www.littlenars.com

Play is very essential for a child’s growth and development. It is not only for the child to enjoy but also it enables them to learn, sharpen their minds and reach another developmental milestone.

Since Christmas is fast approaching, I know how parents and godparents are going crazy shopping for the best possible gifts for their children and godchildren. The problem is, there are a lot of toys but are they suitable, safe and will definitely enhance the child’s development?

Problem no more for there rise the very first toy village in the Philippines.

Pocketful of Kids, the very first interactive toy village in the country. In Pocketful of Kids, the dilemma of “look but don’t touch” is finally over as well as the fear of breaking toys and having to pay a big amount. Parents and children can have an interactive play and have the chance to try out any toy they like, even without buying it, inside this one of a kind play place. I feel it is safe for the children and I love the bright colors of the place (the clerks also have their cute uniforms on which I love…LOL).

Pocketful of kids innovates on the learning process for children ages 0-99(yes, you got it right…) through toys that can stimulate their motor and cognitive skills particularly the 7 smarts which are People, Music, Number, Word, Picture, Body and Nature Smart. Toys are from reputable American and European brands like Learning Resources, Educational Insights (Hot Dots pens, Playfoam and GeoSafari), Alex, Tatiri, Melissa & Doug (Number One in wooden educational toys in the US) They also have gadgets for preschool teachers that will definitely of great help for them.

I surely had a problem with regression when I experienced my visit at Pocketful of Kids (I feel I am not the only one…LOL!). I enjoyed all their toys especially the kitchen play because it has always been my favorite when I was a child. My brother, Jeric and I had almost fought one who will going to use the cash register toy first.

I think I am now fixated with their toys for I really want to visit it again. LOL! I sure had a lot of fun— to be a kid once more. I am always child at heart. Here’s something I made with some of the toys from Pocketful of Kids:

Pocketful of Kids is located at 15/F Strata 2000, Emerald Avenue, Ortigas. They open from 10:00 AM - 7 :00 pm. For more queries you could call them at (02) 634-7888 or (02) 634-2888 or e-mail them at pocketfulofkids@yahoo.com.

But wait there’s more… I have discovered that they have a toy for us student nurses. It is a picture puzzle, which involves the systems of the body. We won’t be having difficulty in memorizing each part for this toy can aid our neurons easily. LOL!

I know my post is a bit late. Nevertheless, I wanted to share something about GLOBAL HAND WASHING DAY.

During my AHSE days, I was 2nd year college then, we we’re required to teach at some public schools about health for our NSTP subject. For that, we have chosen the most common topic yet very important, the PROPER HAND WASHING.

I would remember when I was 2nd year at my Primary Health Care class, we would demonstrate the proper way of hand washing, and no… it’s not simple for us nurses, there’s an art and you have to memorize each rationale for each step. Good thing, there are now Hand Sanitizers LOL!

Anyway, we taught from grade 1 to grade 4 pupils for they are much prone to diseases regarding hygiene. They are very active that they tend to touch whatever they want and go to places no matter how dirty it is. They should be properly taught about hand washing on when to do it and how to do it properly.

We first had a discussion and then we had them demonstrate to us what they have learned. We as instructors have so much fun and we can say that the students also had fun in learning about hand washing (surely, they had fun in singing happy birthday to determine on how long they will wash their hands LOL!).

Let’s always practice hand washing and prevent contamination from microorganisms— kidding, simply to prevent diseases. Indeed, it’s one of the simplest and universal precaution.

As for me, when there’s no sink or water for me to wash my hand, I always bring with me my handy alcohol. (My friends and I would joke that we’re becoming “oc-oc” obsessive-compulsive because every now and then, we would pour alcohol at our hands. LOL!)

Here are some text messages I have received about health and about life…

Top 10 Biggest BRAIN DAMAGING HABITS:
1. No breakfast
2. Overeating
3. Smoking
4. High sugar consumpti0n
5. Air p0lluti0n
6. Sleep deprivati0n
7. Head c0vered while sleeping
8. W0rking brain during illness
9. Lacking in stimulating
10. Talking rarely

If this is true, I think I don’t have a brain anymore. LOL!

BULLETIN FOR A HAPPY LIFE:
1. More veggies, less meat;
2. More vinegar,less salt;
3. More fruits,less sweets;
4. Chew more,eat less;
5. More water,less soda;
6. More deeds,less talk;
7. More sharing,less desires;
8. More walks,less rides;
9. More laughter,less anger
10. More prayers,no worries!Ü

I definitely believe in this quote. Prayer is the best.

PATHOLOGY OF LOVE

L.O.V.E

Love, a very communicable disease caused by a filtrate virus,“Amoritis te Amo”.

