed of becoming a staff nurse in the best hospital to work in the US. I googled that BEST hospital and found out that it's Johns Hopkins Hospital.

So then and there, I searched Johns' website and tried applying online. I've found out that they have their own recruitment agency here in the Philippines that is SEAPCI (Southeast Asian Placement Center, Inc.). After two months, SEPACI called me up and asked if I'm still interested in Johns. Syempre, oo ang sagot ko. But the problem is I have no NCLEX yet, no IELTS, no hospital experience. So the personnel said that if ever I have a hospital job kahit na wala pa akong 1 year, tawagan ko daw sila to update my application status. Wag daw muna ako mag-IELTS kase nag-e-expire. Mag-NCLEX daw muna ako while I'm not yet busy.

I've heard from my classmate in highschool that Johns is really nice. She used to work there as a staff nurse. Before that, she was a nurse at the Philippine Heart Center. One of her patients encouraged her to apply their by attending on SEPACI's job fair a few years ago.

PGH is now open for manpower pooling

To my fellow nurses, I have received an email from PGH yahoogroups that the submission for nursing applicants is scheduled on June 10 8:30-12nn at the DNRD Office Room 4. Pero dapat mga 3a.m. pa lang ng madaling araw nakapila na tyo dun sa kung saan tyo papipilahin ng mahigpit na guwardya. List of requirements is at the website. Medyo may mga original documents na kailangan like Board Rating Certificate, TOR, etc. May form na ida-download to be filled up by your college's registrar regarding your ranking and general weighted average. If you have backers, kausapin nyo na.

NB: This is for manpower pooling only. It would take years to wait for you to be called and be hired by them.

Toxicity

I'm so thankful of my area that is 4A. Supportive at understanding ang staff sa 4A.

2 weeks pa lang ako sa Ward as a trainee (meaning, I still need mentoring and coaching) nito nahihirapan na ako. What more kung rookie staff na ako? Oh gosh! Please pray for me. Any area but the other side of 4A. You're asking why? Because "nangangagat" ang ibang staff dun, based on my experience last Tuesday.

The experience was pretty... pretty ugly! 2-10 shift ko that day. Tapos absent ang mga senior staff namin kaya nag-pull out ng 2 senior staff from 2 different floors. Yung isa mabait, mahinahon, maayos ang trato sa mga noobs like me, and maayos makipag-usap.

The other one is the EXACT opposite of all the traits I've stated above. Hell yeah!

Toxic begins at around 4p.m. Patient X is for thoracenthesis stat due to some fluids accumulated in her lungs. "Stat" means now which results from panic among young doctors and nurses (me and my supposed mentor) because we have to prepare the materials needed which are not readily available in our area. True enough, when the consultant (specialist doctor) does the procedure, kulang-kulang ang gamit nila kaya labas pasok ako sa room ng patient.

After the procedure, the specimen aspirated from the patients lungs is MISSING. That's the start of the crankiness of my "buddy." She's a smoker, by the way, kaya ganun. She scolded me hanapin ko daw kase patient ko yun dapat alam ko ano ginamit sa kanya etc.

I found the specimen vial in the yellow trash bin (yellow=infectious). She's the one who discarded it. Darn it.

Toxic relative: Now, the patient's daughter, who turns out to be a health worker, arrives and complains that the procedure was incorrectly done daw. She wasn't even there kaya natatawa lang ako nung umaangal sya sa kin na kesyo "mali ang tusok nyo."

Toxic patient: The husband calls the nurse's station to report that his wife has turned into paper white appearance. Sobrang pale nya. So the resident doctors arrive and checks her blood pressure (60/palpatory=hypotension) and made some orders: ECG (c/o me), CBG (c/o me), dopamine drip (c/o me), lab works (c/o med tech.). My buddy left me alone on these tasks. Good riddance, tinulungan ako ng co-trainee ko who has 8 months experience in the ICU. What a relief!

Aside from these tasks, may mga documentation pa yan, may 2 pa akong patients na aasikasuhin who need medications and monitoring. May charting pa. In fairness to my senior buddy, she did naman the charting of the toxic patient. Grabe, every hour may doctor's order pa.

Finally, that patient was ordered to be transferred to ICU (c/o me and my senior buddy).

After transferring the patient, akala ko uwian na. May 2 patients pa pala ako. I did a skin test with the newly admitted patient to test if he's allergic to the antibiotic that he needs. Tapos charting/documentation ulit.

Ayon, natapos din ang gabi, nakauwi ako ng intact ang sanity at license ko.

