December 2010 Nursing Licensure Exam (NLE) Results 2 comments

It's the time of the year once again where thousands of hopefuls in the country gather around computers screens, Googling in unision with bated breaths and pounding hearts. Hyperventilate no more, here is the result of the Nursing Licensure Exam held on December 19 & 20, 2010, released by the Philippine Regulatory Commission (PRC) this 19th of February 2011.

NLE Results December 2010    

CONGRATULATIONS to all newly passed RNs! :)

Welcome to the world of perpetual volunteerism! No, seriously, I salute each and everyone who had the nerve to face all the 500 questions without turning into a blubbering panicky mess. Now, the real challenge is about to be faced. The board exam is just for theory, now the practical exam, that is living as a nurse for the rest of your professional life, is about to begin. Good luck!

How Your Baby Develops Inside The Womb 0 comments

Ever wondered what happens inside the womb during pregnancy? This article delves into the magical process that brought people like you and me to the world.

A. First Trimester - period of organ development, which is the most critical period in fetal growth and development

FIRST MONTH

    Fetal Heart Tone (FHT) begins
    Central Nervous System (CNS) develops.
    Gastrointestinal Tract and Respiratory Tract remain as a single tube.

SECOND MONTH

    All vital organs are formed.
    Placenta is developed.
    Umbilical cord is developed.
    Blood is now pumping.
    Arm and leg ...

From: How Your Baby Develops Inside The Womb

Open Letter to Those Who Failed the Nursing Board Exam 22 comments

I may not know how you feel but I can empathize with the hundreds of thousands of exam takers who didn't see their names in the list of passers of this year's NLE. It's an endless cycle, twice a year thousands of new nurses rejoice, put RNs after their names and happily wait for their PRC cards while tens of thousands more cry and feel the bitter stab of jealousy and disappointment.

And I know from experience that it's not just personal disappointment that is so painful to endure. It's the expectations and hopes of people around us that can eat us up inside and make us feel utterly worthless. They've helped us get to where we are and offered us unending support. This is the only thing we can do to repay such debts and yet we cannot even manage to succeed in such a trivial task of passing an exam.

But things happen and they do for a reason. Remember, challenges come our way to be hurdled and defeated.

One thing I know is that passing or failing the board exam doesn't define who you are. The board exam is just a written test, designed to measure one's coginitive skills, guessing prowess and shading abilities. It doesn't asses one's nursing skills, how one deal with patients and colleagues and how one strives under pressure. It's a one sided exam, and failing it doesn't mean that you are good for nothing just because you weren't able to guess correctly the appropriate intervention for DOB.

Don't lose hope, don't surrender. Stand up and try to soar again. And if nursing isn't for you, then fine. Passing the exam isn't as hyped up to be anyways. If you think that the mere fact that you have a PRC license that says "Nurse" at the front will open up a world of opportunities and bring in endless flow of cash, then you're dead wrong. Thousands are still unemployed (including me) and half of the nursing population are at call centers answering call from strangers and/or contacting one to pitch in a product.

Nonetheless, it's great being a nurse. There can never be too much of people who are well-trained to care for the sick and the dying. It's a noble job, to have all the work yet little of the glory. The doctors come and go but we nurses are the ones who stay.

So if you really want to pursue the profession then stay. Stay motivated, stay strong and persevere. This is not the end of the world. There are unlimited number of chances you could take. That license could still be yours.

A failure is not always a mistake, it may simply be the best one can do under the circumstances. The real mistake is to stop trying.

B. F. Skinner

Secret Lives of Nurses 17 comments

Do you notice them? The ones in all white uniforms. The ones you call whenever there are problems in the IV line, with the medications, the hospital bed, rationed food, in house TV. Leaky faucet? Flickering lights? They are the ones you come running to.

Because they're there. They are always there. To answer every call, every need, even though most of it are still little things that are way beyond their duties.

Irritated at the laboratory because it's taking forever for the patient you are looking after to be scheduled for an ultrasound? It's okay, there are always nurses at the station for you to get mad at. Furious at your doctor for being out of reach and unavailable at the moment to take care of pressing concerns? All is well, here are the nurses to absorb your unspecified anger.

Do you notice them? Do you really notice them?

Do you notice that most of them are taking care of you for free? Yes, without compensation. Would you work for a company without a salary? Of course, not. But they would. They are, in fact, working for minimum wage or no wage at all.

Do you notice that they are professionals? In every sense and definition of the word, they are professionals. Like CPAs, teachers, engineers, architects, lawyers and doctors. (Yes, like doctors. The ones you can't even raise an eyebrow at because they look so darn respectable in those white coats.) They all have licenses and certificates to prove how far they've come and how much they've accomplished. Don't they deserve something for their time and effort?

Their services might be free now but be assured that their education wasn't. The books, uniforms, bags and other equipments were definitely not. Not to mention four years worth of daily food allowance and transportation expenses.

Did you also know that they have to undergo a myriad of trainings and seminars to get to where they are now? Apparently, their college diploma, PRC license, board certificate aren't enough to meet the standards.

Are you aware that in government hospitals, the nurse-patient ratio can get up to 1 nurse to 30 patients? In fact, in some institutions, it is considered a norm. Even waiters cannot serve 20 tables efficiently all at the same time. How much more can they?