SYMPTOMS: restlessness, vibrant palpitation, loss of appetite & sudden attack of daydreaming.
C0MPLCATI0N: jealousy if affected.
TREATMENT: 1dose of tender love & care that contains 2 tab of ‘kisspirin’.
DIAGN0SIS: safe if handled w/care.
PRESCRIPTI0N: 1tab/day+’kisspirin’ if needed.
if it fails, the best remedy is PIC0TIN for female & REYPIN for male. Ü

***

TRUTH ABOUT KISSING

spot the one who pouts.. hehe

do u knw dAt d scientific name 4 kissing is PHILEMAT0L0GY d scientific way 2 describe it is d anAtomical juxtaposition of 2 orbicularis oris muscle in a state of contrAction..u burn 26 calories in a 1min. kiss..it’s a great cardiovascular workout coz wen u kiss,u release adrenaline in2 d bl0odstream & ur hArt pumps more bl0od around ur body & cAn slow d aging process by toning ur cheeks&jAw muscles!
~un un eh.. ndi puro khAlayan..

*again, powered by NOKIA PC SUITE…=p

LIFE CYCLE:

3-8 y/o
..paramihan ng toys
9-18
..pataasan ng grades
19-25
..padamihan ng syota
26-35
..pagandahan ng asawa
36-45
..palakihan ng sweldo
46-55
padamihan ng kabit
56-70
..padamihan ng sakit
70 and above
..pabonggahan ng libing. ~.~

-powered by none other than, NOKIA PC SUITE…=p

Dahil wala pa akong OR case, at panay circulating nurse ang drama ko, napagod ako sa kakatayo at kakaikot sa kalawakan ng operating room sa Jose R. Reyes Memorial Medical Center (sa totoo lang, nakakahiyang maupo sa OR na iyan o dahil wala rin talagang upuan hehehe), inaya ko ang isa kong ka-grupo upang maupo, kumaen at magkwentuhan sa OR lounge.

Nang may isang mamang may tungkod ang biglang nagtanong saamin, “Nursing student ba kayo? o Student Nurse?” Napatingin ako sa kanya dahil akala ko kung sinong tauhan lamang sa ospital na iyon. Napangiti ako at sinagot ko sa kanya na may kawirdohan na tono, “Opo, parehas lang po iyon…” Lingid sa kaalaman ko na isa pala siyang doktor sa buto (napaka-ironic hindi ba? dahil mayroon siyang kapansanan sa paa…) tinawag siya ng isang nars at doon lang namin nalaman na, “ay doktor pala siya…”. Sinabi niya saamin na mayroong pagkakaiba ang dalawang tanong niya saamin at sabihin ko daw sa kanya ang sagot pagkabalik niya…

Nag-isip kaming mabuti ng aking kagrupo habang nagtatawanan. Naisip namin na ang “NURSING STUDENT ay ang isang estudyante na nag-aaral ng nursing sa loob ng apat na poste ng silid-aralan samantalang ang STUDENT NURSE ay isang estudyante na ginagamit sa ospital ang kanyang napag-aralan sa apat na poste ng silid-aralan”. May sense hindi ba? Sabay apir naming dalawa.

Nang bumalik si doc, tuwang-tuwa kaming sabihin sa kanya an gaming naisip. Pinakinggan niya kami ngunit mali daw ang aming sagot. Kinulit namin siya para sa sagot dahil tiyak hindi kami makakatulog pag nagkataon.

Ang sabi niya…

“Kapag STUDENT NURSE, yaan yung mga estudyanteng nag-aaral ng kursong nursing talaga. Yung mga NURSING STUDENT, yoon yung mga estudyanteng may mga anak na…”

Hindi namin alam ng aking kagrupo kung tatawa kami o ngingiwi na lang, pero dahil bumenta naman ang akala nami’y seryosong sagot, natawa kami (kamuntik pa nga na umappear kami sa doktor, feeling close naman diba? hehe).

Pahabol pa ni doc, “Kasi diba yung mga nanay na nagpapasuso at nag-aalaga ng mga anak, ang tawag doon NURSING diba?”

May point si Doc… Mas maganda nga naman pakinggan ang STUDENT NURSE. Kaya, binawi ko ang aking sagot. “AKO AY ISANG STUDENT NURSE.”

E kayo? NURSING STUDENT ba kayo o STUDENT NURSE?

Coronary Angioplasty or the Percutaneous Coronary Intervention is an invasive procedure that uses a balloon tipped catheter to dilate a stenotic area of a blood vessel. It can improve the blood flow to the heart.

This procedure is done to manage arteriosclerosis, a common disease of the arteries in which the lining of the small arteries are being thickened and atherosclerosis, also a disease of the arteries which affects the medium and large sized arteries caused by accumulation of fats, calcium, blood components, carbohydrates and fibrous tissues referred to as plaques.

It is also done to reduce the damage to the heart muscles caused by heart attack and improve symptoms of coronary artery disease such as angina and shortness of breath.

Most angioplasty is a success but this is not a permanent intervention. Plaques may reoccur months after the operation when doctor’s orders and other lifestyle modification interventions are not followed.

One famous artist who had undergone angioplasty for the third time (I think) is Ely Buendia, the former vocalist of the band Eraserheads who just recently suffered from a heart attack last August 30, 2008.

This is lifted from Medical Surgical Nursing 10th edition by Brunner and Suddarth

For more information on Coronary Angioplasty click here.

