Thirteen Years After: My Nursing Journey


Time went by so fast, and 13 years have passed. I passed my licensure exam in nursing in the Philippines last 2009. Since then, a lot has happened, and with that, my experience varied significantly. This is the focus of this blogpost.

The day after I pass the exam.

I remember that day. I was quite busy. Many expressed their congratulations. It is because I just did not pass the exam, I became somehow the talk-of-the-town instantly. Well, that will be noted in another blogpost later on. However, I proceeded with the plan of the day. I was helping nursing students in their thesis. It was actually a work that is in the "graysone" of things. We were actually doing most of the things for them - from revising to coaching for their thesis defense for a price. The payment we received was cheap compared to the quality of research paper we produced in a short time. I continued with that work for few months. So, I can say immersed myself in research, and fundamentally that shaped every job I had taken afterwards.

Accelerated progress thereafter.

Because I somehow got attention after passing the exam, a lot of doors opened for me. I immediately accepted to become a nurse-educator in 2 teaching institutions. I liked that work, and most of my experience in the Philippines is related to teaching. I also worked as a clinical instructor in the hospital with major task of honing skills of aspiring students. I technically worked like a staff nurse with added responsibility for students. There I tested my leadership and decision-making skills. I was young, but I think I did a good job there. I was practically reading a lot in my free time to prepare for lectures for different subjects. At my peak, I was no longer using Powerpoint slides to facilitate my discussions. I somehow managed to "memorize" most of my content and deliver it spontaneously. I really had so much self-confidence as a teacher then.

Crucial leadership nursing position.

I was just gaining confidence, but also influence in the academe. At the pinnacle, I was chosen as assistant to the Dean of Nursing, and had a lot of responsibility in terms of the quality of instruction in the college. I introduced vital changes, which stirred criticisms especially from those who doesn't want necessary change. I met a lot of dilemma and conflict of interests. That was quite challenging and mentally exhausting. I was experiencing burn-out as a leader, but not as an educator. Just before I left the Philippines, I had the privilege to decide when to work, and where. My whole year was already planned out to manage three different positions. I travelled as well, just to teach. That was an experience.

Novice in Norway.

However, I can not deny the fact that in terms of my clinical experience, I utilized less time in honing my "practical-technical nursing skills." I can explain things immediately, but not necessarily seen it in reality. Here is the influence of Norway played an important role. Everything is new, and I was considered a neophyte in all aspects. I learned to assess and improve my skills. The good thing is that I was given the opportunity to do so without getting too much attention from "observers," like I had in the Philippines. I gained confidence in what I do, and I think I am getting better day-by-day. This is very promising.

The Corona Virus Pandemic

I must say that the pandemic has affected me as a nurse. I was able to distinguish my limit, and attempted to push myself beyond that limit. Long hours, double shifts, multiple tasks with varying degree of importance - those confronted me at work. The situation proved to be challenging as tasks become more complicated and crucial. I was working with the most vulnerable. I never expected some situations were too demanding and perplexing. However, the pandemic gave me the needed boost in knowledge and skills. I became more independent, and more curious to learn more. I think the pandemic helped me reflect my role in the society, as well.

Thirteen years have passed, but I am still learning more and more. To be honest, there were several reasons why I took up nursing, and the profession's noble cause is not really the major reason. However, through this profession, I became the person I am today and provided me with the opportunities I will always be thankful of.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular This Week

Cebuano: The Language and The People

Image
Living in Norway for over 2 years, I have often encountered questions about the languages I speak. I usually answered I speak Norwegian, English and two Filipino languages. Then, people start asking if the second Filipino language is a dialect of the other. Given my mother tongue is Cebuano, the second language referred, I abruptly debunk the misconcept that it is a mere dialect. My most common explanation is that all Filipinos speak the Filipino language, but those who only learn to speak Filipino have difficult time understanding or communicating with one speaking Cebuano. Throughout the span of my childhood, I got to grasp the political and cultural differences of Filipinos speaking Filipino language or Tagalog as referred by most, and those coming from the Southern Philippines speaking Cebuano. The language in itself has become the boundary between the two groups of people. Due to their innate differences, misunderstandings result, not because of mere language confusion, but of cu
Read more

Filipino Body Language

Image
Non-verbal communication is an essential part in a society, as well as understanding the values the community believe in. This reflects a good overview of how communication and tradition have evolved through time. These expressions are never constant, such that meaning changes from time to time, and is greatly affected by the events or the kind of environment one belongs in. Filipinos, being a society with mixed Asian and Western influences have unique facial and body expressions. These are the focus of this blogpost. 1. Silent stare Stares could mean evil look for Filipinos. It may indicate sarcasm or manipulation. It is considered rude to this, especially when in a conversation because it may also indicate disinterest or disrespect. 2. Lip/Eye pointing This is quiet funny gesture common not just in the rural areas, but also in urban communities. It is quiet hard to explain the direction in verbal language, so it is better to point them vaguely, interestingly with the use of lips,
Read more

Debt of Gratitude: A Filipino Social Phenomenon

Image
"Scratch my back and I will scratch yours." - This describes the prevailing Filipino social phenomenon of debt of gratitude. It is an attempt of one to repay the other, who in the past had done something good or beneficial to him or her. This has been magnified by other social phenomena such as the continued emigration of Filipino workers outside the Philippines, such that remittances are actually in the form of payment to their families, as an expression of long-lasting debt of gratitude. This is just an example of how this phenomenon has shaped the Filipino society and culture. In this blogpost, an in-depth analysis will be made to showcase the advantages and disadvantages of this phenomena, as various concepts and ideas revolving around it are enumerated throughout the discussion. 1. It exists in any type of relationship; familial, working, spiritual and others. Because of man's social nature, there will be periods of self-sufficiency and vulnerability. During time
Read more

Bullying: A Part of Filipino Culture?

