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.

Out Patient Chemotherapy

      For 4 days, I will be on hospital duty orientation. Together with other clinical instructors Don Bansuan, Lloyd Lepiten, Chona Barrun and PJ Arrangues, we will be acquainting ourselves with the  Out-Patient Chemotherapy Infusion Room of  Davao Doctors Hospital, the FIRST and the ONLY one in Mindanao.

     It has followed the regulations being set by PhilHealth, allowing more safety area for the nurses in preparation and administration of this drugs. Chemotherapeutic drugs are toxic in nature and  the preparation should not be anymore be done in clinics or bedside of the patient.

Chemotherapy cycles, depending on drugs and the case, or  hours of infusion varies and may range as little as 3 hours which means that there is no need for the patient to be admitted in the hospital.

Patients are also kept comfortable with Lazyboy couches which can be reclined when they want to lie while the treatment is going on. The room is also air-conditioned  with one TV to give the place a homey feel. For the meantime, both adult and pediatric cancer patients are treated in the same infusion room but a separation of the two will materialize soon.

I observed the facility more today and the process much more than the patients. We weren't allowed to deal with the patients much . I wanted to watch the insertion of a Porta-cath today, one of the central lines inserted in the upper chest and  just below the clavicle or the collar bone.

Earlier, we got more familiar with the common used chemotherapy drugs and those that values as high as P 300,000 per vial. Yes, there are people who can buy that given at the rate twice a week.

      The unit is one very hepflul area for many cancer patients. I believe, that this again will boost the level of medical competence of the hospital also. More than that, a place of hope for patients who is fighting for one disease feared by many because of its unpredictability.

   I have 2 cancer stories to share making me appreciate the treatment. It has taught me to appreciate science and its quest to augmenting one cancer patient's life to a lot more year. It has taught me of the value of the facility being able to understand the care of the cancer patients.

    I still have 3 days to more to this area which I learned does not allow students inside due to probably of the small space. However, they can be called to observe  minor procedures such as Bone Marrow Aspiration.

    Tomorrow is another day. Earlier, we dealt with Liver Ca, Breast Ca, Multiple Myeloma.  Tomorrow will be another round of nursing care for patients with cancer again..another round of learning..and another round of appreciating life.

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.

      

One Goal.One Heart.One Nursing Team

            Yesterday, the college celebrated 'Nursing Day". It was one of those days you get to relax from a strenuous routine and just be happy. 

            I may not share the same sentiments with my colleagues, but it is in this time that I get to see the real personality of my students. I get to see the other gifts they possess. I get to again be in awe of the creativity they have. It is in these that i cannot help thinking again of my school days. We all had our chances, mine was the best for me..but for someone whose life majored in schooling, i get a pang of jealousy seeing a life infront of me whose only worries are the pressures of putting up a good entry in a competition.  

           I have had a lot of students..i have shared most of my professional life with them and gave a mountful of my heart as well. Seeing these students excel in another side of their lives is inspirational to me. Knowing some of students in the best ability they have ,sometimes more than their parents have seen, is an honor for me. It gives another meaning of living specially for me who still in my quest to make a family.These nursing students will always be unique in their own way.           
              The day was a celebration of life and blessings and the nursing course itself..it was a day to remember that we are ONE in heart...that we have ONE GOAL..and we are ONE TEAM out there to defend what we have. The presentations made gave me the idea that this batch will not be easy to beat. Even those classes i deemed underdogs in school presentations, had me speechless and jaw dropped proving me wrong. The essence of teamwork...the magnificence it brings and the impressions it breaks made a point very clear to me.

           I salute these students for having still the hearts of a warrior, an artist..and a nurse. It is when i see them that i forget the professional pressures and drama of my work...it is when i see them that I forget how struggling we are with what is laid for us ...it is when i see them that i smile and see what my worth is.

Thoracotomy and Enjoying Operating Rooms

         At last, i have been assigned to be in the Operating Room. It has been 5 months now, and for the many times i have been marveled and awed by what I witness, it is just now that i blogged. The many things one could just imagine, is right before my eyes. And it has been "usual" already but the existence of such faculties never cease to amaze me.


