Amoy Pekpek

Lallaine and I boarded an air-conditioned bus on our way home after our 2-10PM duty last Wedenesday in San Fernando. It was nearing midnight and the bus was almost empty when Lallaine and I sat two seats away from the driver. Interestingly it was a lot warmer there and the television’s audio was more audible.

We were talking about something as commercials came flashing in front of us. I was talking when an ad caught my attention… the Carefree Sanitary Pad where a pretty girl in a blue dress tries to get through a glass door but she was mobbed by eight “cute guys” with the extra-giggly voiced narrator saying, “if you think getting close to one cute guy is exciting? Imagine getting close to eight?!!” Then the girl dropped her things and the “eight cute guys” hurriedly went down to get them. The men were more than too happy to give back her things but then she worriedly asked again, “has anybody’s seen my ID?” Then the boys dropped once more. She smiled really slily because non of the guys smelled anything because she was wearing Carefree eight-hour fresh….

I sniggered at Lallaine and told her, “Yung babae tuwang-tuwa pang inaamoy sya dun.” (the girl seems to enjoy being smelled down there.)

She glanced at me and raised her eyebrow so I defensively said, “that was the rationale of the ad, wasn’t it? That no matter how hard the guys sniff at you they won’t smell anything.” She didn’t say anything but she didn’t look the other way… meaning she didn’t like me to stop the conversation therefore I told her about my experience in the ER last week.

A woman walked in with her 8-month old baby. I assisted the pediatrician as she pushed the needle of the IV to the little boy’s hand. As the doctor pricked the knuckle of the little boy, the baby wiggled and cried loudly. He was squirming so his mother and I had to stop him from moving. That was when the mother stood even closer to me and I smelled her. I said to Lallaine, “Sa OB-Gyne ward ok lang mag-amoy pekpek ang nanay pero dun hindi. Hindi sya siguro naghuhugas.” (It is natural for women to smell like their external genitalia in the OB-Gyne ward but in the ER, no. Maybe she doesn’t wash her self.) Lallaine still didn’t reply so, as a proof, I said that no matter how hard the doctor wipes the baby’s hand with wet cottonballs, the arms still remain dirty (even the cottonballs that were used on the 10th and nth times still turned black- that’s how thick the dirt was on the little boy’s knuckles). I was like, “How would an eight month old baby could have sustained that much of dirt anyway?”

She seemed really amused although she was intent not to agree with me. So she said, as she reclined back to watch the TV, “Amoy pekpek pala ha… akala ko sweet ka, salbahe ka pala” (So it smelled like a woman’s sex organ… I thought you are sweet, now I know you’re mean). Then she smirked really hard as I looked at her incredilously.

[Watch the commercial here]

12 Months

 From Manila Girl, her birthday is on December… uhm… advance Happy birthday!

Rules:

- Pick your birth month.
- Bold the 5-10 that best apply to you.
- Copy to your own journal, with all twelve months (click this for the list).
- Tag 12 people from your friends list.

AUGUST: Loves to joke. Attractive. Suave and caring. Brave and fearless. Firm and has leadership qualities. Knows how to console others. Too generous and egoistic. Takes high pride in oneself. Thirsty for praises. Extraordinary spirit. Easily angered. Angry when provoked. Easily jealous. Observant. Careful and cautious. Thinks quickly. Independent thoughts. Loves to lead and to be led. Loves to dream. Talented in the arts, music and defense. Sensitive but not petty. Poor resistance against illnesses. Learns to relax. Hasty and trusty. Romantic. Loving and caring. Loves to make friends.

The rule says only 5 to 10 but I put to bold 14 sentences.

I tagged the onlytwelve people who gave a comment to this.

Sidney

aeroz

manang (in your secret blog, of course)

dimaks

bingskee

Major Tom

Arlo

tina

Bill Howdle

psychscribe

verns

Barbara Katzman

Guillain-Barré Syndrome

The diagnoss is Guillain-Barré Syndrome, a rapid-onset disease that starts after a viral infection. Sometimes it is also triggered by vaccinations and other autoimmune idiopathies. It is characterized by the demyelination of the peripheral nervous system that leads to motor paralysis.

This was the first time I have encountered a patient with this disease. I was surprised by how fast it progresses. It was pretty painful when the young pediatrician explained to his parents how the paralysis runs from the legs, to the arms and later on to the respiratory system in a few days, and thus the need of intubation for the mechanical ventilator. Rose and Lallaine hid their tears as the doctor discussed how complicated the disease is.

With a simple cold, in a week the 5-year old boy was crippled. He was confined for a week in a medical center nearby. He can no longer wave his hand and can only whisper when he was transferred to the ER where I am currently interning. It was a shame since the boy seems to be healthy and is well taken care off and is really loved by his parents . I rarely use this adjective but, yeah, I think the kid is adorable.