Double Shift

Last Saturday I was pulled out to ICU during the night shift. Boy am I so glad! I miss the ICU! True enough, I enjoyed the experience of being there again, though in a different hospital. It's like being at home. I handled a benign (easy to manage) case. My patient has a heplock (a device inserted into the vein of your hand into which nurses inject some medications) and an oxygen via nasal (through the nose) cannula ONLY and the usual hourly monitoring of vital signs, e.g., blood pressure, temperature, pulse rate, and breathing.

Come 5 a.m. the senior staff nurse asked if I wanted to render another 8 hours (that's 6am-2pm!) because some staff nurses won't be reporting for work. I thought it's ok so I said yes. I was groggy by 7am. I couldn't focus. I'm making medication cards for the nth time and I couldn't get it right. I tried to focus on medication administration just to make sure my license won't get provoked by medication errors.

As the day progresses, I am able to cope with lack of sleep. I didn't get a nap at all out of hiya with my superiors in spite of them asking me to try to get a quick nap.

Note to self: hindi ko na uulitin ang mag-16 hours when it's 10pm-6am going to 6am-2pm.

PVZ

I've been so preoccupied with playing plants vs. zombies the past few days that's why I haven't been blogging. It's my only outlet after a hard day's "work" at 4A in the hospital. I survived 69 flags in endless mode and still trying to beat myself for that. Pag sinipag, I would try to cheat on lots of suns to get me through the 100 flags.

4A is the next most toxic floor in our hospital. What I mean by "toxic" is when there are so many patients with too many things to monitor plus irate relatives all to be handled by one nurse. Thank heavens there are relievers, nurse trainees, ward clerk, and nursing assistants who make a staff nurse's life easier.

Baler, Aurora

It's my second time in Baler, Aurora. Last year that I've been there was not so fun because we were sort of "lured" and "kidnapped" by a religious group who wants to "evangelize" us and be one of them. Sounds like a cult huh. We felt betrayed at the time, but I don't want to talk about it here. Maybe some other time.

The road going to Aurora (formerly part of the Quezon province) is narrow, rough, steep, and uncemented. You need a SUV, bus or trucks to ensure a safe and anti-vomit trip.

The road is a work-in-progress since last year:

A little progress in every 10 kilometers with only half of the road cemented:

The Sierra Madre mountain range in the morning--takes my breath away!

We stayed in Bay's Inn in Sabang, Baler--the favorite and common surfing spot in Aurora

Bay's Inn has WiFi, good accommodation with affordable rates

The good surfers are the locals:

This dude is so cool! Parang nakatayo lang sa waves o!

The pa-cute guys/gals just lie on their surfboards:

Next year if I go back here, I will try to brave the waves to surf. The surfing lesson with instructor is Php300.

Bye-bye Amang Rodriguez

I backed out from my orientation in Amang Rodriguez Memorial Medical Center last Thursday in lieu of De Los Santos Medical Center. Too bad I wasn't able to serve in a government hospital. I passed my application in Amang in December last year and got a call from them only two weeks ago. I called the Nursing Office and asked if I could join in the next batch. The personnel said the next batch is already filled up and the next application period will be next year.

So bye-bye to Amang.

De Los Santos is accepting applicants for staff nurses. Just go the HR office at the basement near the parking lot and the back of the hospital and give your requirements to the guard on duty.

By the way, I'm off to Baler, Aurora in a few minutes. Looking forward to surfing (if I could brave the waves and if I could afford it).

Ciao!

4th Day

This is my fourth day in DLS as a trainee. It's not fun-filled dahil walang makukulit sa group. Lecture days until May 5. We already had exams yesterday on dosage calculations and a 100-item enumeration/fill-in-the-blanks exam on nursing procedures/skills (funda kung funda talaga!).

Just to review, here are some questions from the super enumeration-filled exam. I've provided the surest answers I got:

> complications of giving otic meds in its extreme condition=vertigo, dizziness ...

> things you should avoid in choosing intramuscular injection site=mole, birthmark, scar tissue,

> subcutaneous injection sites=lateral upper arms and thighs, fat pads on abdomen, upper hips

> reasons why you should rotate injection sites in giving insulin

> stock dose of potassium chloride = 40mL/20mL

> the best injection site for emaciated and elderly patients

> the best injection site for 7 months old and above = ventrogluteal

> the best position when instilling nasal meds

> indications for nasogastric tube insertion

> indications for indwelling catheter

> examples of meds for treating glaucoma = beta blockers and NSAIDS

> reasons for doing tracheostomy care

> reasons for doing suctioning

I find this one question so mind-boggling: give 6 reasons why you have to fill the urinary catheter balloon with 10mL of PNSS... I mean, why does it have to be 6 reasons? I can only give 2 sensible answers, 4 are just wild guess. In the book, there are only 2 reasons. Maybe I should ask Mr. JP about it. If only we're allowed to save the presentation in our personal USB's.