        Like last weeks surgery was Thoracotomy. But in the many instances that I have witnessed such, it has always left me dazzled how the human body can be opened, the patient's chest for that surgery, without damaging other vital organs. That , when the chest right cavity was opened (which made abdominal cavity visible as well), you could actually see  the liver, diaphragm rise and fall as  the patient breathes. 
         It was like choreography at it's finest but we're not talking of a dance...it's real teamwork. The anesthesiologist, surgeon, nurses and students were so fast and careful..a vital thing for survival of a patient who know and feel nothing of what is done to him.
        And that amidst the opening, incising, cutting, suturing..it returned to it normal form once again..and much important, to it's normal functioning. 
       O well, i maximize what i see everyday and learn from it. It will always interest me as long as i'm there.

CRABS at C-TRES Buffet

         We spent our weekend dinner at C-TRES Buffet restaurant. I wanted to treat them with my extra cash with one of the sought buffet restaurants in town, C-TRES Restaurant. They serve also unlimited delicious Crabs (fried). The other food served were also very delicious you wouldn't want to stop. I ate something like cordon blieu that was so tasteful that I didnt notice i filled my plate with it.


       The desserts for that night was also as good as the rest of the food. C-Tres is one best place to spend meals with families and friends. You can take your visitors and Davao will have a good impression with it.


         Try Dining at C-Tres which combines soothing elegant ambiance, good food and affordability ( P 299 per person). The dining experience will be truly extra-ordinary.

Driving Done Today

     I finally drove today on the busy streets of the city..it was fun and scary at the same time. I drove a Manual Vios sedan car today and i did wish i had one like that. I had more respect now with traffic rules and intelligent driving.


     I was beginning to control well my footwork today. Then I was able to understand engines and the way they sound. It was funny knowing that all my life I have been a nurse listening to patients and students..now i'm listening to the agony of the engines. But it helped that the anxiety rushed my ability to pick-up things. Good thing, my teacher driver was so nice and very patient. He could take in the many instances was accidentally releasing my clutch.


    All in all, i realized I could make it. I was no different than the other females i deemed dainty but was able to understand the complexities of driving. I was like them, I could make it.  I'm glad with that

Driving Jitters

Im about to start driving class tomorrow, and no matter how I think of it as an easy task to accomplish, I still have butterflies on my stomach. Will I be able to follow the instructions? Will I be able to sustain the pressure? Will I be able to calculate my speed. This is like taking midterm exams back in college.


But whatever it is, I have to believe  that I can do it. I have been reading books about positive thinking and power of thinking, maybe I can use them tomorrow. I just have to remember that there were other girls who seemed can't make it but they did, so I wouldn't be any different.


I wonder if the rest of those who took driving felt what I do now?Or maybe I'm just too emotional? So me.

the best of july 2010

(these are shots taken by my brother and my cuzin, Jesmon ..they are posted much on my storypix tab)

..but really, aside from this wedding being the best of this affair....at par to it was the fact the my family (on both sides) had the time to spend time and fun again ...

....that even how different and busy our present lives are, we are the same persons when we are together....

..that no matter how far each of us lives (by the new places or countries we dwell).....no new culture will change the way we call, tease and make fun of each other..

....that no matter how we matured individually, no matter how many years were taken from us...nothing will make us strangers from each other...and that we remain remembering where we all came from and how things were so simple before....

......and so long as we are family...and as many more will be part of us...we will always have each other, more than just company....=)

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.

buying air mileage points

im recently into buying air mileage points...looking for people whose air mileage points are about to expire or people who have no plans of using them..these would be my offers:

- Northwest WORLDPERKS or Delta SKYMILES >>> you get 13,000 pesos for every 30k miles.
- Philippine airlines MABUHAY MILES >>> you get 14,000 pesos for every 30k miles.
- Cathay Pacific ASIAMILES OR MARCO POLO CLUB >>> you get 13,000 pesos for every 30k miles.
- Singapore airlines KRISFLYER >>> you get 13,000 pesos for every 30k miles.
- Continental airlines ONEPASS >>> you get 12,000 pesos for every 30k miles.
- Emirates SKYWARDS >>> you get 16,000 pesos for every 45k miles.
- Air France/KLM FLYING BLUE >>> you get 16,000 pesos for every 45k miles.
- United airlines MILEAGE PLUS >>> you get 14,000 pesos for every 30k miles.
- Thai airways ROYAL ORCHID >>> you get 10,000 pesos for every 30k miles.
- Lufthansa MILES AND MORE >>> you get 16,000 pesos for every 45k miles.
- Qatar airways PRIVILEGE CLUB >>> you get 13,000 pesos for every 35k miles.
>> and many more!




