My Crit Care Experience

Dearest Bloggerbuds,

Christmas is just around the corner.  I know, and by around the corner, I speak of Christmas ornaments everywhere, Christmas carols arising out of nowhere, Christmas parties here and there.  Oh well, at least you all get the picture.  Anyway, inasmuch as I want to blog how the season had been treating me lately, let me first share my memorable experience with one of the premiere hospitals in the country- the Philippine Heart Center.

Last September 17- November 9, 2012, I was given the chance to attend the Critical Care Course of PHC(Philippine Heart Center).  It is an eight-week program that combined classroom learning with  clinical exposure in different critical care units at the Philippine Heart Center.  For me, it was an opportunity to strengthen my knowledge and experience in caring for critically ill patients.

Unlike the other training programs I've come across with, this one is the most challenging and memorable for me.  Imagine, I had to pass the arduous pre-qualifying examination and the immense interview with the PHC mentors in order to secure a slot for this program.

Anyway, if getting onto the program was already challenging, keeping-up with it is yet another story.  The first three weeks weren't easy at all. Imagine, I was out of my comfort zone dealing with various people in a diverse environment trying to keep up with the lectures, quizzes and major exams.  I had to endure all those boring, lengthy nights at the PHC dormitory.  I had to learn how to ride the LRT (Light Railway Transit)/ MRT (Metro Railway Transit), commute from Vito Cruz to Quezon City, experience the condo life(since I was visiting my brother at his condo unit somewhere in Vito Cruz over the weekends), and live the life of an ordinary probinsyana stuck in the wilderness of Metro Manila.  It was clearly insane.

Lecture Days

my Batchmates

When the didactic phase has finally come to pass, we finally bid goodbye to the classroom-type environment to make way for 'the critical care environment itself.' All the tiresome lectures, the mind-boggling surpirse quizzes, the nerve-wracking major exams and all the kulitan moments in between already ended but learning didn't have to stop there.

 

Surgical Intensive Care Unit II

 

Petal 3D Children's Ward 

Adult Service Ward

Cardiovascular Lab

 

Neuro ICU(Intensive Care Unit)

Surgical Intensive Care Unit I

Pediatric ICU

 

Coronary Care Unit


 
 Pulmo Rehab

Medical ICU

As part of 'the Crit Care experience,'  the batch had to prepare several case presentations- the most challenging, burdensome and ambitious requirements up-to-date.  Imagine, I had to spend some tiresome days, sleepless evenings and tedious brain storming sessions with my groupmates before we were able to come up with a manuscript. 

My Case Study Buddies

Prepping-up for Case Pres

The Pulmo Group

Hence, after all the case study manuscripts were done, the case studies were presented, the journals  were checked and the exposures were finally over, the group had to set our white uniforms aside for our most awaited moment- the Graduation Ceremonies.

              My Crit Care Mentors

 

  Group 3- 73rd PHC Critical Care Course

73rd PHC Critical Care Course Graduation Ceremonies

    Archer, Rizza, I and Romeo 

It has been a month since I stepped out of the comforts of the Philippine Heart Center(PHC) to be somewhere close to my heart- HOME.  And right now, I don't have lengthy manuals to review,  case studies to focus on nor journals to finish.  All those Light Railway Transit/ Metro Railway Transit rides, sleepless nights at the dorm, the Crit Care challenges and everything else in between are all but memories away.  However, for what it's worth, I left my heart at PHC and the story doesn't end there.


Lovelots,
Maica Angelle