Pacemaker 3rd Issue by NAO PACEMAKER

CONTENTS

News A2 Group’s vaccination rollout in a slump

COA flags DOH deficiencies, HCWs undercompensated

Philippine Health Authorities Report New COVID19 Variants in the Country

Feature The Fall of Afghanistan: How the 20-Year Conflict Came into Being

The University and its Upper Hand: The Role of Schools in Battling the COVID-19 Pandemic

Youth Civic Unity: On-site voter's registration of Ateneo

Eco-Friendly Alternative to Menstrual Pads: Menstrual Cups

How Green are the Pastures?

BSN Survival Packet: Online Version

Editorial Un Poquito, Pamparon

‘So Much To Do, So Little Time’

‘Blowing Out the Flame’ - Dealing with College Burnout

School-Life Balance: Finding Time for Leisures

Online Classes: Survival of the Fittest

Philippines' battle against the COVID-19 pandemic: Are we winning?

The Reality of Being a Nurse

Sports Breakdancing to Debut at the 2024 Paris Olympics

Multi-medal-Ph in the 2020 Olympics

Ugas: Nasungkit ang kampeonato kontra kay Pacquiao via unanimous decision

FOREWORD Pacemaker continues to be the avenue of creative writing and art for nursing students. It is our utmost duty to be the vessel of freedom of expression and truth. The writers, photojournalists, cartoonists, and layout artists have emulated excellence in their craft. Such admirable feat cannot be possible without their courage and passion to convey their views, artistry, and personality into their work. May our efforts in this endeavor not return to void but shall resonate in the hearts and minds of the readers. Ultimately, the glory is not to us but to God. We dedicate the fruits of our work to Him alone. Soli Deo gloria. Only to God be the glory.

A2 Group’s vaccination rollout in a slump MARIA GRACE FELICETTES MONTECALBO

Early August 2021, the World Health Organization Philippines (WHO) deemed the priority of concern over the slow and low rate of the vaccinated elderly community- the A2 group in some of the Local Government Units (LGUs). The sluggish rollout among the A2 group promotes a risk to senior citizens as they are susceptible to the threats of the COVID-19 virus. "The elderly are at the highest risk of the most severe outcomes of COVID-19. Seven out of 10 COVID-19 deaths in the Philippines belong to this group," as reported by the WHO. The WHO Philippines challenged and alarmed different LGUs to lay out realistic, concrete, and intermediate actions to avoid hitting rock bottom. As quickly as possible, the rate of vaccinated senior citizens must reach a more robust and far higher percentage than the current. Based on WHO's report, “ Only about 25% of the A2 population is fully vaccinated, and about 35% have received their first dose. ” The efficient 01

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distribution of vaccines among the priority groups is a critical step in ensuring the flow of vaccination. This signals a heads-up to every LGU to ensure that the vaccination rollout for the priority groups is strictly being monitored. “Beyond aiming for much higher coverage rates, LGUs also need to consider the actual numbers of unvaccinated senior citizens whom they need to reach. For example, while NCR has already fully vaccinated 49% of their elderly population — the highest among the regions — over 575,000 senior citizens remain unvaccinated,” (Orbina & Junio, 2021).

"The elderly are at the highest risk of the most severe outcomes of COVID19. Seven out of 10 COVID19 deaths in the Philippines belong to this group,"

By Lisa Marie David, REUTERS/File https://www.reuters.com/world/asiapacific/philippines-lifts-suspension-astrazeneca-vaccine-under-60s-2021-04-19/

“On July 22, 2021, the Department of Health (DOH) announced the local transmission of the Delta variant. This type of variant was said to be about 60% much more transmissible” (Orbina & Junio, 2021). Delta Variant is worse than previously dominant variants known by many. This mere fact shows high concern to the unvaccinated groups, including the A2 group. As time passes through, recognition of little to no improvements upon the rate of vaccinated A2 Group’s will be by farcritical, as such group is alleged to be immensely vulnerable of getting infected by the COVID-19 Virus. “3 million doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccines donated by the US Government through the COVAX Facility were delivered to the Philippi-

nes on August 3, 2021. The donation is part of the US Government's global vaccine-sharing strategy, which aims to provide at least 80 million vaccine doses to countries most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said WHO representative. Every incoming vaccine, donated or bought from the COVAX Facility is greatly needed by the A2 group of the Philippines. The DOH, WHO, and UNICEF imply for local governments to uphold practicality and balance in utilizing every available vaccine for the priority populations. Other preventive/safety measures – hand hygiene and sanitation, social distancing, wearing face masks, and disinfecting their own homes are also strictly implemented in hopes of flattening the curve.

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COA flags DOH deficiencies HCWs undercompensated Charisma Pastor "Winarak na ninyo kami eh. Winarak na ninyo ang dangal ng DOH. Winarak ninyo ang lahat ng mga kasama ko dito," Health Secretary Francisco Duque III emotionally expressed. On August 12, 2021, the Department of Health (DOH) has been placed under public scrutiny and condemnation after the Commission of Audit (COA) flagged findings of ‘misused and unused funds.’ These funds allegedly amounted to P67.32 billion pesos supposedly to be allocated for the COVID-19 emergency response. The COA’s public release of reports was not intended to accuse agencies or officials but is merely a constitutional mandate, as it is essential to inform the Filipino taxpayers how their money was spent. COA Chairperson Michael AguinaldoIt and state auditors work under their sworn function to pursue the "prevention. and disallowance of irregular, unnecessary, excessive, ex03

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travagant, or unconscionable expenditures.” The DOH is just one of the many government agencies that were under investigation due to red flags in their annual reports. The COA has a 100-page 2020 Annual Audit Report for DOH and it has been found that the department ‘unwittingly scrimped on government funds and wasted time and opportunity to ease the national health crisis. The audit claims are as follows, “Various deficiencies involving some P67, 323, 186, 570.57 worth of public funds and intended for national efforts of combating the unprecedented scale of the COVID19 crisis were noted.” “Considerable amounts of unobligated allotments totaling P11, 890, 217, 589.50 as of December 31, 2020 and aimed at strengthening the Department’s capacity to address the COVID-19 pandemic and further buttressing the health care system was noted.”