The father asked me how the disease is, so I described a matchstick… I told him how a the flame rapidly extinguises the life out of the little wood; first the legs, them the arms, then the diaphragm, saying that without an immediate intervention, the matchstick will soon snuff off.

[Know More About Guillain-Barré Syndrome. ]

Steal My Sunshine

I love this song.

Steal My Sunshine

by Len

i was lying on the grass on sunday morning of last week
indulging in my self defeats
my mind was thugged, all laced and bugged, all twisted round and beat
uncomfortable three feet deep
now the fuzzy stare from not being there on a confusing morning week
impaired my tribal lunar-speak
and of course you can’t become if you only say what you would have done
so i missed a million miles of funi know it’s up for me
if you steal my sunshine
making sure i’m not in too deep
if you steal my sunshine
keeping versed and on my feet
if you steal my sunshine

i was frying on the bench slide in the park across the street
l-a-t-e-r that week
my sticky paws were into making straws out of big fat slurpy treats
an incredible eight foot heap
now the funny glare to pay a gleaming tear in a staring under heat
involved an under usual feat
and i’m not only among but i invite who i want to come
so i missed a million miles of fun

i know it’s up for me
if you steal my sunshine
making sure i’m not in too deep
if you steal my sunshine
keeping versed and on my feet
if you steal my sunshine

i know it’s done for me
if you steal my sunshine
not something hard to see
if you steal my sunshine
keeping dumb and built to beat
if you steal my sunshine

my sunshine
if you steal my sunshine

Malapit na ‘kong makapatay ng Duktor

I am never a sensitive person. In fact one of my groupmates in our self-awareness for our Psychiatric Nursing admitted that he loves taunting me because I don’t seem to get angry. Honestly if I would be admitted in a mental hospital, I think one of the obvious manifestations of my mental illness would be a blunted affect. I don’t cry easily. I don’t get easily affected by demeaning words or obnoxious comments.

I am currently interning in an Emergency Room in San Fernando City, and nothing good has happened yet. I really want to say the whole story but I will just feel worse. I have been scarred for life. It was physically exhausting, and emotionally degrading. I can’t do anything right. haaayyyy….. I want to sour grape, but it isn’t my style of defennse mechanism. I am more inclined to sweet lemoning, projection, reaction formation and rationalization. I feel really bad. And so is my groupmates.

The Evaluation Day

 (UPDATED: November 16, 2007 2:49PM)

True or False?1.) Human Placental Lactogen induces further insulin production in pregnant women?
2.) The so-called Accelerated Starvation is caused by the rapid conversion of glucose to glycogen?
3.) Macrosomia is caused by the increase of serum glucose of the mother?
4.) Intrauterine Growth Retardation (IUGR) happens when the placental perfusion is increased?
5.) Polyphagia is caused by increased in urination?
6.) In Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GMD), polyuria is caused by the kidneys’ insufficiency to reabsorb water back to the system?
7.) Estrogen inhibits the production of Insulin?

Enumeration: for numbers 8 to 10, give the full names of your head nurses.

This was the part that I made for the 45-point quiz that we, head nurses and our Clinical Instructor, prepared for the written examination this afternoon.

Today has been really toxic. However, being able to boss around those minions is a really unique experience. There are times when I just roll my eyes when they ask me about things that are so basic. I swear, our group was never like this, let alone on our first week duty in our second semester last year (READ THIS PLEASE!!! ). In fact, we were expecting that they are somewhat better that we were.

Last year, we only had ONE orientation prior to the whole year of nursing internship, and it was all just about the policies in all the institutions that we were about to enter. But this batch, they were fed with everything. They had an orientation about the policies, an orientation about medical and nursing ethics, an orientation on charting and its legalities, an orientation about making a case study, and orientations about a gazillion things that we only learned in our academic subjects or by sheer experience.

I mean, during the firstest first day (read this… and see how different we were than they are now) of our duty, after being terrorized about possible expulsions and incidental reports that we might garner by stepping out of the line inside the hospital, we were shamelessly banished to the jungle. Armed only with our knowledge that we have acquired the semesters before inside our school, they expected us to do well.

The third years… haaayyy. Some of them asked me about the simplest questions… someone even said, “Sir, mas mabuti naman yung Knowledge Deficit kesa Pain sa Nursing Diagnosis di ba?” (Sir, ‘Knowledge Deficit’ is a better Nursing Diagnosis than ‘Pain’, right?). Man, they don’t even know how to prioritize the problem. Of course Pain should be given more attention than lack of knowledge.

There was even a girl who wrote “Knowledge Deficit related to the woman’s first time in birth-giving” (or something like that) when it is clear that the woman is constipated due to her increase intake of Potassium.

But of course there are some who were really smart; all the boys are smart. And some of the girls are really sweet. K and J, I should say, are getting better in Charting (that is where we put all our Nursing Diagnoses and all our assessments.., even the managements and health teachings that we made… it is directly written on the patient’s medical record.)

 HAAAYYY!!! Buhay nga naman.

