Say Goodbye to Surgical Scrubbing

       Surgical scrubbing means  doing a systematic routine of washing hands and arms following specific number of strokes. It involves lathering, soaking, and brushing one hand and arm and then the other. My students always do that before they start preparing the sterile field for the surgery. I remember doing that and counting the strokes in my mind at the same time.

       But when I when I went to duty last Monday, I noticed that the scrubbing area did not have that canister that contained the surgical scrub brushes. I looked for it but all the 3 scrubbing areas did not have that canister. I even thought that the staff of the previous shift did not just have the time to prepare it.

       Then, I was told that we were not using that anymore. There will be no surgical scrubbing done anymore in this hospital. Instead, a surgical handwashing solution replaces the surgical scrubbing procedure. All we need to do is wash our hands and our arms thoroughly with this solution and then we are already sterile enough to start wearing our surgical gown and gloves.

      
      Then I learned that hospitals from other countries also followed the same method. I was told that there are researches conducted which stated that surgical scrubbing breaks the integrity of the skin and predisposes us to infection. I will have to research on that to learn more.

       So, there will no be surgical scrubbing in this health facility. But still, the principle of Asepsis will be strictly followed.

Bidding Goodbye to CI Friends in Tears

 

              (Thanks to Ma'am Lourdes Pastoriza for the effort to compile the images to speak what we have been through for the past days.)


It has been heavy for me to see the people from workplace to leave all of a sudden. The entry of new management and the sudden downfall of nursing enrollees have affected much the college that it had to resort to cost-cutting measures. We have seen this coming but sudden change of events made an organized planning result to something more than chaotic. The gloom was not because of the measure, it was because of the manner of implementation and the untimely order.


To go back to the story, will hurt me again. I have been bestfriends with some of the CI's leaving, and even considered them family. I will miss the company of Ktine Pedreso, Ate Malu Serrano and Ken Sabido badly. I will always be grateful for being there at times that I seem grasping to breathe.  I will miss a dear friend, Jim Ofonda, who has helped much the College of Nursing in giving the best ceremonies which the nursing students deserve. I  will miss the times that we poured our hearts out in ceremonies over a beer and ..o well, beer.


I will miss the rest of the CIs who, in one way or the other,  have helped me respect my discipline. I may have had clashes with the others, but I believe that the best of what I am now is also because of them.


I will always be thankful for them who allowed me to comfortable with them, share laughter with them, even allowed me bullying them for clean fun. I will aways be grateful for them, who I shared strengths with in our quest of giving the best to our students.  I will always treasure the friendship we shared amidst the difference in maturity, opinions and lifestyle.


Then, I will miss the old lair.. the Nursing faculty room, where all of us meet and breathe from a tiring hospital duty or classroom lecture. It will now house other educators. I will miss what we had dearly.. it will never be home again.

"How can we get through this effectively?"...taking the words of Louie Dagangon ..THAT will be a thought for us to ponder as the new sem begins.

We bid goodbye and good luck.... to our Dean Linell Malimbag, Assistant Dean Danilyn Isidor, RLE Supervisors Rose Barza, Jim Ofonda, Rachel Cornites, Galacio Luciano and Paolo Santos, Clinical Coordinator Mam Leah Arrangues..and to the Clinical Instructors who went out last April 20 and availing the early retirement offer. (these are the CIs seen on the late part of the video)

And lastly to the12 CIs who recently had been categorized as redundant...the DDC College of Nursing will not be the same again.

          Balmores           Suello  
          Estalani              Castillo    
          Serrano              Sabido  
          Estrada               Gacusana  
         Arrangues             Alfaras
          Cabradilla           Branzuela

     I wish these colleagues the best of life. We all have our own reasons for leaving and for staying. We may not be close with all of those who are leaving but we cannot deny the fact that each of them is a part of what we are today.. that our disciplines are crafted because we worked as a team.

      The respect and friendship among us is something they will never be able to take away from us , no matter how much others project that they share the same with us and no matter how great others think of themselves. 

       God bless colleagues.. see you around.

Related Learning Experience Fees and Legalities

     Learning Related Experience (RLE) is part of the nursing curriculum to ensure that the nursing students practice adequate amount of hours in the clinical area. In this given hours, the nursing students are expected to learn the several competencies in the field of nursing. The clinical areas deemed includes hospital, academe or community.