“DOH central office and several operating units were unable to “properly handle and monitor their receivables” thus resulting in the “non-collection and/or nonliquidation” of receivables.” “Procedural deficiencies in the procurement process and lack of documentation in negotiated contracts in various contracts totaling P5, 038, 428, 371.74.” “Medical equipment and supplies procured for COVID-19 response totaling P69, 942, 628.00 remained unutilized or were not immediately utilized. Moreover, liquidated damages totaling P4, 490, 843.00 were not applied against payments to supplier in default.” “The non-submission of required documents and deficiencies noted in the payments of death and sickness compensation totaling P11, 665, 000.00 are contrary to existing rules and guidelines and have therefore made the validity and regularity

of transactions highly doubtful.” “Drugs, medicines and other types of inventories with a total value of P95,151,889.46 were found to be nearly expired and/or have expired due to deficient procurement planning, poor distribution and monitoring systems, and identified weakness in internal controls.”

"Winarak na ninyo kami eh. Winarak na ninyo ang dangal ng DOH. Winarak ninyo ang lahat ng mga kasama ko dito," 04

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Hence, DOH was demanded to justify the numerous observations of deficiencies. “The 67.3 billion is accounted for. Wala pong kinurakot, inilaan natin ang mga pondong ito para sa ating mga kababayan. The flagged issues are being addressed by the DOH. Rest assured, that the funds allotted to the DOH are all for the procurement of test kits, PPEs, payments of HCWs benefits, salaries of HRH among others,” Health Secretary Duque responded. On August 17, 2021, a virtual hearing was held by the House committee on public accounts. Health Secretary Duque III verbalized a sense of unfair and unjust criticism and that the reports have damaged the dignity and reputation of DOH. He also defended that the department was not given the full 60 days for justifications of accounts, and pleaded for consideration since the agency is operating under a state of emergency. However, COA Chairperson Aguinaldo sternly disproves Duque’s excuse. Despite several meetings with resident auditors and DOH officials being conducted beforehand, DOH still failed to submit the required documents. Zamboanga City Medical Center was listed among the hospitals that 05

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failed to prepare the required reports and documents for COVID19 related donations in-kind. Even before the rising predicament of the COA flagging DOH, health workers have already been expressing their lamentations and exhaustion over unfulfilled promises of compensation from the government. Union leaders in hospitals threatened a mass protest to express their grief over the government’s neglect of deprived health care workers. A nursing group said dozens could resign over unpaid risk allowances and hazard pay, adding pressure to facilities battling staff shortages. "We are already drained and overworked. Many from our ranks file [for] early retirement, and many resigned for fear of being infected with the contagious virus, while others went abroad. This [has] caused severe understaffing in public hospitals [which] leads us to go on duty for 12 to 24 hours," said Cristy Donguines, president of the Jose Reyes Memorial Medical Center Employees Union. Of the P67 billion in COVID-19 funds, P11.89 billion was unobligated, which means that the health department had funds but did not have programs it could commit

payments to. These funds were supposedly for hazard pay and special risk allowance, among others This concern has reached President Rodrigo Duterte, prompting him to demand the Department of Budget 10 days to resolve the unpaid benefits and allowances. "Pay them. Use whatever money there is," Duterte told Health Minister Franscisco Duque, who is facing questions over more than $1 billion in COVID-19 spending, including non-payment of medical workers' benefits. From COA to DOH, the Philippine government is facing much public criticism and condemnation for its handling of the pandemic response. Much budget has been allocated yet the department did not have programs it could commit payments to. Insisting there was no corruption despite health worker’s protests, the public notion for Duque to resign has been demanded.

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Philippine Health Authorities Report New COVID19 Variants in the Country Fea Gerlyn Acosta

year since the first COVID19 case was reported within Philippine soil, year he firstsince COVID-19 case was treported within Philippine soil, it is unfortunate that things are still not looking promising. As if the unfortunately still-progressing fatality rates do not weigh on the Filipinos’ minds, comes a new source of anxiety in the form of new COVID19 variants worming their way into the country. On August 15, 2021, Philippine health officials announced the discovery of the first case of the Lambda coronavirus variant in the country through a 35-year-old woman, which was reported as a variant that is more transmittable and has high resistance to vaccines. It was discovered for the first time in Peru in December and is said to be more transmittable than the initial Wuhan strain. According to research findings, it is 07

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also more refractory to vaccines. The Department of Health (DOH) announced on August 23, 2021, that community transmission of the Delta variant was already underway in Metro Manila and Calabarzon. However, more research was required at the time to determine whether the variant had spread to other parts of the country. The Delta variant, which was discovered in India, is alarming due to its characteristics that allow the virus to afflict more people immediately. As a result, the afflicted person's immune system is further weakened. It spreads quickly, is more transmittable, and has a quicker incubation period. Eventually, on August 31, 2021, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced that the highly transmissible Delta variant was now the highly transmissible Delta variant was now the predominant COVID-19 variant in the Philippines. These two novel variants now accompany the other variants of the virus that

reached the country namely, the Alpha variant from the UK, the Beta variant first detected in South Africa, and the local P.3 variant. As such, there are more critical ways than ever to resolve the evolving pandemic. Stopping the spread at the source is still essential. Current antitransmission measures, such as frequent hand washing, wearing a mask, physical distancing, and avoiding crowded areas, continue to work against new variants by reducing viral transmission and thus, decreasing opportunities for the virus to mutate. Scaling up vaccine production and distributing vaccines as rapidly and widespread as possible will also be essential in protecting people before they are exposed to the virus and diminishes the risk of new variants. As more people get vaccinated, experts expect virus circulation to decrease, which will then lead to fewer mutations.