So please don't blame them if their primary goal in life is to get out of the Philippines and support their families from thousands of miles away. It's not their fault that it's pretty much impossible to live on nothing. Entry level nurses can volunteer all they want but doing so doesn't put food on the table.

How's that? Feeling a little respect for them now? You should. Just imagine a world without them and maybe you'll somehow get a gist on how it's really like for nurses. Because it's obvious that not a lot of people are aware of the current state of our health care system. All everybody can see and concentrate on are the patients (and Reproductive Health like pregnancy is the new AIDS and H1N1 virus combined).  

It's depressing how nobody remembers to take care of these people whose primary job is to take care of others.

So next time you or your relative is in the hospital, try to notice them, understand them. And maybe, hopefully, you'll appreciate them a little better.

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2010 PHILIPPINE BLOG AWARDS
Special Category – Post, Photo Post and Video Post and Podcast

FINALIST, Top Three Posts for 2010

IVT Training: More than just learning how to prick people correctly 10 comments

After almost exactly a year after taking my Nursing Board Exam, I enrolled at an IVT Training at a hospital near our home. Yes, the perpetual laggard is a laggard no more. Almost all of my friends (those who are not stuck in a call center) have already undergone the said seminar and I'd be lying if I said that I didn't feel left behind. Plus, being able to initiate an IV line to a person an interesting skill to have, not to mention lifesaving. Plus plus, most hospitals require the green IV Therapist card given by ANSAP.

So anyways, in a nutshell, I thought the 3 day seminar will going to consist of various techniques and procedures on how to choose and hit the vein correctly. Also, I expected that we will be given tips on how to manage common complications in an IV line, how to be an IV guru, so on and so forth. In short, I thought the sacred secrets of IV initiation and management, things that were never shared with us when we were in college because it is reserved only for the worthy registered ones, will be imparted upon us. Heck, no.

Because of my wrong expectations, that I was a bit bored with the training. For a day and a half, things we already know were reiterated in the lecture like functions of fluid in the body etc. etc. I found myself more interested in the lecturer's personal tales in the hospital and tips on how to get a job and NOT volunteer. 95% of the participants are registered bums. Ouch.

2nd day was the demo day. I was further disappointed with it because (grouped into 12) we were the one tasked to perform the procedures and demo it to the whole class. I think it would be proper if the proctors did the demo themselves so that we could learn more from it rather than have us watch fellow participants who don't know half of what they are doing. Just my 2 cents. The preceptors did correct wrong techniques and after major tiptoeing and squeezing myself between other participants to get a better view I finally learned the proper steps on initiating an IV line and administering medication through Heparin-lock that I never got when I was in college.

3rd day was return demo day. It was hot (Air conditioning 'broken' for the third day. Boo.) and toxic but we all survived. My one-on-one I-prick-you-you-prick-me session was weird. The preceptor was exceedingly helpful that she was technically the one who managed to insert the catheter into the vein and not me. I still got a perfect score though but felt as if I was still inadequate to do the job right. I definitely need more practice. Any takers?

Completion duty to go and all I have to do is wait for my ANSAP card. Hopefully, my schedule will not interfere with my training schedule for another hospital. Feels awesome to be a nurse again.

Failed the Board Exam. What now? 5 comments

The turn of February brought much more than the anticipation of Valentine's Day for thousands of people, especially those who have been waiting for the release of the results of the November 2009 Nursing Licensure Exam. Unfortunately, more tears were brought about by the sudden news rather than celebrations for getting to have a shiny new PRC card.

Only a total of 37, 527 out of 94,462 nursing graduates passed the board exam, amounting only to 39.73% of the number of students who have taken it, the lowest percentage ever of passers in the history of the test. As others will have the bragging rights to put the letters R.N. at the end of their names and upload print screens of the results with their names in highlighted glory on Facebook, the majority will be sulking at home feeling the stabbing pain of this magnanimous disappointment.

But fret not. Failing an exam is not the end of the world although it might feel like it is.  Presently, one can take the exam until he/she passes so there is still hope for that sought after license to be at the palm of one's hand. I suggest more focus and determination and that RN status is well on its way. Do not let one setback throw away 4 years of hard work at nursing school.

That said, I've included here the list of requirements for filing of application for the July 2-3, 2010 Nursing Board Exams. Deadline for repeaters is on April 14, 2010 and May 14, 2010 for first timers. I suggest you file early to avoid the oxygen deprived mass exodus to PRC on days near the deadline.

1. Duly accomplished Nurses’ Application Form (NAF);
2. NSO issued Certificate of Live Birth;
3. NSO issued Certificate of Marriage (for married women);
4. Transcript of Record with scanned picture and remarks: “For Board Examinations Purposes”;
5. Record of OR-DR Cases (for 1st timers only);
6. Summary of Related Learning Experience – (for 1st timers only);
7. Four (4) pieces passport size (1 ½ x 1 ½) colored picture with complete name tag in white background;
8. Community Tax Certificate;
9. Examination Fee of P900.00;
10. One (1) window mailing envelope; and
11. Valid Identification Card.

The July board exams is months from now (how I wish the exams were also held in July last year giving us more time to review after graduation) and there is a lot of time left to prepare so mend that bruised ego and start reaching for the stars.

Top 5 Things To Do Right After the Nursing Board Exam 9 comments

5. Come home immediately or stop by a church. Try not to walk by bridges and places of height. You might be tempted to jump off.

