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). Defined by http://www.phc.gov.ph/training/nursing-education/nureduc/index.php?prog_uid=1 as an eight-week program intended to prepare nurses to be responsive to the
complex needs of the critically ill in the advanced field of critical
care nursing, the course is composed of a three-week didactic phase and a month-long exposure to the various critical care units of PHC. It is intended for Filipino nurses like me from various parts of the archipelago who want to be more adept in responding to the increasing demands of the critically-ill patients from all walks of life all over the country.
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.
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.
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.
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| Lecture Days |
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| my Batchmates |
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| Surgical Intensive Care Unit II |
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| Petal 3D Children's Ward |
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| Adult Service Ward |
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| Cardiovascular Lab |
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| Neuro ICU(Intensive Care Unit) |
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
Credits:
http://www.phc.gov.ph/training/nursing-education/nureduc/index.php?prog_uid=1
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Hello can I ask you a question?
ReplyDeleteIs it really mandatory to have a 1 year clinical experience in order to be part of the critical care course training?
thank you!
Hello Ponkiiee... It is not mandatory to have 1 year clinical experience in order to secure a slot for the program. You just need to pass the qualifying exam and meet the requirements of the Crit Care team. Good luck.
ReplyDeleteRegards,
Maica Angelle