"Naga-yosi ko katunga sa kaha taga- adlaw" (I smoke half of a pack a day), my 41 year-old patient says.


He was known chronic smoker. He started smoking since he was 11 years old. As a result, he has now three remaining toes on his left foot.


The doctors diagnosis was Buergers disease with gangrenous 1st and 5th digits...


Smoking is very closely related to Buerger's disease and smoking history is one of the criterion for diagnosing the disease..

I received him as my patient last Sunday. He's okay for release but until now, he's still in the hospital. Wala pa raw silang pambayad.


Smoking is expensive. It isn’t hard to figure out how much you spend on smoking; multiply how much money you spend on tobacco everyday by 365 (days per year). The amount may surprise you. Now multiply that by number of years you have been using tobacco and that amount will probably astound you.

Multiply the cost per year by 10 (for the upcoming 10 years) and ask yourself what you would rather do with that much money.

And this doesn’t include the higher costs for health and life insurance, as well as the possible health care cost due to tobacco- related conditions.


Nobody has to become the next victim. The cure to any disease starts with discipline, fighting the urge that forms a bad habit can be the cure.


Smoking harms nearly every organs of your body causing many diseases and reducing your health in general.


I am not saying that you should follow my advice, but for your sake, you should. After all, this is not a benefit of the few.

This is a calesa wheel, taken out of the cart and transformed into a bench. Such a lovely masterpiece that can be found in the Heritage City of Vigan. - by Moi


Just read an article today. This is something everybody should know...


If we will be asked to define what life is, most of us will surely say that it is a journey and like a wheel that turns round and round. As the days passed by, we may stumble and fall but the determination to move on continues.


As we go along, we should open our hearts and minds to all directions that life may offer. There are roads that are full of trials and hardships and there are roads that give us a clear picture of success and life's fulfillment.


Whatever roads we are taking today, never surrender instead keep your faith no matter what life may offer.

We're in bedside care (NS4, KDHI) for eight hours, thrice a week. [Taking vital signs, bedside care, nursing care, etc]. That's an awfully long time to work on two or three patients. So you can either be bored.


Tuesday. As I scanned my patients charts, I found out that one of my patients will undergo a close tube thoracentesis. It's a minor operation. On his chest Xray, a homogenous density is noted in his left lower hemithorax with meniscus obliterating the hemidiaphragm and cardiac border. It means, pleural fluid noted on his left lung. Therefore, it should be drained. Gets the pic? Hehehh.


I don't have enough information about thoracentesis, of equipments, procedures, of what to do. Informations that I haven't read and heard of. Those are those times when I found myself at the bottom of the ladder. I'm very nervous and my palms were starting to get sweaty.


I guess something was pulling me from ward to the operating room -err- emergency room. Look, I was assign in the male ward then all of the sudden, I'm already in the emergency room. I learned, it is necessary to make yourself available. Oftentimes, you have to be flexible and prepared to change directions quickly. It was just recently that I assisted the patient for diagnostic nasal endoscopy. I knew if I didn't take the opportunity, I would always wonder what would have been. Besides, there will be mentors to help you along the way.


Asssiting for an operation is very challenging. I'm in fact experiencing difficulties. But I'm still assisting it quite well, I suppose. You can only imagine how nurses offer a lot of comfort to the patient who is about to undergo major event in his life no matter how simple the procedure.


I enjoy the adventure and lesson that day brings. It was a so-good-liaison. The doctor discussed while doing the operation- about the anatomy and physiology of the case, the procedure, do's and dont's in assisting the patient undergoing thoracentesis. Maybe it is his ability to build consensus or a desire to share what he have learned. Thanks Doc G.