4. Open Facebook, or Friendster if you're ghetto, and communicate with friends and other depressed takers like you. Misery loves company.

3. Store all your reviewers in a dark corner which has never known sunlight and leave them there. Convince yourself you won't be needing them ever again.

2. Organize outings, vacations and college / high school / elementary / pre-school reunions. Of course that doesn't mean they will actually come true. Sometimes, plans are best left on paper.

...and the No.1 thing to do right after taking the Nursing Board Exam is

1. Rack your brain for something to do. The immediate feeling of freedom will only last so long that probably sooner than later, you'll be banging your head to the wall in utter boredom. And also, it will still be two months before you obsessive-compulsively check the internet for uploads on the list of passers. Good Luck!

Disclaimer: Above list is made with these criteria in mind. 65% entertainment purposes and 35% actual meaningful advice. Please follow at your own risk.

November 2009 NLE Exam Room Assignment 0 comments

NursingCrib.com - November 2009 Nursing Board Exam Room Assignment MANILA - Complete List    

Late upload. But in case you've been cooped up in your room studying for the past few days and haven't heard the heart pounding news that the room assignments have been uploaded, here it is for your viewing pleasure.

Honestly, I am praying for all the examinees this coming board exams. I am praying extra hard for one in particular, my future hubby. :) I've been through the pressure and feelings of uncertainty that comes with taking the boards and I know it's not an easy thing to go through.

God bless to all takers!

Top 10 Things to Do Less than a Month Before the Nursing Board Exam 9 comments

10. Throw out your books if you haven't yet. Stick to summarized/bullet type reviewers and go crazy.

9. Answer as much practice test questions as humanly possible and know the rationale. Board Exam Compilations in front of the PRC are nothing but crap and should not be purchased unless you're willing to do painstaking research for the correct answer. And you won't even know where to look for the answer key for prioritization/intuition questions the BON are so fond of.

8. Attend all your review classes if you're enrolled. By this time, you'll be feeling the pressure of the looming date you've marked on your calendar since the beginning of this year. This is not the time to be too lazy to get up in the morning or skip afternoon classes because you need to check your Facebook account and serve cooking dishes that are about to spoil in Cafe World.

7. Do not panic and spend all your waking moments memorizing drug side effects, pathophysiology of sorts and that blasted developmental milestones in Pedia. They won't do you good as out of the 100 things you have to memorize, only 2 of those will appear in the exam and I'll bet anything you won't even remember the answer for those that came out. Instead, focus on those practice tests as I've mentioned because you'll remember them better, especially if you got the wrong answer. :)

6. Get some sleep. You look wasted. But sleep at night and not during the day. You're not Edward Cullen. Oh wait, Stephanie Meyer decided to ignore all the common vampire customs when it comes to bloodsuckers and sunlight, hence, Sparkly Edward. Sorry, my bad. (Yes, I hate Twilight. Though, I don't know how I managed to subway my distaste to this list which has nothing to do with the subject matter being discussed.)

5. At the same time, do everything possible to stay awake in after lunch review classes as they tend to go on forever. Every moment counts. Who knows, the one question that could have spelled the difference between pass or fail is the one you didn't hear because you fell asleep. How's that for irony?

4. If your birthday falls within the week before the board exam, take my advice for Obama's sake and celebrate early. My birthday was exactly the day before the exam and, needless to say, I spent the entire day fussing over my uniform, forms, pencils, other things and whether you can bring snacks with you. The answer is a big fat yes, btw.

3. Buy few pencils or gather the ones you have, choose one and have a meaningful and trusting relationship with it. This will help facilitate an emotional bond that will foster good working relationship at the day of the board exam. Seriously. You won't regret it.

2. Do the same with your eraser, sharpener and favorite anting-anting keychain so that on exam day, you'll feel as if you're surrounded by friends cheering for your success. And no, I'm not schizophrenic.

and the No.1 thing to do a month before the Nursing Board Exam is...

1. Start praying. Trust me, even if you're an Atheist or Agnostic you'll believe that there's a higher being capable of doing the impossible. There's got to be.

Ms. Best in English Apprehensive About an English Exam 0 comments

Oh, the irony! But, yes, it's true. The student who have always excelled in the English subject in high school, who aced the TOEIC exam in college, the one who has been reading and writing all her life, is a bit wary in taking the English Tests of all Tests.

IELTS or International English Language Testing System is the leading English proficiency exam required by various English speaking countries. It consists of 4 parts which are Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking. As of my understanding, I need to get a score of 7 in all the categories (even though, technically, there is no pass or fail in the said exam) to be qualified to enter the United Kingdom, where I plan to study and work.

My searches in the internet made me realize that I do need to work for this as much as I've worked in passing my NLE because unlike the multiple choice TOEIC, which was pretty easy btw, IELTS is composed of identifications, essays and even an interview session for the Speaking part of the test. Now, listening and writing almost come naturally for me, but I'm pretty sure I suck at formal writing. I like articles, adjectives and adverbs way too much that when I write, a sentence can go on and on in sarcastic circles without much point in it. Which is, sadly, a major no-no in the said exam.

And I'm worse at interviews. The last time I had an interview was upon admission to FEU Institute of Nursing 2 years ago. It is an experience I wanted to forget. I bet I either sounded too cocky or completely boring. The ancient C.I. who interviewed me barely cracked a smile. Thank Obama my battery exam results were exemplary so I was not that concerned about being dropped out of an institute that I haven't entered yet.

