November 2008 RN Babies

Congratulations, you finally made it!

Welcome to the Nursing World!

To see your names on the list, click this link: November 2008 Philippine Nursing Licensure Exam

Cancer Free

This is to reflect last year of my mom's endurance and strong will in fighting thyroid cancer. She has been through a lot and I have never seen her shed a tear after all the excruciating pain of total thyroidectomy on top of other complications of hypertension, chronic use of steroids, and arthritis. For the past few months, she had kidney stones which she also battled through it. I am happy that she is now back to her normal activities and enjoying every single beauty of life. The following are the articles I wrote when she had the cancer:

Daily Profile of a Nursing Student
Caring Point
Overcoming Clumsiness

Future RN babies

Wishing all the luck to my 23 nursing babies and soon to be Registered Nurses!

The pressure is high as the exam date is nearing. As long as you take control of the anxiety, you will be fine. Take time to relax a day or 2 before the exam. I strictly do not recommend studying the night before the exam. You should be ready by now after all the months of preparation. Put in your mind that you will pass. Lastly, write down your full name with the initials RN after it.

Hoping to see you on the list of Registered Nurses. yey!

PNLE June 2008

Here's the list of examinees who passed the Philippine Nursing Licensure Exam on June 2008:
June Nursing Licensure Exam Results 2008

27,765 passed out of 64,459 examinees = 43%

Sure-fire Tips for NLE

Are you dreaded by the upcoming Philippine Nursing Licensure Exam? How many percent of mastery of nursing topics have you covered so far?

Some of the questions I often ask to my future colleagues. I think, if you have mastered the material and be able to explain on your own, then you are set to take the exam. Explaining a certain disease or topic to someone is the best way to gauge you understanding of the topic. Remember, if you combine the three ways of studying: reading, writing, and speaking, the more information will be retained. Certain study practices are relative to the person. So if you are a kind of person who studies with the aid of pictures, stick to visuals.

I am posting some tips that I learned while studying for the same exam. I wish I had known it sooner or applied it during practice exams. I did not land in the top ten but was proud to earn a grade high enough to be accepted by any tertiary hospitals. I would like to share it to thousands of future RNs.

To successfully pass the NLE, the following are the breakdown of individual allotment:

~60% Study effort
~25% Determination to pass
~10% Motivation
~5% Support (emotional, spiritual, social, psychological)
~100% Passing rate

Miss Lilac's Tips

o Read each question and answer c a r e f u l l y!

o Eliminate atleast 2 wrong choices, go back and read the situation, then select the correct answer

o When given choices with dates, years or numbers, choose the 2 in between among the selection: For example: a) 1997 b) 1990 c) 1996 d) 1999. Probable answer is between the two red choices. Only use this if you have completely no idea of the answer.

o Nursing interventions always starts with an assessment.

o Be familiar with Maslow’s Hierarchy, Erik Erikson, ABC’s, and Protocol in fire emergency, etc. As much as possible, master all the information in a table format in any nursing books.

o Communication Skills:
1) Check the statement if its TRUE
2) Check if the true statement is therapeutic. Eliminate all non-therapeutic statements.
3) If it is true and therapeutic, this is likely the answer

o Complete with general ideas or “umbrella” is usually the correct answer but not necessarily the longest answer. Most of the time, the longest choice is the correct answer.

o On the last week or 2 weeks before exam, practice answering on practice exams. Do not If you get 60% and above in all of the tests, there is a high possibility that you will pass!

o Be sure to have some knowledge listed below. The exam revolves on the eleven (11) core competency areas for nursing practice:

1. Safe and Quality Nursing Care
2. Management of Resources and Environment
3. Health Education
4. Legal Responsibility
5. Ethico-Moral Responsibility
6. Personal and Professional Development
7. Quality Improvement
8. Research
9. Record Management
10. Communication
11. Collaboration and Teamwork

o Take a break in between studying time. Do not force yourself to memorize the material if the brain cannot take it anymore. Have a break, talk to someone, watch TV, eat, or take a long walk. The brain is like a sponge it will absorb and process all the information when it is ready.

o Do not review on the last day before the exam. Take this time to relax and unwind.

o Get enough sleep the night before the major day. Prepare all the requirements before going to sleep.

o Last but not the least, write down your full name followed by (comma) RN in any sheet of paper like you really, really, mean it then smile.

Good luck!

Basic Life Support Courses

I have been searching for quite some time on different training centers that offer BLS/ACLS or any of the life support trainings or courses in the Philippines.

There are two centers that I know of offer several life support trainings in Manila: Philippine National Red Cross and Philippine Heart Center.

The Philippine National Red Cross has several chapters that caters all over Philippines. After the said training, you can be a volunteer under them. The training is usually a week long that starts from Monday to Saturday, 8am to 5pm except on Saturday (half day).

The Philippine Heart Center in Quezon City offers Basic Life Support trainings through Critical Care Nuses Association of the Philippines, Inc. (CCNAPI). For more details, visit http://ccnapi.multiply.com/.

Take note that those trainings offered in the Philippines are not credited when you go abroad. Most of the hospitals outside the coutnry require trainings that are accredited by the American Heart Association (AHA). So if you are heading to the US, it is a waste of money and time doing the training in PI when all hospitals in the US will offer the said trainings for free. The same goes for the Middle East countries, you will undergo training again with or without charge. But if you plan to work in the Philippines and stay for a while, the said trainings are deemed necessary as various hospitals have listed them as one of the requirements.

There is one center, however, as I have been browsing online that claimed their trainings are accredited by AHA. It is the Emergent Medical Training Center for Asia, an authorized provider of the American Heart Association courses in BLS, ACLS and PALS in the Philippines.

I have never heard any feedback about this center. Take a look at their courses fees, very dear! Basing on the fees, people will expect that the trainings are at par with the US and the certificates that will be received can be used elsewhere. I will also expect that after all the trainings, I am highly skilled in performing life suport to people. For those of you who have undergone in this center, please share your experience.

Fundamentals of Nursing

The eighth edition is here! I know it's pretty late but I really want this book. It was published early of 2007. I was able to read it in the library last summer 2008. I want it so bad to replace the old one and it would be an addition to my nursing books collection. I love investing in hardbound books just to feel the glossy paper and the sight of colorful pictures that would motivate me to learn more. It costs $72.52 plus free shipping at Amazon.com.

The new feature of the book showcases sample of nursing notes at the end of every nursing skill procedure. It serves as a guide on which important information to write down. I need to save some $ for this one. Gotta love nursing books!