     The RLE corresponds fee paid for the instruction, the facilities, the clinical area and the clinical instructors. However, there has been legal turmoils in workplace where RLE has been a main topic. The fees are given to the clinical instructor if the semester includes RLE rotation for the students. All of these has been stipulated in the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) Memo Order #14 Series of 2009 or  CMO #14. It stands in the premise as not paying RLE fees if no duties has been incurred.

    However, recently, there has been issues pertaining to such even in my workplace. Yes, apparently, the removal of the RLE Fee for this summer (2 months) will be financially stressful to us considering the amount is almost 50% of our basic pay.

  

    Now, if it has been stipulated in CMO#14 then we should have expected it. True.

    However, there was no notice of removal given nor notice to explain given which are vital elements of due process. In my personal account, the explanations prior to implementation was vague and indefinite. Just to our abyss, the final decision has been made before we were given  a day in the court to say our piece.

    And as much as we would keep things in subtle, the precipitating factor will give us the courage to seek legal assistance to keep what was given to us voluntarily and we have been receiving for years.

    The figures are seen in our payslips..each month..taxed.

    Yes it is now a benefit, therefore, it should NOT be taken.

Bidding Goodbye to Friends on a New Semester

    And a new semester again opens for us...but this time, sadness has finally sank.Twenty three (i think) of the friends left the premises of the workplace for something better or something "breather" for them. And in that 23 individuals are close friends who once in a while, i laughed my hearts out with, raged my anger with and cried my tears as well. I will remember these people who have made my work very seemingly "stress-free" and worthy of being looked forward each day.


              Like they say, nothing is permanent in this world...whatever you have now that makes you happy might not be there for you tomorrow. For us who are left, i look back to the reason for staying. I look back still seeing the same reason..the vocation to teach and the comfort of being with people you are happy with. But this reason is to be held real tight for it comes with a financial disadvantage, as much as we don't want to think about it.


                 But seriously, we are in a new semester hoping to give what is left with us to our students. We continue in our quest to mold young nurse individuals inspite of our own personal turmoils. I look at us and see friends that still make the workplace the best place for my persona. I don't entertain  negativism nomatter how strong they are and no matter how apt they are for the moment I do, it will cease everything I have held high for long.


    There will always be mixed emotions..now as juggled as ever. I see the same people, and a system bruised and struggling to stand.    


     I see a community with diverse values but wills to be united ..
     I see more people confused as ever but willing to finish the task ....
     I see traitors who mask identity to keep their places ......
     I see silent audiences who ignore and just work as hard as they can...
     I see a system bleeding but holding on to values it has always stood for...
     I see good people who brings out the best of what they can do no matter how complicated things are ....


      I see a community still faithful to their calling ...willing to battle with the hardships of the coming semester..willing  to overcome the differences that prevails..willing to forgive and extend help to each other.  I am in a community where everyone continues to complement each other to make the day efficient.


       With all the uncertainties of the new semester...we have no choice but to restructure our confidence and values...we just have to ....because this quest is not for us alone..it is for the students who put us in pedestals...who shapes their values by even merely looking at us.  It is for them who remains to be the strongest reason for us to stay and continue our vocation.


           We will miss the friends who have left the work place.. most of them made the faculty room as lively as ever. We will miss the hands that once in our lives, has held us up and raised our morals. We will miss them who made even the most worse and boring RLE rotation as lively as ever. We will miss them who we talk to out of nowhere just to enjoy the company. We will miss them who were once our allies in bullying others for fun. We will miss them who had great contribution in our competency as nurses, no matter how we deny it or not. This is a peculiar road we travel...and it's nice looking and knowing that we formed friendships along the way. 


       And with that...we bid them goodbye...and 'til we meet again.

      

now more head hurts

no matter how everyone in my workplace hide it (or it seems it has not been hidden), the cut-off in salary is posing threat to all of us...that as we think about it, one's head literally hurts just thinking how to make ends meet.

how much can you still give if what you receive is not enough to sustain your family's needs. how do you keep yourself inspired  to be able to inspire your students?  how long do you keep understanding your friends/co-workers of their deficiencies when supplementing will not make you live well...

how do you stop one's self from fighting what is lawfully due to them? this i can no longer answer...just hope that there is maturity in one's understanding that..it's not you as a person but the system that forces you to act defenseless?

and so ...we let go of childish ideals and face reality...and hope that amidst the measures to redeem ourselves (and our families) without sacrificing the quality of our work...we retain whatever we perceived as  special relationship -- i would still friendship.