Multiple choice is my forte. I know that for a fact. I have this knack in feeling out the right answer even though I have no idea what the question is about. I think that's the reason how I got a line of 8 in the NLE without even memorizing the developmental tasks in Pedia or any drug of choice for a given disease. If I were to take the NCLEX, with ample time and guidance for review, I'm pretty confident I could very well pass the said exam. This special power (both a gift and a curse), however, will not help me in any way in acing the IELTS.

I spent the whole day searching Google for a great review center for the IELTS. I found a couple, Niner and Kaplan. Are they any good? I know that some or most of the examinees just self review at home either by instructional CDs or via the internet. I've read that there are also many resources available at the British Council for sale. Those are all great alternatives but I'm so sick of being at home all the time right now that I'm yearning for a classroom setup.

I miss commuting and having somewhere to go to, something to do. I know it's my fault that I'm still stuck now at home with nothing but internet and TV for company because I refused to lower my pride and work in a call center or even volunteer somewhere because I have nobody to go with me. But those 2 1/2 months since passing the board exam are now over, there's no use crying over spilled OJ. So now, I really want to find a review center I'm comfortable with, study, and get my life back on track.

By the end of this month, I must be enrolled somewhere and studying my favorite subject. I'm optimistic about the review sessions because I love the language and any information about it will probably be accepted by my neurons with open arms. I've always wanted to enroll in a creative writing class but haven't got the chance since our units and subjects in nursing college is pretty much set (unlike other universities e.g. UP where you can pick your own minors).

I know this is a far cry from that. It's just I'm so ready for something to do. Watch as my BuddyPoke avatar jump up and down from excitement and her anime face light up in a comic smile.

Post Graduate Depression Syndrome 8 comments

Undergraduates may think that the day they graduate or the day they pass the board exam will be the happiest day of their teenage life. Some students can't wait to graduate from reviewing and doing mountains of paper works. I was not one of them, yet I felt like I took for granted those days when, no matter how toxic the requirements were, all I should worry about were finishing them and what to eat at lunch the next day.

Now that I know better, I urge them to think otherwise.

Graduation is just a formal ceremony where you can see your professors, deans and high ranking officers of your school wearing poofy dresses and oddly shaped hats. There is nothing special about it especially if you still have to take and pass the board exam before you can do anything with your diploma.

Passing the board exam is another thing, though. You know that you have surpassed the one thing that you needed to in order to start your life, and it's very fulfilling to see your name listed together with the thousands who passed when so many more have failed to do so. The euphoria may last up to months, if you're lucky. Other passers, like myself, weren't so fortunate.

Because what comes next after passing the board exam and having your oath taking in front of the legendary BON? Parents, families and relatives, that's what.

Being a practicing registered nurse (with salary) is not as simple as the graduate -> pass board exam -> have job -> have money -> be a productive member of the family/society chart that parents seem to have etched on their brains, especially parents from non-nursing/medical background. But reality is more complicated than that especially nowadays that clinical jobs are more elusive than ever.

And even if you have a willing backer ready to, well, back you up, you still need numerous papers which include a PRC license and certificates which takes forever to be released by your school and the PRC itself.

So what do you do while waiting for those requirements and/or job opportunities? First, if you really need the money you'll apply in a call center, make your family really happy but put your 4-year education background to waste, at least for the time being. If money is not a necessity, you bum around in your house, surf the net, be a house maid and look for Red Cross and IVT trainings. Oh, and yes, have your parent constantly nag and tell you how you're wasting time and space doing nothing.

Wow, thanks a lot. Fresh grads like us are already in an emotional turmoil of "WTH do I do now?". Add to that the sudden transition from a comfortable routine time table to an onslaught of free time you don't know what to do with. All our lives, everything followed a certain schedule where days were filled with subjects after subjects and we learned to live life in that manner. Lunch breaks were spent eating with a group of familiar people you share food, jokes, problems and laughs with everyday. Where are they now? Even if you remain good friends with all of your college classmates everyone's scattered into different directions now.

And it's not like we want to stay stagnant and be a certified bum forever. I, for one, is jealous of my batchmates who now have a paying job in the palm of their hands. I feel like everybody's moving forward leaving me all alone in the depressing state of unemployment. Still, I resist to succumb to the monetary lures of call center careers. Health care (and writing) is my passion and my background and I want to make use of the 4 years I spent studying NCM to use.

So what now? Now, I will further express myself in cyberspace because it's one of the things I know I do well and enjoy at the same time. I'm not planning to stay like this for the rest of my life but give me time.

As for tomorrow, I'm going to finally claim my PRC license. *enter big grin here*

Basic Life Support and First Aid Training at Red Cross 3 comments

Just finished our First Aid training down at PNRC East Rizal Branch. For a newly graduate and registered nurse, it is now a growing trend that after graduation and/or while waiting for the result of the board exam or having passed the said exam, one would enroll into as much seminars and trainings as humanly possible in a desperate attempt to have something put into their resumes and increase their credibility as a professional. It's common knowledge that almost all the hospitals here in the Philippines are on freeze hiring right now because of surplus of nurses, and it is now almost mandatory to have an edge among the hundreds of thousands of competition out there. Unless, of course, if you have a backer.