If your mileage balance is below the expected as per above, talk to us so we can discuss and arrange the best way to use it.


joni          - 639228234673
celeste   - 639228611562

almost gave up

I almost gave up blogging online, because my links just don't work on this page. I have opened sites how to fix the problem on my site , but none of them answered my queries. I had to take all the widgets out of my site.

It has bugged me for days.. I'm glad i had all the time today to fix it. My links worked again for some reason (lol!). Now I can continue blogging and promoting sites I love and trust for my friends and almost friends.

Something Cold to End the Duty

        There will always be times when you want to grab something really cold after duty. It has been 8 hours of busy work today from 3pm until 11pm. There were quite few unscheduled surgeries tonight, The Girl with the Dragon Tattooall were major cases. It had us up and walking for the whole shift. 

        Amidst the aircon and clean area, I craved for some ice cream after work. Probably another smoothie also. It was odd because it would probably be near midnight when my shift ends. I have been thinking of it, the moment I stepped inside the workplace. 
       I got what I wanted, of course. McDonald's was just near us, so, I stormed there right away and bought some delicious Sundae icecream for myself and McFlurry. This was definitely one best way of ending my duty for the week.

funny things shoes teaches

I just did my first of 5 Day lecture today. It was a topic I have always been eager to teach my students and like the rest of the members in our team, I had my lecture materials prepared weeks before the BiG day.

I wore my favorite, black high heeled shoes to uplift the aura of professionalism during lecture classes. I do believe in "dressing well" creates a good impression that you are serious with your craft.

But apart from being ready was the failure to anticipate change in room assignments or failure to accept that I will be assigned in the room I would have least chosen. On that same day, I was startled with the idea turning into reality and it took me long to accept that my name was placed in the a room located on the fourth floor of the new building, 100 meters away from the main building I work.

But like the motto of performers, "the show must go on!"...well, in my case, "the lecture has to go on!". I swallowed my hesitation and tried to breathe normally again as I started trudging. The first travel, I had to describe in a such, was bearable even with the uneven ground.

Then I was confronted with the stairs of the new building comprising of 2 divisions per floor of 14 steps. Yes, I had to walk my way up for there were no elevators. I had my laptop and my LCD projector with me. But as soon as I entered the room and started my introductions, I had to go down again because one student was infected with Varicella that I had to endorse her to the clinic.

I had to go down and return to the main building.

Then I had to go back and up to my lecture room.

The feet was starting to feel pain. The lecture started 8am and lasted 5pm which meant I stood and walked several times across the room to deliver my lecture effectively to my students. There was no way I was going down the building to eat lunch.Thanks to my friend, Don, who was kind enough to bring me lunch. That was the best help I had for the day.

Then After my lecture, I had to go down the stairs and go back walking in heels again to the main building. It was agony, nearly bearable.

And if my feet could just run away from the battery and harrassment, it would have scrammed the moment I knew where my room was located.

Funny and childish the story this may sound, but it reminded meof being prepared at all times. It told me to always have a back-up plan. It reminded me that, in life, things will always be subject to change..and the best way to deal with it is to prepared at all times. In my case, no more dressing up with high heeled shoes for the rest of the lecture days. I was lucky that day to have even be able to walk down the stairs and go home.

Funny day it was..., that it had me ache for sooo much pain in my feet to know that again.

YOUR TALK : It Matters

Patience is a virtue...that's what they say all the time..but there are instances that it's too damn hard to be patient. I had an encounter today with a person, who apparently was just doing his job ...for asking us our intentions to visit a place. It could have been okay, but what would you do if they make you feel that you're a no good person whose only purpose is to malign him and his job.

          And he could have just said to my aunt, the one who was  driving...to just pull over where there was shade and asked for an ID. He could have just addressed us nicely.

        Maybe it was because of the heat of the sun..that i just blurted out without hesitation. The anger was too hard to contain..that patience was somehow a stranger to me.

        Then again..it just proved to me that doing your job well includes being able to communicate nicely. I have always expected that to a lot of people, even if my beau says it shouldn't be the case.. that not all people have that prowess..


          I yet that i have to accept that fact.