August 15, 2021

Philippine health officials announced the discovery of the

First case of Lambda coronavirus variant in the country through a 35year-old woman 08

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The Fall of Afghanistan: How the 20-Year Conflict Came into Being Tasha Eugenio

From September 11, 2001 to August 15, 2021, a war spanning over decades has already declared a victor. “We have won the war and America has lost", says Haji Hekmat, a local Taliban leader. As the withdrawal of the U.S. military forces paved the way for the Taliban to claim victory in Afghanistan, the final chapter of the longest war the Americans have ever fought seemed to be coming to an end. But the victory the Taliban claims is not celebrated by the citizens of their country as the world is looking at thousands of Afghan men, women and children in dire need of refuge resulting in a humanitarian crisis. Due to the failure of the American foreign policy over Afghanistan in addition to the rapid takeover of the Taliban, with the current President, 09

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Ashraf Ghani, abandoning the country in chaos, the collapse of the country’s political and legal system became inevitable, leaving the future of Afghanistan in the hands of the Taliban once more. It is no secret that one country played a huge role in the current situation of Afghanistan: the United States of America. Led by their current President, Joseph “Joe” Biden Jr, the Taliban resurgence seemed like a nightmare for the Afghan citizens only to be brought into reality after Biden announced the complete withdrawal of the U.S. military forces in the war-torn country by September 11, 2021, 2 decades after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Following this announcement on April 14, 2021, the evacuation of American soldiers from the country

started. In just a couple of months, the Taliban was able to seize almost all of the country’s territories, leaving only the last city under government control, Kabul. However, it wasn’t long until the group was able to enter the capital city of Afghanistan on August 15, 2021, gaining control over the seat of government, and setting the country on fire, a reminiscence of the dark ages from the Taliban regime in 1996. To understand the extent of how the 20-Year Conflict came into being, let us go back to the year 1992. A beautiful country destroyed by centuries of war is preparing for yet another ruler, but this time, the country’s conqueror came from their own land. Following the withdrawal of Soviet military forces after the cold war, chaos erupted in Afghanistan between leaders of several political factions. Divided by conflicting beliefs and ideologies, the country was once again in a state of anarchy, which led to the Afghan Civil War from 1992 to 1996. This resulted in the creation of a Deobandi Islamist religious-political movement and military organization called the Taliban. The Taliban originated from Pashtun areas of eastern and southern Afghanistan. In September 1994, they formally created the movement with the sole purpose of restoring the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. The word Taliban is derived from the Arabic word tālib which means "student", a fitting name for the militia group as it was started by students who received traditional Islamic education in religious schools called madrassas in Pakistan. 10

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as it was started by students who received traditional Islamic education in religious schools called madrassas in Pakistan. The Taliban proved that it was a force to be reckoned with. In just a span of 2 years after their formation, the group was already conquering territories after territories until they were able to take control of Kabul, the capital city, in 1996. Their reign was filled with countless massacres of Afghan civilians in line with their firm interpretation of the Sharia Law, the fundamental religious law of the Islamic tradition. The Arabic word sharīʿah literally translates to “the path leading to the watering place”. In religious terms, it refers to God's divine law that believers of Islam must adhere to. Due to the Taliban’s strict enforcement of the Sharia law, public executions became common in the Islamic country as well as harsh punishments for those who violated the said law. In a severe effort to enforce their idea of an authentic Islamic Emirate, television, cinema, music and other forms of artistic expression were forbidden. Muslim women were required to wear a burqa (a one-piece veil that covers the face and body) and girls ages 10 and older were prohibited in receiving education. Important Buddhist relics and statues that date back 1,500 years ago were also destroyed by the 11

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Taliban sparkinginternational outrage for cultural abuses. By the end of the year, terror filled the Afghan nation once again, not knowing that the violence they had endured in the past years leading to the year of the Taliban (1996) will last for five more years. September 11, 2001 was the day that shocked the world. On that unfortunate Tuesday morning, a series of four coordinated terrorist attacks were launched against the United States of America by the AlQaeda, a militant Sunni Islamist multinational organization founded by Osama bin Laden alongside his deputy, Ayman al-Zawahiri. A total number of 2,996 people were killed during the terrorist attacks and because of this, the United States of America started their international military campaign to combat terrorism following 9/11. The Taliban quickly condemned the terrorist attack. However, after President George W. Bush gave them an ultimatum to immediately hand over Osama Bin Laden, the primary suspect who was supposedly hiding in Afghanistan at that time, the Taliban came to his defense saying that he was protected under the traditional Pashtun laws of hospitality thus, refusing to hand over the Al-Qaeda leader. This action of the Taliban provoked the invasion of the United States of America in Afghanistan to overthrow

them in their seat of power and to stop the operation of Al-Qaeda in the country. This began on October 7, 2001 just one month after the 9/11 attacks. The Taliban regime collapsed on November 9, 2001, and their military forces crumbled weeks after that. On December 9, 2001, the Taliban leader Mullah Omar surrendered the last city under their authority, Kandahar, and fled, marking the date as the official fall of the Taliban. The plan to rebuild the wartorn country came afterwards with the budget of $38 billion provided by the United States of America, with American soldiers stationed all over the country to ensure security and stability. But despite the efforts of the American military troops to completely eradicate the terrorist group, the Taliban began to regroup out of sight, hidden in the mountainous region between Afghanistan and Pakistan alongside Al-Qaeda, waiting for the perfect time of their resurgence. 20 years later, they were able to raise their own flag over the presidential palace, symbolizing that once again, Afghanistan is theirs. They won the war. America’s main objective was to rebuild Afghanistan from the rubbles of war, but two decades later, we are not only witnessing the collapse of a 20-year long campaign for peace but also the fall of what once was a land of

majestic empires and historic ruins, of which has now become a warzone with armed men ready to punish anyone who violates their enforcement of the divine law. As Martin Luther King once said, “Wars are poor chisels for carving out peaceful tomorrows”, and it is very evident how certain powers are playing God, but for how long? Will the Afghan citizens ever be free? When will the armed conflict come to an end? Will peace ever be upon their deeply troubled country? With clashing ideologies between the Taliban and the Western World, only time can tell, but for now, all we can do is watch Afghanistan fall into ruins, once again.