Anyways, among all the numerous seminars and trainings many hospitals have wisely integrated into their institutions as both help to their staff's continuing education and a business racket among jobless newly grads, the top 3 contenders for the Most Popular Seminars/Trainings among Nursing Graduates are:

1) BLS or Basic Life Support which includes trainings about everything regarding CPR etc.
2) First Aid Training which tackles on bandaging, transfers and emergency management of various cases, and
3) IVT or Intra Venous Therapy Training which we are now fighting tooth and nail for.

All of these trainings have pretty sparkling licenses at the end of their paths. BLS and First Aid valid for 1 year and IVT for 3 (?) years.

And as of this day, we're 2 down, 1 to go.

What I've Learned:

• That CPR is really tiring work and a pain in the knees and elbows.
• Rescue breathing is harder than chest compressions.
  
• Bandaging techniques are not that hard especially if you've already memorized them back in your college years.
• Doing them neatly, though, in a time pressured situation is a whole different thing.
• I can lift my 5 feet partner.
• My partner cannot lift me. Ha.
  
• Registered nurses know more than we ever thought we knew compared to people with non-medical background.
• I've forgotten at least 40% of what I've studied in review classes. :(
  

Sharing our all RN class with 3 caregivers made me realize how simple terms in our world are not at all common to others. In a society who view nurses as money hungry selfish unpatriotic people in white who would leave the country at a moment's notice (more of that in later posts), it's a great feeling to again be enlightened on how much we know and how much more we can do for other people in need of our help.

Also, I am now compelled to read over my review materials in college and review center because I feel as if I've forgotten almost half of all the essential things I've learned over the past year. Facebook's farms and mansions and stupid little pet friends for sale has taken its last nursing neuron from my brain. Time to get them all fired up again.

Now, the hunt is on... again. The hunt for an IVT training hospital, that is. It seems like everywhere we look, slots get taken right before our very eyes and it's a pain waiting for another training session to open for reservations for the next month. Hopefully, we'll be able to get reservations for an October training if all goes well. As of this moment, I'll be happy and contented with being a Licensed CPR and First Aider. :)

Top 5 Guessing Techniques for the NLE 9 comments

You may have noticed that from my post Top 10 Ways to Pass the Board Exams, my #6 tip is "Learn how to guess correctly". Because if there's one thing I've learned from the chaotic and stressful experience of reviewing and taking the nursing board exam, it's that it doesn't matter if you've memorized the every type of protein in the body or the pathophysiology of every disease known to man (thank Obama I didn't), in the end, you are still confined to the four choices the Powers That Be has provided for you to goggle upon. And if these 4 choices fails you, these guessing strategies could be your next best friend.

Welcome, to the Holy Grail of Test Taking Strategies. These secrets have been passed from generation to generation of board exam takers. The following information is FOR YOUR EYES ONLY. Read with caution, be alert and guard the knowledge of this data with your life.

Top 5 Guessing Techniques for the NLE
(A.K.A. The Madam Auring Techniques)

5. Always be in the middle.

When it comes to figures (Laboratory Data, Normal Values) you have no idea how to even start answering, just cancel out the upper and lower extremes and settle on focusing your inner mojo vibe on the two choices in the middle. That way you have a 50% chance of getting the right answer rather than only 25%. Believe me.

4. Look for the Ugly Duckling.
The Ugly Duckling has always been different compared to her brothers and sisters. Her siblings all look the same and she feels so out of place. If you cannot decide which choice to select, look for the different one, the one pointing in the opposite direction. It, most often than not, point to the direction of your PRC License. :)

3. Mirror, Mirror
"Mirror, mirror hanging on the wall, you don't have to tell me, who's the biggest fool of all..." You need not feel like the biggest fool when answering particularly tricky questions in the board exams. Trick #3 makes use of a simple strategy even preschoolers can understand. Look and select the choice with the same word (or a word with the same meaning) as the keyword in the question. Back in Pentagon, we had the greatest time playing match up with Psyche questions Sir Jimenez has prepared for us. And believe me, this technique works like a charm.

2. Be the most irritatingly perfect Mary Sue Nurse you could be. Even if it can only be possible in your imagination.
The BON loves perfect nurses because they only exist on test papers and questionnaires. Ideal clinical settings and scenarios are the ones often written in the questions, with adequate workforce, complete and sterilized equipments without the overpopulation in hospitals, burn out of staff nurses and nonexistent supplies. Hence, the interventions and reactions of a perfect nurse is what should always be considered when answering. And they say nobody's perfect. Ha.


and if all else fails...


1. Go for the letter D) All of the Above
Not exactly rocket science but it works really well in those questions who have sentences and paragraphs as their choices. You get all mumbly jumbly with all those words and get too preoccupied in finding out the "wrong" with the sentence when in fact they're all correct. So spare yourself the hassle and the headache and just shade letter Dog. This technique works really well in CHN for some reason. One of my biggest regret is not believing in its power and ending up getting a 79 in Test II because of my skepticism.


So that's that. I'm not sure if what I wrote is actually understandable. I'll try to write a follow up post to this with examples next time. I'm too lazy to search through my mini library of xeroxed reviewers to copy 5 measly questions at the moment. Sorry 'bout that.


This message will self destruct in 5... 4... 3... 2... 1...