*photos are from here and here

I have receive this HEART ATTACK SMS few weeks ago. I don’t know if its true because reliability for text messages is much lower than articles or books right? However, I believe that the very first intervention for a heart attack is OXYGEN ADMINISTRATION so I think this is partly true or reliable I must say. Here it goes:

Medical msg - HEART ATTACK sms

If ur alone and if u hav symptoms of chest pain that radiates to ur arm and up to ur jaw, it is a “HEART ATTACK”.

if No one to help and a hospital is far u cant wait. U have to help urself
-cough repeatedly and vigorously.
- take deep breathe before every cough.
-Deep breaths gets oxygen to lungs,
-coughing keeps blood circulation alive.

please forward this to ur friends and relatives..u can save life..

To add, Persons present and the patient itself should NOT PANIC because panic can constrict blood vessels that may hinder the blood and oxygen circulation in the body causing the condition to worsen.

*just comment if tis text message is wrong…=D

Here are some of the nursing text messages that I receive from my friends, which I like to share with you:

I realized that being a nurse is incomparable. As we care for our patients, we learn how to cover our sorrow with a smile. We learn how to stay vigorous despite all the tasks we endure. We learn how to give hope even though ours is unclearly seen. We learn how to give strength even at times that we are weak. Nobody would know what kind of life a nurse has unless they become one.

When you save a person’s life, they call you a HERO, when you combine science with caring they call you an expert, when you share your compassion, they call you a friend, and when you do all three, they call you a NURSE!

Do you know why nurses are such an astig friend and lover? It’s because they understand your abnormalities, knows that you’re crying inside even though you’re laughing outside, a good listener and adviser and best of all, they know how to take care of you and can bring out the best in you!

Eyes expression:
0_0: awake
-_-: sleepy
^_^: flirty
¤_¤: shocked
Ø_Ø: teary
@_@: dizzy
$_$: NURSES!

Today was my second time entering the newest and only-in-FEU laboratory for nursing education because we are assigned there for our duty. The first was during my level III first semester revalida but it was not yet fully functional. You may often hear FEU nursing students saying:

Duty kami bukas sa VINES…
Nakapunta ka na sa VINES?
Ansaya sa VINES… the best!
Wow, sosyal… sa VINES kayo…
Excited na ako mag-VINES…

Which leaves you clueless about what you just heard. Worry no more because I am here to orient to on what is a VINES Laboratory.

VINES is an acronym for Virtual Integrated Nursing Education Simulation. It is the first and only full operational virtual nursing laboratory in the Philippines. It provides a realistic, state-of-the-art, joint commission compliant, and controlled safe environment for the students to practice safely in supportive environment before the students can enter the real world of healthcare. It is designed to replace the healthcare setting and facilities development of skills by using a simulated healthcare setting.

So in short, this is a hospital-like laboratory wherein it is divided into different areas: 6 bed wards, Medication room, Clean Utility room, Nurses’ lounge, Ante room (I am not familiar with this), Isolation/Private room, Control room 1&2, Intensive Care Unit 1&2, Emergency room, Operating/Delivery Room complex, Holding area, High Risk Pregnancy unit/Post- Anesthesia Care unit, Nursery and Central Supply room.

There are also mannequins (GERI for geriatrics, MIKE and MICHELLE for pediatrics, NOELLE for maternal and neonatal birthing, PEDI BLUE for neonates, CPR SUSIE for CPR, HAL for Acute Biologic Crisis) on which most nursing interventions can be practiced and variety of equipment that can be found in the hospital setting including a hoist, patient monitors and infusion pumps, a bedside sink and table.

If you want to view FEU’s VINES laboratory you can watch this video:

Before I forgot, VINES laboratory is equipped with cameras and microphones to monitor the activities in the laboratory. It is something like the “Big Brother”. Cameras are capable of zooming-in and zooming-out and rotating 360 degrees.

Our laboratory was also featured on GMA 7’s Saksi. Here’s the video:

No wonder why FEU is being branded as the Fastest Earning University LOL! It is good to know that our tuition fee is going to something, which could be of great help for our learning. We will be oriented on hospital settings in which at times we aren’t able to know or experience with the “real” hospitals. Lucky for our batch because we were able to utilize this laboratory when it is fully-functional already. During our simulations, our Clinical instructors would tell the prices of each mannequins and equipments for us to take care of those things and believe me, our tuition fee is not enough to pay for those just in case.

VINES laboratory have a high tech simulators that will make you say “Wow!” “Bongga…” “Sosyal!” “Wala sa bundok nito…”. It really facilitated my learning very well. I enjoyed it very much. I appreciated nursing procedures, which was discussed to us and I was able to practice it (in nursing, you will not know how it goes if you don’t perform it). This I believe is FEU’s edge among other nursing schools mushroom-ing (LOL!) nowadays and I am definitely proud of it (because I paid for it. LOL! Kidding…).

My source is from the VINES Code of Professional Behavior— Student Information handout. This is not a sponsored post. LOL!

*the video is from feuvineslab