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The University and its Upper Hand:

The Role of Schools in Battling the COVID-19 Pandemic

ith more than a year into the pandemic, saying that althcare thesystem he- is exhausted is an understatement. Hospitals being overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients have been brought up to concern occasionally. It would only be a matter of time that our healthcare workers cannot bounce back from this tough cycle anymore. Consequently, it is long overdue that universities should also take leadership in the nonmedical aspects of battling the pandemic to help lift some of the grievous stress of our frontliners. But what exact course of action do we demand from them? Turn the situation into a teachable moment Even in such critical times, the proliferation of misinformation is widespread which has contributed to the spread of unnecessary panic and the use of faulty health remedies. Being the established provider of reliable information, univ-

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Rheem Mundoc

ersities are expected to emerge as the qualified personnel to address the pandemic and its consequences. Dissemination of scientifically correct content to the general public must be underscored. This responsibility may range from putting out publication materials reinforcing the current health trends, to incorporating COVID-19 content into their curriculum. Any vital information set out by the healthcare sectors should be amplified by the universities. Maximize the public engagement Universities make up a large portion of the population and their reach is undeniably extensive. Communicating accurate scientific information and launching outreach programs to the public are ways to utilize such a population. An initiative to organise a hotline spearheaded by the medical and nursing students might just relieve the unprecedented stress of the fro-

ontliners. Such hotlines can vary from a group of contact tracers to a group of active listeners to talk to people who are negatively affected by the pandemic. Another way to navigate the benefits of having a public engagement is to organize programs that seek donations for those in need. Encourage and engage the student body, faculty, and alumni to offer any type of assistance. Lend the facilities As the learning mode shifted into an online set-up to reduce the possibility of community spread, university campuses are basically deserted - only kept open for some transactions which are managed by a skeleton group of workers. For that reason, universities have a surplus of spatial capacities with well-developed infrastructures supplemented with Wi-Fi zones and IT networks. Most of these universities also have residential buildings often used for recreational

Photo: iStock

activities. As hospitals face the dilemma of not admitting non-covid patients due to shortage of bed capacities, we hope that universities could lend their campus to set up makeshift hospitals for patients who require non-essential medical management. Setting up vaccination sites. Over the course of the pandemic, there have been a decrease in faceto-face medical visitations and routine check-ups. Given such a massive population of our country, COVID-19 vaccination is lamentably progressing quite slow. Various sectors are expected to help ensure that herd immunity is achieved as soon as possible - and among them should be the universities. With such broad reach, they are somehow positioned to instruct about, link to, and even provide COVID-19 vaccines. One endearing example is how the Ateneo de Zamboanga University was able to set up a COVID-19 vaccination 14

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site at the Fr. Eusebio Salvador SJ Campus to reinforce the “RESBAKUNA: Kasangga ng Bida” the Philippines’ nationwide vaccination campaign. In this world crisis that we are facing today, the outlook is indefinite, but we should not give up. Let us demand accountability from those who are morally obligated to us - like the universities, who are responsible to its students and to the larger society that finances them. We can never be certain when this pandemic will end but we must offer what we

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possibly can. Universities coordinating with the healthcare system may be deemed as a taxing job to begin with, but the need is inevitably imperative. The actions that we take, no matter how demanding they sound, will determine how many lives are going to be saved or lost.

YOUTH CIVIC UNITY Queendel Dionga

Appalling. Amidst all the chaos that was reflected due to the emerging pandemic, which greatly severed individuals of all ages, people in higher positions continued to show actions of profound disappointment towards their subjects. As absurd as it may seem, these exact lines of seats were assigned by the nation itself; they were granted to act by how they would want to just because they had the power. Compressing the country into a single path from several hindrances is perplexing enough for a being—what more for those incompetent ones? Be that as it may, the time to choose among names and have the prominent blue mark on one’s index finger is coming around the corner after six long years. As the current president's term is nearing its marked end, a mass of roused Filipinos leading to fighting injustice, which is crucial for the present events, has started to blossom all over the country. For

all these consecutive recorded affairs, “appalling'' is the right word to align how they had reigned the country for their benefits. The Philippines should not yet again be situated into abuse and mistreatment—as the domino of these occurrences may start the moment an individual would be given the position to act. A university in a rising city started a valiant act to cast nationals by giving them a swift and organized platform, to not let their supposed votes on the palm of grim. Consequently, minor steps are always bonded with the high ones—a trivial conviction to influence others of their right to vote by the Ateneo de Zamboanga University youth volunteers is the ground example. The 2022 Philippine general election is currently the buzz of society. It predetermines the possible conduct on each history of the candidates—from the highest sectors to the lowest ones.