Top 10 Ways to Pass the Nursing Board Exam 23 comments

I'm not saying that I'm an expert on the said scenario but since a) this is my blog and I can do whatever I want and b) I did pass the June 2009 Nursing Licensure Exam on the first take (and managed to get an 80++ board rating), I think there's nothing to lose with me sharing board exam techniques that worked and you reading (or even *gasp* following) it.

So without further ado, here are my...

TOP 10 WAYS TO PASS THE NURSING BOARD EXAM
(WARNING: Follow at your own risk.)

10. Pay attention to your AUDIT/REVIEW subject.

This is one of the mistakes that I did back in college. I didn't cut classes (Okay, maybe once, but only for the afternoon lecture), I listened, I took notes, I aced the tests but I feel as if I didn't get everything that I could with the review because half the time, I was thinking that I'll enroll in a review center this summer anyways so all of this will be repeated. I'll get this topic later on. But our summer was hectic with case completion duties, Graduation and Pinning Ceremonies and with the bunch load of information pushing each other out of the way into my brain, things were pretty much chaotic and I found myself thinking far too many times while studying that I should have studied listened more and texted on my phone less.


9. Pick a Review Center that suits you. (non-compulsory)

It's true that enrolling in a review center is not needed to pass the boards. However, doing so really gives you direction in what, when and how you should review a certain topic, where to focus on, test taking strategies and green hilarious sex jokes you can only get from their discussions. Ha!


8. Throw away those books.

90% of reviewing population: Are you serious??
Me: Very. Okay, you don't have to throw them, just keep them in a dark desolate place where they belong. During the rigorous review sessions of two months before the board exam, I never cracked a book open, because I find them complicated, long and utterly boring. Instead, I concentrated on bullet type reviewers, outlines and summaries of those Valium induced texts. On the day of the exam, I knew I did the right thing. It was a waste of time reading the longer version with too many words than reading the gist of the entire thing. Less time and effort.


7. Give up the internet or whatever addictions you may have for 2 months.

It's only for two months people. I figured I'd rather sacrifice for 2 months than to live in regret and depression for the rest of my life. I can surf the net and play all the FB games I could until I get so sick of it after the boards. For me failing is not an option and if my life becomes ruined because, of all things, Facebook, then I'll never be able to live with myself. So, even though I just signed up for the world's most addicting site, I promptly clicked on that logout link and didn't visit it again until after the exam. And I was right, I grew so sick of the games after playing them everyday for two months that I made this site just to escape the sickening farm and pet madness.


6. Learn how to guess correctly.

Even if you have a nursing encyclopedia for a brain, there will be items (lots of it) where you will have to scratch your head in exasperation and guess. It's either you guess basing on related existing knowledge or you guess with nothing. Both you will experience during the exam. Learn to feel the page, use your intuition, channel Madam Auring and see invisible glowing letters of faith in taking the exam. And don't forget the ini-mini-mini-moe rule.


5. Take notes. Forget that you and that big guy called Xerox/Photocopier ever met.

It's a fact. Your brain will retain more if you listen, read, write and speak while reviewing. Without the physical act of writing, you'll end up getting all hazy visioned and end up falling asleep. In high school it may be cool to sneak a nap while the teacher's droning away, but in reviews it falls into the "WTH are you thinking??" box.


4. Know how to shade.

At the day of the board exam when we were asked by the examiners to fill the personal information page, the examinee in front of me turned around and asked me how to shade the little rectangular boxes filling the sacred oslo papers that holds our future a.k.a the PRC scantron board paper things. I was shocked. I couldn't formulate a verbal answer so, with a dumbstruck face, I just did an up and down motion with my hand while holding my pencil. I mean what on earth was she thinking taking the Mother of All Tests without even practicing how to shade at least a single tricky box. She could have perfected the test but if shaded all wrong then those correct answers won't be translated to points and those points won't be translated to a name in the passer's list.


3. Look, write and listen everyday. Read every night.

Now, I've never been the kind of A Type Personality person who would study everyday, prepare for every quiz and recites until my arm go all cyanotic. But for the board exam, I turned my back on every studying principle I believed in. (Ex. Listen to class but studying at home is for nerds. Homework is best done the night before. Studying for an exam is best done...never. Etc. etc.) It's hard studying again after going home after you've been studying for a day already, but it did pay off in the end. All your sacrifices will pay off in the end... Hopefully.


2. Answer bunch loads of practice test questions.

Review center will attest to this one. Answering tons of practice questions not only makes you remember things better but improve your guessing skills, which is very very important as I've mentioned. It's like hitting all the birds with one stone. Ain't that grand?


1. Relax and believe in a Higher Being.

No matter how much you don't believe in God, Allah or the Virgin Mary manifesting in a taco, the sudden burst of spirituality and religious fervor among board exam takers are a common, if not inevitable, occurrence. You will visit the every church that you can as if they're the 7 wonders of the world, light numerous candles (1 candle for each test point) and will go and kneel with bowed heads in front of St. Jude Thaddeus's altar. You'll do everything that you can to bathe in holy water together with all your test paraphernalia especially the week/day before the exam because you feel unholy and idiotic without it and your pencil, eraser and sharpener is infested with Satan, Lucifer and various bad spirits and will eventually fail you. Don't worry, all of this is normal, and amusing to reminisce after passing the exam. :)



So that's my take on being an influential and helpful role model blogger for upcoming registered nurses out there. I wish you all the best and will be waiting for you with open arms, a big smile in my face and a banner saying in big bold letters:

Welcome to the Unemployment World. Hoooorah!