Image
Bullying became a hot topic in Norway today after a young teenager died of emaciation due to eating disorder that was primarily linked to anxiety from bullying at school. This was quite taboo in this Scandinavian country, given the nation is very keen on respecting socio-cultural differences and on protection against any form of discrimination. Discussions have been made on how to handle and prevent bullying and who takes the responsibility in these cases, whether the family, school or the State. Personally, I was not reacting in anyway as my mind says the concept is remote and almost impossible to happen in the Philippines. Perhaps, I was referring it to death, but not to bullying. However, after several days I was quite uneasy on the topic and further asked myself if I was ever bullied before and what it has caused me in the long-term basis. To my surprise, bullying was a crucial point in my childhood. My coping skills allowed me to hide in my consciousness what had happened
Read more

Happiness is Like a Glass of Water

Image
The constant struggle of finding and experiencing happiness is always present. Many people try different ways to achieve a state of satisfaction and contentment that people seem to observe from others than being innately within themselves. This makes happiness seem a phenomenon of the third person than being owned. The reason perhaps why we think this way is that we see happiness more than how we should see a plane glass of water. This blogpost will focus on this. When you see a glass of water what would you think? Do you think of the glass that contains the water? Do you seem to make expectations on what the water should be before you drink it, cold or warm or perhaps sparkling? Do you think of water only when you are thirsty or not? These are the guide questions, this blogpost will revolve around to make an analogy between happiness and a glass of water. The Glass What shows on the outside is not necessarily what is inside. The glass sometimes influence our thirst. We human beings
Read more

Online Bashing Tells About the Basher

Image
Online bashing has become very common in social media. It seems everyone who makes mistakes maybe a subject of ridicule and criticism. The  major disadvantage and difference of a usual physical attack and online bashing is its anonymity and scale. Many bashers would hide themselves anonymous and gain more confidence to attack verbally the person at hand. Moreover, since the online space is literally unlimited so anyone could literally read comments and opinions, further aggravating and even tolerating the verbal attack. This makes online bashing as a grear threat to anyone in the social media today. On its essence, online bashing is a non-physical verbal highly partisan and personal attack on an individual expressing dissent, non-comformity, irrelevance and weakness in being at par or within a certain standard of discourse or behavior, with the aim of influencing others to do the same against the person, express an opinion and either directly and indirectly gain from it. By this long
Read more

What Make Filipinos Happy?

Image
According to the recent Happiness Index and Positive Experience Index (2015), Filipinos are considered one of the happiest in the world. There are many empirical evidence supporting this, including the magnitude of resilence and effectiveness of Filipinos in coping with several calamities and personal challenges. There are ofcourse scepticism on these researches, given that happiness could not even be measured objectively, and even more difficult to be compared. Happiness is indeed subjective, such that it is experienced differently among various persons with unique backgrounds and histories. Therefore, it is a challenge to make a summary or list of what makes one happy for a certain group of people, such as Filipinos. However, there are similarities among Filipinos that one could deduce effectively to answer what makes Filipinos happy. This is the focus of this blogpost. Family counts first. Family is most powerful source of motivation and happiness for Filipinos. More importantly, 
Read more

10 Things Every Filipino Must Learn

Image
I am a proud Filipino but there are some aspects of the Filipino culture that needs to be improved. These improvements are impossible if   everybody thinks there is no need for them, so I start with my contribution by recognizing these in this blogpost. 1. Learn to wait. No Filipino can wait. We all find ways to be ahead of the others. We are known for this. We simply can not wait as if there is no other chance to do a certain thing. As a result, chaos results, which is reflected in the systems we have either in large-scale government services or in ourselves as well. 2. Learn to think before talking. Feed a Filipino an attractive title of an article or news, he or she is able to form opinions even without knowing and understanding the story. I call this "Facebook mentality of hastiness." As a result, most non-Filipinos do not take us seriously, because we are more noisy than smart. 3. Learn to respect differences and opinions. Every Filipino thinks everyone should conf
Read more

Solve: Why Math is Hard?

Image
Before I became a nurse, teacher, licensed real estate appraiser, I became first as a mathematics lover. Some consider me a geek then, but I was not, I just simply love the logic of mathematics. Now, I can say my mathematics skills have deteriorated significantly, when I am confronted with numbers, I do not leave my chair not until I somehow figure out what could be the problem. So, why then mathematics is difficult to many of us? Is there something can be done? Mathematics is much more than counting and simple arithmetic. It is a cumulative science in which new results are built upon and depend on earlier results. Humans have accumulated a huge amount of mathematical knowledge – far    more than a person can learn in a lifetime, even if the person spent all of their time studying mathematics. This history perhaps will give us the impression the necessity of mathematics. We may not appreciate the subject, but it useful because without it, the world will end up in chaos, for sure
Read more

10 years, 10 months, 10 days ago

Image
  December 21, 2009 – April 8, 2011 This is the second installment of the historical throwback in this blogspot, focusing on world affairs and how it shaped the events in my life and the environment surrounding me. In the end, a reflection on how the past influenced the present is provided. What was happening in the world? The worldwide recession is coming to an end. Pope Benedict XVI was knocked down by a woman during a procession at St. Peter’s Basilica. Pedophilia and sex scandals, however, plagued the Catholic church in Europe and South America. Later, the pope made controversial visits in Israel, Cyprus, and Ireland. On the other hand, Portugal, Argentina, and Mexico City legalized same-sex marriages. Meanwhile, the Swedish Supreme sentenced the owners of The Pirate bay, an online index of digital content. Norwegian Magnus Carlsen became the youngest world chess grandmaster. Meanwhile, Norway and Russia end a maritime border conflict in the Barents Sea. North and South Korea
Read more