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Due to this, volunteers from the Ateneo de Zamboanga University aim to deliver a project that would deposit a huge impact to affect several factors: peak influence and bridge. Social Awareness and Community Service Involvement, the spearheaded office, including Ateneo Center for Leadership and Governance, El Consejo Atenista, and other Ateneo de Zamboanga University organizations, formed an affixed objective for the betterment of the society—hence, the creation of onsite Commissions on Elections voter’s registration. As it is natural for everyone to stand in what they believe, the aforementioned sectors then hinge on accomplishing an outcome that would bring good not only for them but also for a hundred and eight million Filipinos. The Dapat Tama page posted a declaration for the school’s voter’s registration on July 29, 2021, which had begun sometime around August 6 of the same year. Amidst all profound means, the said journey aims only to support a specific objective from all parties—to cater and indulge Ateneo students, staff, employees, and faculty into prioritizing their votes by registering. Voting is a crucial half of democracy; when 17

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one neglects this civic responsibility, the political power is entrusted to an unsure path. ‘We think that the 2022 election is critical because it determines the nation’s future for the next six years,’ a quotation from a representative of the El Consejo Atenista from Ateneo de Zamboanga University conveyed how big of a deal the event appears. Upon scrutinizing the members of the said school, it was found that most students, at the age of voting, including school staff, have yet to register for the upcoming election. Considering how much of an impact revolves around governing issues, isn’t it a huge sense for Filipinos to reciprocate their voices through the usage of ballots? Eligible voters are the exact concrete foundation to meet a society that converges achievements with its full potential. With this, Social Awareness and Community Service Involvement tapped the three aforementioned organizations on April 8, 2021, by creating a group chat, following the health protocols, to discuss the flow of events. The preparation of the event started on a bumpy road; there was a mix of mayhem and peace by suddenly facing a new deal. The same month of the

preparation, 27 to 28th May, Zamboanga City suddenly emerged into a modified general community quarantine; everything was then placed into hold as risks had increased once again. The importance of voting reflects greatly on society, but the Importance of health is depicted on an individual—making it much more crucial than the latter; due to this, the date was finalized on August 6. By doing so, the team had the opportunity for a webinar: “Vote Matters.” This seminar greatly answers the question of the need to vote, alongside its history and the opportunity it brings to the people. Making a difference for society is interrelated to an individual; hence, a baseline survey was first conducted by the Ateneo forces to accumulate a flexible number of participants interested in the on-site voter’s registration. The youth volunteers had listed a total of six hundred and eighty responses from their preregistration link. Interestingly enough, students of Ateneo showed a profound interest just by days of publicizing by the organizations. These people are one step closer to their potential to choose who should be placed in office from who does not. However,

87.5% of the original list only continued at the event, three hundred and eight from the first district while two hundred and eighty-seven from the second one. Even if there is quite a difference in number, one cannot deny that the integral is still immense for the school. History shows how frightening undeserving people could be upon emerging high according to the law, how thriving to deliver a statewide message by conducting an agenda is already a huge leap to avoid the said affair. When one is to vote, that person would already contribute to society by having an opinion—which may or may not affect the safety, leading to their quality of living. Attaining the peak of registration had been considered when the on-site voter’s registration suddenly faced a turn of events upon conducting; nonregistered Ateneo students and staff accumulated quite a number during the event. The prominent organization managed this exact occurrence with the help of Ateneo heads; they were ordered to accept these walk-ins. A Facebook post was then made to announce that the Ateneo de Zamboanga University now allows unregistered applicants into the sc18 FEATURE

hool. Expression is directly acquainted with voting. In the sense of on-site registration, the will of these people to have their own opinions is mirrored thoroughly. What made the hap so appealing was the school's recognition after conducting based on Commission on Elections—Ateneo de Zamboanga University attained the highest number of registered applicants within just a day of holding an on-site event. Among a couple of other initiations within the city, the volunteers had received triumph for being the first on the Commission on Elections list inside Zamboanga City. For those who see to it that elections should be prioritized by many, this led to a victory on the side of students as the management flowed like a stream; everything was deemed as smooth even amidst unprecedented events. After all the sweat of those behind the occasion, their hard work paid off with picture taking, congratulatory speech, and most importantly, food. The 2022 election is a reality that most Filipinos need to share upon actively. A crook should never be left alone as it would create an opportunity for exploitation among the country's rights. Civic unity among youth is a purpose of introducing people to the political side of the country, both its light and

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darkness Bad governance is not impossible to be fought when one is to open his eyes meticulously. Every person who is readily acceptable to be registered needs to see how this sustains the whole Philippines for another six-year—hence, choosing the right path to start the process of knowing.

Eco-Friendly Alternative to Menstrual Pads:

Menstrual Cups Grena Krysta Lhar Guan

A woman usually changes menstrual pads 3-5 times a day and it costs 100 pesos per month. It takes 21-35 menstrual pads for a sevenday period, and costs 1,200 pesos for a year of usage. The menstrual pads we commonly use are made of Super Absorbent Polymer (SAP) and Polyethylene, which is why we get the leak-proof we desire every month. Unfortunately, we should not be mesmerized by how this works as this is unsustainable. A pad has 90% plastic in it – the packaging, adhesives, wings, super absorbent gel, and fabric made of plastic woven sheet. Moreover, these pads will take centuries to decompose, specifically 500-800 years. Noting the amount of pads used every month greatly contributes to the 14.66 million tons of yearly trash the Philippines generate, but how can we reduce the number through small steps as a menstruating woman? Menstrual Cups are bell-shaped type of feminine hygiene products that can be reused for up to 10 years.

These cups are safe, eco-friendly, and it holds more blood than pads. Usage of this is inserting the cup to your vagina to collect the sloughed off lining of the uterus. This is usually made of medical-grade silicone, but some are created with rubber, latex, or elastomer. If you are allergic to these products, sadly, cups are not for you. It can hold up to 12 hours of blood with no leaks, but still it depends on how heavy a menstruation is. Following the 12 hour rule of using a cup will deter toxic shock syndrome that happens to tampon users, besides, cups collect blood, not absorb. A usual cup has two sizes, small and large. Small cups are usually for below 35 years old, light bleeders, and who have never given birth, while large cups are for older than 35, heavy bleeders, and given birth vaginally. Commonly found small sized cups hold up to 25 mL of blood and large ones hold 30 mL – specific brands offer to hold mo-

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Menstrual cups are safe, eco-friendly, budgetfriendly, and hassle-free.