Which Nursing Review Center Should You Go To? 39 comments

REVIEW CENTER WARS:

MERGE vs. CBRC (Carl Balita) vs. GAPUZ vs. SRG vs. PENTAGON

If you're a nursing student, nursing graduate, have a sibling/cousin/friend/neighbor who is one, have been to UBelt Morayta, Espana and the streets of Pureza or to just simplify things, a resident of the Philippines, I'm sure you've heard of them.

They are the top nursing review centers in the Philippines reviewing and producing thousands of registered nurses yearly. They may all look enticing and innocent enough, all having figures and pictures to boast to the world, but if you don't know what you're getting into, don't spend thousands of pesos on them yet. Do your research. More so, listen to reviewees who have actually experienced what it's like reviewing in the said centers. Look at the passing rate and the subscript commonly associated with them.

I don't know everything about these review centers. I've only attended one (Pentagon) and I will share my thoughts on them later. FEU-IN also has an In-House Review Program mostly made up of SRG reviewers so I can also share my experiences from that. Other comments are from my personal view of the center and what my friends have said about them.

MERGE REVIEW (Multi-Educational Review Group Experts Inc.)

I'll confess, I know little about this review center. Not a lot of people from my batch mates went here to review for the board exam. But I've scouted via the net almost all of the review centers available in Manila before and I've read pretty disappointing comments from their past reviewees. From what I've read, Trinity University of Asia is the only good thing with MERGE because non-Trinity reviewees achieve a much less passing rate. A batch mate also commented that the reviews are deathly boring and she happily transferred to Pentagon for the critical and final coaching phase.


CBRC (Carl Balita Review Center)

I cannot stress out how much I hate his face plastered all over the Ubelt. Come on, narcissistic much? And it's not like he's cover boy material, face brimming with charisma and bus loads of sex appeal. Argh. Okay, so enough about his looks. Is it worth reviewing there? Again, I don't know much about this review center besides the fact that they have tons of "freebies" (bags, lanyard etc.) which, I hate to burst your bubble, isn't free at all. You paid for it, believe me.

With regards to the actual review, I've heard testimonials which said that the discussions are okay and Carl Balita, himself, is actually pretty good. Oh, but since his center is obviously not a one man show, the other reviewers' sessions I've heard are not as good, a bit boring, which my batch mate sometimes walked out on without finishing the class.


R.A. GAPUZ REVIEW CENTER

I have no prejudices against Gapuz even though they were the main review center at the middle of the June 2006 Nursing Licensure Exam Leakage. I think he looks kind and quite fatherly to his students and he doesn't stick his face on his tarpaulins. One thing I can't understand though is what the heck does Boy Abunda have to do with nursing?

Even up to our review days, I've received tons of texts about the supposedly "5 points sure na" bullets which on the day of the board exam were nothing but useless saved messages occupying my cellphone memory. On a negative note, 2 of my 3 friends/acquaintances who reviewed there failed the board exam. I don't know what happened because those two were the kind of people who I thought would make it and at the day of the exam, they seem not at all frazzled , almost bordering on confident (based on their text messages since we all have different test taking centers). Don't ask me what happened, I have no idea.

Moral Lesson: Never rely on leakage promises. They always end bad and if you somehow managed to pass, I fear for the lives you are going to handle with your own incompetent hands.


SRG (Sultan Review Group)

I have a lot of experiences with SRG. Those reviewers they front line in their advertisements and websites were our reviewers for the In-House Review. They are fantastic, I must say. They will keep you engaged and active through out the 8-hour sessions. So why didn't I enroll here and instead went to Pentagon? Well, there are lots of reasons.

First, I hated the fact that they treat each lecture as Shameless Promotion Day. Especially at the last day of their assigned topics. One would wear a SRG shirt, one would say their catch phrase "Come and Follow Me..." over and over and over again and the other would bash, insult and blurt out unprofessional things defaming other review centers. I mean, if people really want to go and enroll at the center they will, if they don't they won't. These reviewers don't have to treat each person who doesn't enroll at SRG as an idiotic moron who will never pass the board exam because they've made the fatal mistake of not joining with them.

Second, as exemplary as the main reviewers may seem, its useless if they're not the ones who will be teaching your class. SRG has 25+ Reviewers in its system and there is no guarantee that those front liners you see in the ads are actually the ones reviewing you. Majority of my classmates confessed on going home and cutting classes because the lecturer that was assigned to their block was a comatose inducing machine.

There is the 2 week Final Coaching however, which I've heard is fun for everybody. Their statistics are also great which is a huge plus.


THE ROYAL PENTAGON REVIEW SPECIALISTS INC.

Now, I'm a proud Pentagonian so forgive me if this part becomes a bit biased but I'll try not to be. I just felt the need to alleviate everybody's fears and misconceptions about the Review Giant a.k.a. Pentagon.

Most review centers target Pentagon (obscurely of course) in their "Why-You-Should-Enroll-With-Us" Speech by stating highly misguided comments on how there are review centers with way to many students in one area, how it's hot and noisy, how you can't hear the reviewer because of all the chaos and pandemonium if you might.