Hamburger Speaker

Presenting the mighty hamburger speaker! It's actually a dupe of the X-mini speakers. I got this generic because it's way cheaper than the X-mini (P1,600 vs. 600). I'll just use it for personal purposes like watching movies in my laptop, anyway. It has a quaint bass sound, pwede na rin. I had it replaced with a new one because the previous unit that I got was defective. Mabait naman yung pinagbilhan ko sa Virra Mall, pinalitan kahit walang receipt (note to self: always DEMAND a receipt!).

I'm currently downloading via torrenthound Twilight series and Coco before Chanel movie. I just finished downloading Empire Records after watching it from JackTV. Wala lang, trip ko lang kase yung soundtrack and ang cute ni Rene Zelweger and Liv Tyler in their mini-skirts sa movie. Hanap nga ko sa ukay-ukay ng skirt na ganun.

UPCAT

Ron and I went to UP Manila this afternoon to get the UPCAT form for my cousin who is in Isabela province, but to no avail. Sabi ng guard sa entrance in front of Robinson's Manila, sa May pa daw available. So tumawid na lang kami sa mall para mag-stroll. We sat and chat at a coffee shop and had vanilla frap and chocolate moist cake. So-so ang cake, pero the coffee was superb.

Then, we strolled around and hit the toys 'r us to look for Iron Man War Machine (ang bagong trip na i-collect ni Ron-ron). He wanted the 6-inch version pero wala pa rin stocks. Kahit sa greenhills at cubao wala nito. Saan kaya meron? Sa Quiapo? Divisoria? Addict kase si Ron sa mga action figures. Anyways, it's a good investment because a lot of guys out there are always looking around for these stuff and actually buying and collecting them.

My Digicam's Busted

My digicam's twisting lcd is acting up. The image that's supposed to be seen in the LCD suddenly switches to the viewfinder (the eyepiece) once I twist and press the lcd against the camera's body. It's hard to sort or view pictures from the viewfinder, I have to squint my eye kasi ang liit!

This problem started after my brother borrowed it. There are really some people na hindi kasundo ng mga gadgets. Ultimo digital watch nasisira sa kanya. Hahaha! Idaan na lang sa tawa. I can't afford to have it repaired because I've read that repairs are expensive. On the other hand, I'm thinking of having it checked at Canon Service Center in Chino Roces, Makati baka minor lang naman like there may be some loose connections lang that need tinkering.

Photo taken from letsgodigital.org

Good day!

After long weeks of waiting, here at last is the text message from Delos Santos-STI Medical Center:

Now I'm ready for it! I'll say good bye to Plants vs. Zombies once duty starts (sacrifice). I won't be late or absent until I'm a regular employee (hehe! joke!). I will be good (even if others are not).

I need to thank God for this long-awaited opportunity. At long last, after 2 years of being a jobless nurse, here it is. I know that He directed me to be a part of this hospital because He knows that it is the best one for me (after so many failures in SLMC --2nd priority in Global, and failed in the 2nd exam in QC).

Day Trip 2

The ancestral home is owned by the Monreal's, Ron's family friend.

Froy Monreal

Dr. & Mrs. Monreal

The nipa hut is their resthouse located at the back of their school.

Sarap magkwentuhan dito

Sarap din magbasa

At masarap din mag-siesta kase nakakaantok ang simoy ng hangin.

Umuwi na din kami ng Manila bandang 3pm. We stopped by Los Banos to buy some buko pie here in The Original Buko Pie. The smell of it makes my tummy go hungry even if I'm not.

Day Trip

Went to Pila, Laguna last Wednesday with Ron, Tita Len, and Ate Kay. I joined them without being able to do my morning rituals (as in di pako naligo and toothbrush--eew!) because they picked me so early in the morning and I slept very late due to Plants vs. Zombies.

There's no heavy traffic in SLEX and we reached Calamba by 6am.

We stopped by Burger King in Calamba for breakfast. I didn't like the bacon, too thin and bland. But I like their spam sandwich and onion rings.

We arrived in Pila at around 7a.m. This is the rest house of Ron's family friend at the back of their family owned Colegio Monterei de Pila. I love this nipa hut particularly this spot--chillax with a coke on a hot summer day!

Then we drove around and dropped by their ancestral home (soon to open to public).

To be continued..

Little Things that Make Me Happy

I thought it's so phallic. Haha. I need these pens in charting and kardex-ing in the hospital. I love the pink mech. pen (beside the syringe pen) because it writes like a ballpen and the pencil doesn't break at all. I bought the Heineken and the upper pens at Greenhills toy shops. The yellow faber castel the red eraser are from NBS.

These are fancy erasers in a lock-lock-like food keeper. I bought this in one of the toy shops in Virra Mall (Php59 only!).