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re blood. Using menstrual cups could amaze you that you no longer want to go back to using menstrual pads. In fact, menstrual blood is not foul smelling at all. It only has this fishy odor after it comes in contact with air and the chemicals of a menstrual pad. No warm feeling especially during summer and no rashes at all since the collection of blood happens on the vagina. Contrary to pads, menstrual cups cost a lot more than the monthly value of it. Good quality menstrual cups are ordered from foreign countries, like the United States of America where it is commonly used. Local brands offer good ones, but it does not cater to all types of women. Cups from America cost up to 2000 pesos and local brands cost up to 1,200 pesos. In the long run, it is much more budgetfriendly. One cup can last up to 10 years, depending on how you take care of it and what the brand claims. A 2,000 pesos cup for 10 years is better than 12,000 pesos of 10 years pad usage. Choosing a cup depends on the cervix height, how strong your vaginal wall is, and the type of monthly flow you have. Anatomy of a menstrual cup includes: rim, air holes, body, and stem. Rims are the top most part of the cup. This helps the cup open once it is inserted, that is why some are made firmer. One thing to take note during the insertion is the popping of this rim. Popping means that the cup is fully

opened in order to catch menstrual blood. If this did not open, leakage would happen. This is common to first time users and is part of the process of learning. Air holes would help secure the cup in place by creating suction. These holes also help for a painless removal by releasing air thus breaking the suction. Upon buying a cup, inspect the patency of the holes – if this is closed, you can just prick this using a needle. When washing a cup before reinsertion, holes must be checked and washed properly as some blood could block these. The body of the cup holds the menstrual blood; the size of this depends on the target type of bleeders. Lastly, the stem – this can help locate the menstrual cup when it sits high above the vagina for women who have a high cervix. For women who have average or low cervix, stems are trimmed to avoid discomfort as it pokes outside the vaginal orifice. Stems have ridges over them to help on the removal of the cup. One way to know if the cup is fully opened – once you pull the stem, tugging is present. Learning curve of menstrual cups can last up to months, the insertion and removal would really be tricky. It can be steep for the first months and might make you give up, but, every month you learn new positions and folds that will help you better insert the cup. Popular folding techniques are the punch-down fold and the ‘C’ or ‘U’ fol-

d. These have a smaller diameter for easy insertion and popping. Widely used positions for insertion are the Asian squat, sitting on the toilet, and standing while one foot on the toilet. Local brands offer fit for common women, which is a good choice to start with. This will help you better explore what type of cup suits you – Goldilocks cup as they termed it – perfect fit and perfect feeling. Some women buy 2-3 cups before finding the right one, and most learn after 8 months of usage. It can be messy on the first try, but you will get the hang of it after many cycles. Before buying a cup, quizzes are found on the internet, where they will help you find the perfect cup for you. Facebook groups like, Menstrual Cup Users Philippines, are very much open for all inquiries and they empower you throughout your journey. Menstrual cups are safe, eco-friendly, budget-friendly, and hassle-free. Safe as this is made of medical-grade products that cannot cause toxic shock syndrome. Eco-friendly, since this product can last up to 10 years, unlike disposable menstrual pads that are 90% made of plastic and the decomposition time can last up to 800 years. Budget-friendly, as this costs less than the yearly usage of pads. Hassle-free – no icky and warm feeling, no rashes, no smell, holds blood more than pads, and changing time can be up to 12 hours. Switching to menstrual

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cups can be discouraging at first due to its process of learning – the leakage of menstrual blood, the position and folds of insertion, and the difficulty of removing the cup. Despite these disappointing scenarios, in the long run, everything will be smoother. As the official distributor of Intimina products in the Philippines, Mrs. Czarina Maye Noche, said, “Think of it as learning how to drive a manual car, you cannot fully drive one with just one session.”

How How Green Green are are the the Pastures? Pastures? Tracey Faye Abellon

Even in this generation, the Philippines continues to be notoriously known as the “breeding ground for nurses.” The tale of nurses seeking greener pastures abroad is surely a story that the majority of us are already familiar with. If you’re wondering why they do so, a typical answer is that the financial stability and security for nurses in foreign countries overthrow that of which the Philippines can offer. In addition, the poor working conditions and scarcity of job opportunities for nurses in the Philippines are ever-present issues that dishearten them to work for their motherland. Coupling these with the high demand of health care providers in other countries, it is obvious as to what path would most be appealing for them—to go abroad. But once Filipino nurses do have the opportunity to do so, can it already be considered as a ticket 23

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towards a land of milk and honey as some would picture out? Among the thousands of Overseas Filipino Workers in the United Kingdom, Keanverlie Dualan is only one of the Filipino nurses that are working there. She was actually educated and trained in the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) department of Ateneo de Zamboanga University (AdZU) and received her diploma in the year 2010. Before deciding to go abroad, she started to work as a nurse in the Philippines first, specifically in Zamboanga City. Here, she had three consecutive roles: a pediatric, community, and Intensive Care Unit (ICU) nurse. Throughout her six-year experience, she realized that “What you earned was just enough for your family and sometimes even less.” This, in addition to knowing that she could offer more for herself and her family when she would work as an 24