Now, here's my rebuttal. In the social context, it's common knowledge that those who are at the bottom of the steps target the ones on top. The trick is, do not believe them because these are the insecure ones trying to benefit from associating their names with the most popular. With that out, let me tell you first hand, that Pentagon's style is an auditorium type review. It is expected that there are hundreds of reviewers in a single venue. But, the air conditioner works fine, the sound system's fantastic. You can hear everything even though people around you happens to talk (which rarely happens because reviewees become more serious as the countdown to the big day lessens in number).

Better yet, the 5 main brilliant reviewers that you enrolled for will definitely be the ones teaching you how to pass the board exam. Add 3 more guest reviewers for minor subjects like CD, Funda and Burns etc. and it's not a bad deal because you know you're going to get what you signed up for.

I really believe that Pentagon has the BEST reviewers in all the centers, hands down. They can keep hundreds and thousands (Final Coaching Week) of short attention spanned youngsters interested in even the most hated and boring topics of Nursing. Problem is, if you're easily distracted with crowds and is the kind of person who wants the reviewer right in his/her face, this review center is not for you.


In the end, it all boils down to WHAT YOU DO with the knowledge and strategies your chosen review center imparted on you. Notes and textbooks won't do you any good if they're not read and tucked in safely in that squishy stuff on your head.

Guess what that is and put it to work.

Oath Taking Ceremony for June 2009 NLE Passers / Survivors... 2 comments

Yesterday could be considered as one of the most memorable days of a nurse's life. And it was indeed a very special occasion for all of us who have managed to battle the odds and survive the battlefield with our coat of armor still intact. Though the war still rages on, with the unemployment rate of registered nurses skyrocketing to record breaking figures, it's nice to leave all the drama and chaos even for just a while and marvel in the fact that, hey, we now have the right and the privilege to put those nice little letters R.N. after our names.

Bona fide Tamaraw Nurses unite once again for probably the last time *sniff* as these newly registered nurses take part in a once in a lifetime ceremony with various colleges and universities, their respective Deans and the Board of Nursing (BON) themselves in attendance.

Amidst the thousands of RNs clad in all white and the sea of green striped caps that depicts the pride of FEU-IN it's nice to attend an event which actually felt just like our Pinning Ceremony last April. Everywhere you look there's a schoolmate and fellow board passer in view.

I felt goosebumps every time realization strikes in that this could be the final time our batch will be all in one roof. Though massive our size, our memories will always have the same buildings, places, teachers and motivators which has helped us achieve what we are today. And even though it's impossible for anyone to know everyone personally, family is what we'll always be.

Now, enough about the drama and let's get on with the hilarity. Oath taking ceremonies are generally a serene and a spiritual event, but there are things that happened and / or overheard that just cracked me up and it would be a shame to not share it with the world. So, here are my Top 5 things heard before, during and after the said momentous event.

Top 5 Quotable Quotes Heard at the June 2009 Oath Taking Ceremony

#5 "I think that's enough.... to stuff all the hospitals in the Philippines." A BON member was tasked to introduce each school present in the convention center. When FEU was called, all 1,300+ board passers stood up, clapped and cheered (loudly) for our Alma Mater, way longer and noisier than any other schools called. When we heard the first part of the statement, we all thought that we were being reprimanded for being too unruly and disorderly for the supposed to be sanctimonious (a.k.a boring) ceremony. Every tamaraw in the hall exhaled a sigh of relief after realizing that the board member was just casually commenting on how many we were. Whew!

#4 "Sila ba yung honor guards na tumayo sa libing ni Cory?" said my friend looking at the Colour Cadets (or whatever they're called) standing at the back of the hall. We were in line to take pictures with them when she suddenly blurted out this amusing observation. Turns out, they were just officers from Adamson University.

#3 "Ui (enter friend's name here)! PICTURE!!"

#2 "Gutom nako..."

and the No.1 Quotable Quote heard at the June 2009 Oath Taking Ceremony is...

#1 "ASAN KAYO???"

How I wish we could all do this over again. Though the program only lasted for more or less 3 hours long, I know that the memories of it all will last forever. :)

Top 10 Signs You're a Recent BSN Graduate / NLE Board Passer 2 comments

TOP 10 SIGNS YOU'RE A RECENT BSN GRADUATE /
N.L.E. BOARD PASSER

10. You're unemployed.

9. If you're not unemployed, then you work as a call center agent and/or have jobs completely unrelated to the course you struggled to survive in for four years.

8. You know the pathognomonic sign for Kawasaki's Disease.

7. You've written the letters/words VS:, RR, HR, BP, Temp, IVF at least hundreds of times in the past 2 years.

6. You have tons of illegal materials including but not limited to reviewers/questionnaires/pirated cd-roms stashed somewhere in the dark corners of your cabinet.

5. You've tried every game/quiz/poll/gift-giving app known to mankind on Facebook in the past 2 months.

4. Sometime this past year, you have had defended with your life a long brown envelope containing your (half/fully signed) OR/DR case forms and other requirements. You would have gladly surrendered your cellphone and wallet in exchange for the safe return of your beloved files.

3. Speaking of wallets, you now have in it that piece of laminated pink cut-out cartolina with your 1x1 picture and complete name which you ever so carefully wrote yourself. You boast to all humanity your PNA card.

2. You've experienced the sights, sounds and SMELLS the Land of the Lines, also known as PRC (Main/Ever Branch) at least twice in your life.



and the No.1 Sign you're a recent BSN graduate / NLE board passer...



1. You are reading this list because you've got nothing else better to do.