Our journey begins today

ANurseDad has now officially transitioned to its new home, our very own domain, anursedad.com. After many years running on the free platform thru WordPress.com, we are now on our own! I am very happy and excited to bring you the latest updates that will help you on your journey towards your NCLEX goals.

ANurseDad started as a simple blog that was originally intended share his own struggles and journey in passing the much dreaded NCLEX-RN examination.Did you know that as an international NCLEX-RN test taker (outside USA graduate), we are already on the disadvantage? Based on the latest 2017 NCLEX statistics, international graduates taking the NCLEX-RN examination for their first time has 38% pass rate compared to US-educated NCLEX-RN first time test takers which has 88% pass rate.

I moved to the United States and started working as a Medical Assistant after I left my work and my life as a Registered Nurse from the Philippines in the year 2012. Moving on and forward in becoming a US Registered Nurse, I focused on: why NCLEX test takers fail? What is it that we have not done differently? As multiple-test-taker myself, I ask What are your career goals?

For those nurses who are planning take the NCLEX-RN as an international graduate, let ANurseDad.com join you and take this journey towards our goal. For those nurses that are presently working in a different field or working the healthcare as a Technician or Medical Assistant, ANurseDad.com has a lot of things to share with you all as well.

Focus on your goal and don’t lose sight of it. Say it, write it down and claim it! You too will become a USRN!

Filipino Nurse: No Choice

Per PRC there are 187,000 unemployed nurses today and there are more numbers to add on this once the July Nursing Board Exam results will be out. The predicament of: No choice. As I posted my comment on ABS-CBN article The nursing profession under siege.

The predicament: No Choice. Most of these nurses would tend to jump over the catch of these Hospitals and private businesses that would take advantage of these nurses that would rather believe: “Kesa naman walang trabaho.”.

These are professional nurses that have studied so hard to earn this degree and it is only right and just that the new Aquino government will help uplift the nursing profession of the country.

P-Noy must also remember that most of these young nurses were born during the mid to late 80’s which means that we are the product of his parent’s fight for democracy. I myself was born 1985, and I have enjoyed the rest of the democracy and freedom that the Aquinos have started years back. And again, we are hoping that another Aquino will help us one more time.

True, it’s not only the hospitals that take advantage to Nurses like me. Also, other businesses can just easily create a trap for these professionals to work and get underpaid if not, be  underemployed on the notion of being medically related. I have posted in my previous blog posts (click here) that there are still few good reasons to continue our parent’s dream in becoming a pinoy nurse in the land of milk and honey. But then again, the there is the reality of how to start achieving that american dream. We need experience to hone our nursing skills. It’s either we work without compensation volunteer or spend at least Php 3,000 up to Php 20,000 to get a certification on specialized skills training.

Moreover, I wanted to  discuss the vulnerability of these nurses from exploitation. Back in 2008, I along with fellow volunteer nurse friends applied in an agency for a placement in KSA. Since at that time, we only had less than 6 months of post-grad clinical experience the manager of the agency have offered that they can fabricate documents for us to get a 2 year hospital-work certification so long we will accept the job offer which was around Php 22,000 a month in a military hospital in KSA. No one from us accepted the offer even after the final interview with an Arab national and have personally offered the jobs.

I continued getting hospital experiences and pursued becoming volunteer. I must also say that up to now,  AFP Medical Center and PNP General Hospital offers 6 months nurse residency program and 3 month OJT RN program for FREE respectively for new nurses. Which I have attended both programs last 2007 and 2008. I of course have tried attending “Skills Training” in a private hospital in Quezon City where I had to pay about Php 3,000 for a month of training.

Now, I am working in a BPO/KPO company that is “somehow” medically related field. It’s teleradiology business but the job is more concentrated on customer service. And let me just simply say, a nurse like me, who after 4 years since graduating from nursing school, at the age of 25, married with one child – cannot simply make the best career move. But, I truly believe that like those 187,000 unemployed nurses, I am bigger than this. The uncanny situation of Filipino nurses now can [should] simply not stop me to be successful.

But at the age of 25, young nurses should be wiser and make the best career move. Volunteer in a hospital or BPO/Call center job? It depends on the need (on the personal level). State-wise, the profession is under attack by opportunists and money-centered institution but we should help not to let this happen. It’s high time that the media is helping us to move the issue in the center of everyone’s attention especially the new government.

OJTRN 02-07 the batch of Volunteer Nurses I attended last 2007-2008

An interview about Nurse Exploitation

First, I would like to give the figures as detailed below:
NURSING BOARD EXAM PASSERS
June-06 17,821
Dec-06 19,712
June-07 31,275
Dec 07 28,924
June-08 27,765
Nov-08 39,455
June-09 32,617
Nov-09 37,527
TOTAL 235,096

Source: Philippine Board Exam Results click here

Since I graduated last April 2006, there has been almost quarter of a million Registered Nurses in the Philippines. And what happened since then? Most these RNs wanted to work abroad, major destinations US, UK and UAE. Wondering how many of these nurses have gone out and have started to repay their families for their investment? The Philippine Nursing Community have evolved too. The law of supply vs demand hit us big time. Watch this interview with the former PNA President and former Dean of Trinity University of Asia and Founder of Colleges of Nursing of Adamson University and STI Colleges – Dean Leah Paquiz

Originally posted from my Multiply account last Apr 09 2010