She Bites

For my nursing internship, I (with Angelo and Jay) spent my entire day looking over a group of Junior Nursing interns in the OB-Gyne ward for my Head Nursing

As the head nurse, there was a time when I have to give some simple lectures about some things that they might encounter inside the OB-Gyne ward, it was their first time to intern in this particular ward so we were a bit hopeful (This particular group was immersed more in delivery rooms last sem, heck, some of them have almost completed their DR cases). Just after the Juniors had a snack, Angelo and I started discussing some topics in pregnancy and birth related-complications. I really prepared for this and I was very excited, but I guess I was wrong to expect too much.

Republic Act 9288 - Newborn Screening Act

[SOURCE ]

Republic of the Philippines
Congress of the Philippines
Metro Manila
Twelfth Congress
Third Regular Session

Begun and held in Metro Manila, on Monday, the twenty-eight day of July, thousand and three.

REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9288

A Night in the Prison

DATE: September 20, 2007 6:00PM to September 21, 2007 6:00AM

Dinner and Midnight Snack

1 and a half piece Lechon Manok (Roasted Chicken)- Php210.00

14cups of rice- Php70.00

Cigarettes- Php50.00

peanuts- Php20.00

Crackers, Biscuits, two 1.5Liters Coke- Php250.00

Coffee and Sugar- Php30.00

Transportation from the Jail to the Grocery and back again- Ph30.00

Morning (September 21)

Pan de Sal- Php40.00

Mentos- Php14.00

Videotape- Php150.00

Transportation Php32.00

Due to an incident, I have forgotten to blog about my stay inside the prison for our film documentary in Political Science, until I found our shopping list that night while cleaning my bag today (My CI dismissed us early).

I think I should start my story by dissecting our grocery first (uhm only the important ones). By 6PM the rest of our groupmates left us already and went to their own homes. Since Ray, Neil and I are the only boys in our group we have no choice but to stay, though we were really thankful to the girls who chose to be left behind with us; April and Richell. We continued the interviews until 8. We texted Julie, since she handles the fund, she promised to return just after she bathe and had her dinner at home. By ten she was still not there, we’re already dying. By 11 she came and went with April (and Jervell and Junessa who also promised to return) to buy the grocery.

1 and a half piece Lechon Manok (Roasted Chicken) and 14cups of rice- Php70.00

Jervell, Junessa and Julie did not join our sumptous dinner. April brought some utensils from their house, which is only 50 meters away from the jail (his father is a cop). Ray and Neil had three cups of rice each, while the rest of us ordered only two. We were really hungry so you can just imagine how happy we were.

Cigarettes

Ray and Neil are chronic smokers, they are the type who could not dump in the toilet without puffing a stick, while April only smokes when invited. After dinner they hurriedly went to a corner in the prison’s basketball court and smoked. Out of curiosity, well I haven’t tried to smoke in my whole entire life, I asked them if I could have a puff. I took a stick from April’s Marlboro Light (I expected that Light is lighter than the red Marlboro that Ray and Neil are smoking).

I lighted the cigarette between my lips until it was already red. I puffed a little and was surprised that I did not cough. Ray laughed. Neil was amused, then he said, “Higupin mo kasi sa baga mo, sa loob lang ng bibig mo yan ay.” (Inhale it into your lungs, you are just putting the smoke in your mouth.) So i puffed again and breathe in the smoke. I coughed out violently, they all rolled laughing. My gag reflex immediately moved, I was nauseated. I headed straight to the bathroom until I burped. It was funny, I have to drink 5 glasses of coke just to remove the scent from my mouth. I cant believe that many are addicted with it… cigarettes smell like the milder version of marijuana that the punks in my high school used to puff in the restroom.

Wasted Day(?)

I was already in the Hospital at exactly 6 in the morning. My fellow Seniors greeted me with the news that none of the Juniors that we’re suppose to handle for our head nursing have logged in. A general orientation for the Juniors was supposed to be held today, so we decided to head to our school and meet our respective Clinical Instructors instead.

My CI came at 9. We (I would be handling this particular group with Angelo and Jay) discussed to her our plans of activities and the lectures that we were going to give to the Juniors. It felt good that our CI encourages us to do our will. She asked us also about some of the requirements which we were able to hand to her. She was thinking of meeting us tomorrow even though the Juniors will still have their orientation, but when she discovered (Thanks to my Psychiatric Nursing Professor) that my house is really far, she decided to call tomorrow’s duty off telling us to come on Wednesday.

I am goung to discuss in our lecture some complications of pregnancy (gestational Diabetes, Pre-eclampsia et al, plus the New Born Screening Act.).

Head Nursing isn’t just about giving lectures, we’ll handle the juniors as if we were their Clinical Instructors. We’ll make sure that everything in the ward is running smoothly. Half of their grades will be coming from us, we are entitled to give quizzes and assignments.

I wrote this yesterday.