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OFW nurse, has consequently become the grounds that led her to pursue a nursing career in the UK. Currently, she is an ICU Nurse in one of the hospitals in London for almost five years now, wherein she looks after critically ill patients who are most reliant on organ support and require close monitoring as they can deteriorate at any moment. She, as a nurse, is independent in her clinical decision-making but is still part of a collaborative team with other health care and medical professionals, with the patient at their center. Her shifts usually constitute a 12-hour shift for three to four days a week, but she can sometimes take extra shifts if her schedule allows her. Amidst the pandemic, however, the workload given to them nurses has been heavier than usual as they had to look after six patients instead of the usual 1:1 nurse-patient ratio. “It was one of the most exhausting and terrifying experiences I have ever had to endure for almost a year,” Dualan added. Having to go through being a nurse in local and foreign settings, Dualan noted that there are, of course, similarities and differences in both aspects. Filipinos can be more familycentered and welcoming, while British people in London can be more appreciative and polite. Nevertheless, she emphasized that being a 25 FEATURE

nurse means that regardless of gender, race, culture, or socioeconomic status, “It does not matter who you look after. You take care of all people.” In terms of job expectations and working environment, she believes that nurses are more valued in the UK, and this is not just because of them being understaffed. In the hospitals that she has worked for in Zamboanga City, toxic environments were common, wherein most doctors—but not all— would look down on nurses and demean them in every way possible. Contrastingly, when she started working in London, she saw how doctors thought highly of nurses in the UK and thus considered and appreciated nurses’ input in patient care more. Lastly, she mentioned that the way of living in the UK is more expensive. “Way of living in the UK means you spend more than half of your salary with rent, bills, and other expenses.” Even though this is the case, the salary that she now receives certainly covers not only her needs, but her wants as well. Although working abroad seems to be the cream of the crop for Filipino nurses when it comes to career opportunities, everything has a catch. Other than constantly being away from home, the Philippines, Dualan also had to go through a rough time of adjusting to a new environment,

culture, and lifestyle especially when she was just starting as an OFW nurse. She considered it as “learning to be a full-time adult from scratch,” as she had to be more independent and more responsible now that she was facing a whole new world without the people that she came to know as her family. The pressure of work and stress, brought about by difficult situations or people there in the UK, can sometimes

be overwhelming as well. Nonetheless, quitting was never an option for Dualan. “I did not put myself through all the hardships just to quit at the end,” she said. In instances where everything seems so chaotic, she reminds herself that adversities are impermanent. Even if these are the qualities of life that she could not change, she could always change how she deals with these—by facing these head-on in order to get through to every obstacle that comes her way.

I did not put myself through all the hardships just to quit at the end 26

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Looking back to when she was still a BSN student, she considers studying in AdZU as a great privilege since it assisted her in gaining the knowledge and skills that she needed to take her first “baby steps” as a professional nurse. The theories, actual rotational shifts in different areas in Zamboanga City, and even the patience of her former mentors and clinical instructors— these were all the things that she is forever grateful for. This, along with her experiences of being a nurse in the Philippines, humbles her as she could never disregard the fact that everything that happened in her roots has served as stepping stones to be where she is now. “It was basically the first step to everything else,” she mentioned. Moreover, the Ignatian way of teaching of the Ateneo has also helped her grow morally. Carrying with her the values of magis, cura personalis, generosity, and commitment to faith and justice even in another country, she was able to become a better person and a better nurse, as well as these have enabled her to transform her perspective on nursing as more than just a profession. Indeed, it is a profession that aims to achieve the common good.

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“You always do more of what is expected from you, no questions asked. You give a part of yourself to people you barely know without asking anything in return. You take care of people without the need to be acknowledged. You are an advocate for all of their needs. Being a nurse is a lifelong commitment to helping people. With these values, nursing was more than just a profession.” Judging by the experiences of a single person is certainly a subjective way of perceiving the ins and outs of working as a nurse —be it in the Philippines or in other countries—as everyone has unique personalities and conditions, as well as how we react to situations differently and at varying degrees. Even so, having a glimpse of the narrative of Keanverlie Dualan has surely clarified the idea that being an OFW nurse would not exempt you from the struggles of life. Receiving a bigger pay would be appealing to some, but the downside is that the feeling of homesickness can be unbearable to others. In addition, real life would also oblige you to learn the things not taught in school. This includes

learning how to deal with death and the living and to be more confident and assertive for you to excel at your career. As she has stated, “Working abroad means you have to go through a lot of hardships before you actually get where you want to be. It is not going to be easy and more often than not, you would want to quit right away.” Nevertheless, she advises BSN students to never stop reaching for their goals, trust the process, and wait for their own timing. The green pastures that you have always been longing for will soon be in your view.

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BSN Survival Packet:

Online Version Sameer Ngo & Shariefa Aine Jhan Jadji

Welcome to the College of Nursing where your future depends a lot on time management We might have different ways of time management, others could survive procrastination as if it's a superpower given to them, whereas there could be some who think sudden procrastination is a life and death situation. There are a lot of sources around, which feature various tips to productivity and you’re just one scroll away to finding one. I mean, it’s totally fine to search on Google for some tips and whether they totally work, but why take such a way around when we have here 10 tips to productivity that could help you achieve a better version of yourself.

TIP #1: Understand yourself

The very first tip for you is to understand yourself. You wouldn’t really try out things that don't suit your behavior. You could try, but you must know yourself more than what the internet tells you. Your zodiac sign could tell you that you’re a hard-working person but is just too good to be true. An online test could tell you that you’re a nocturnal being, but in reality, you’re just the diurnal type. A Facebook profile generator could tell you that you’re a productive person based on your profile picture, but in reality, you’re just the typical type of procrastinator. Take these the other way around. You could be more than what these things tell you. That’s why understanding whether you’re a productive person or not; whether you're the type to be active at day or night; or whether you're a really hard-working person or not, it all depends on how you understand yourself. This will help you with the following tips to achieve your productive self.

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TIP #2: Plan ahead for the week

Set your dates when you’re totally out of activities and the days you want to take a rest. List all the things that you would be doing and pin them to your calendar to which day you would accomplish them. This suggests managing your time so that your requirements wouldn't overlap and also avoid too many workloads. In line with your schedule, make sure to provide the maximum number of things that you think you could finish on a perfect day. It’s not really necessary to rush all these things. Take your time, balance your work and rest schedule, and make sure that you only have enough activities for the day— too much or too little could be a problem.

TIP #3: Do some exercise

Waking up with a heavy body could make you sleepy, which could cause you to lose focus. Some would end up reading the same things multiple times just to understand them, or some would work on an assignment then their eyes would eventually shut down. Do some exercise to avoid slacking off. Move your body, stretch out your limbs, and crack those bones. But, make sure to not over-exert your body and try to at least wake your body before working. This is just the perfect activity to start everything.

TIP Find a comfortable place Just like how the school encourages us to have a proper setup for online classes, even when working alone, a proper environment is crucial. Not the #4: comfortable setting where you could fall asleep in no time. Look for a place that best suits your working behavior. An isolated room with an empty table, a small lamp on top, and a chair, could just be the perfect starter pack for you.

TIP Isolate yourself from distractions If there’s anything that could be under procrastination in the “Top 10 things that prevent productivity”, say no more as distraction places at Top 2. #5: This certainly includes your gadgets, more specifically your cellphones. We are in fact, a generation that is so much prone to the internet. Unlike before, our ancestors’ communication relied a lot on physical letters, or per30

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haps when owls were the mode of communication to Hogwarts, our generation have various apps such as Messenger, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and the list just goes on. I mean, a chika from your friend could just be one of the things that could fulfill your day. That’s why, the more tempting it is to open your phone from time to time, the more it is a distraction and a need to turn it off when you’re working on something. It could be the worst distraction other than an annoying niece or nephew at home.

TIP Play motivating background music You could always do something else, not just distractions when working on something, even more so could motivate you to finish your tasks #6: efficiently. Working on something with a one-hour clip of epic background music, classical instruments, or perhaps any sound that would seem comfortable with helps you lessen the stress and could boost your energy while working.

TIP #7: Prioritize the hardest first

You might be such an excellent student that you find most of your assignments just a piece of cake for you. But there could be certain subjects that you hate in your class, either you just hate the professor or you just find the subject hard. Either way, you wouldn’t really want to work on it in the least, perhaps you have something to prove to yourself or your professor. That’s why, do the hardest first and surprise your brain cells with that activity, maybe the easy ones would now be easier once you’ve done the hardest.

TIP Set an alarm for every task Set a time for every task on your to-do list. Setting time for each of your activities could lessen the stress that you’d get from them and your schedule #8: would be much more organized. It could motivate you if you’re the type of person to be satisfied with organized things. It’s not really necessary to finish all your tasks immediately because what matters is that you make progress for each of them.

TIP #9: Take a break

Put in mind that rest is important, especially when your tasks just keep coming where you would eventually forget to take a breath. It would be impo-

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ssible to forget such an involuntary act, but still, it is important that you give yourself time, drink some water or just stare plainly at the corners of your room to somehow relieve your stressed mind, and then proceed after a 10-15 minute break.

TIP #9: Get enough sleep At the end of each day, you might be stressed from all the activities and work. Do not pretend that you’re ok when you’re actually not just to finish your work and feel like you’re being productive. Just to let you know that being productive doesn’t mean working all day long. Just as much as it is important to take rests for every activity you’ve worked on, sleep is the perfect relaxation moment after such a tiring day. It also helps recharge our minds and body so that we could be even more productive by the next day. Sleep is not the 2-3 hours then waking up at midnight to continue an assignment. It is still important to have enough sleep that extends from 1 to 8 hours of it. There’s no guarantee that these things will work for you. The last tip for you is to try experimenting with various things if you’re really determined to achieve much more tasks efficiently. As for the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson “All life is an experiment, the more experiments you make the better”, perhaps you might find out that some of the things listed here would eventually help you become much more productive.

Volume 2:

5 Useful Apps and Sites for College Students Our world has drastically changed throughout the centuries. Just when it was just about writing with a pen and keeping a paper folder, our generation now lives in an innovative world where most of the things we need are now on the internet. We even have innovated so much faster than the newer generations coming to their senses. I mean, while some of them know so much better than some of us, you’d feel such a boomer for entering college without knowing easy apps that could help you in your degree. But worry less, because we just have the perfect set of sites and applications to make your college life less stressful.

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Grammarly If you feel like you didn’t listen to your grammar teacher before, or you just eventually forgot what they taught a month after, then Grammarly is here for you. Grammarly is a platform that is very useful when it comes to academic writings. It offers you various features that could improve you and your paper on proper grammar. The site provides a working platform for editing and it is convenient especially for academic writing, as it offers a lot of suggestions not only in terms of grammar but also suggestions such as the tone and formality of your writing. Grammarly also offers an extension for computers that will automatically give grammar suggestions even if you’re on another site. Meanwhile, the application, just like the site, you can set your device with Grammarly to guide your keyboard with proper grammar. A normal account on Grammarly only serves as a grammar-checker, but if you want the suggestions to be on another level such as structure suggestions and more, it is included in their premium offer.

how to paraphrase a sentence or paragraph. If you still find it hard to paraphrase a sentence, or if you want to improve your sentence structure even more, then Quillbot is just the perfect site for you. Quillbot is a site that offers tools such as a paraphraser, grammarchecker, summarizer, and citation generator. It helps a lot if you want to improve your sentence structure, or if you want to paraphrase an idea. Just like Grammarly, it has an extension for computers or laptops. It can also be the alternative for Grammarly in structure checking if you don't want to buy the premium privilege, as QuillBot also offers editing sentence structure.

Canva Editing has become the trend for our generation. May it be to online posters, memes, Instagram stories, infographics, and even academic posters. There are various applications and software available. If you’re an amateur and want a convenient and user-friendly application or site, then Canva is what you need. Canva is an editing application and site, which is a huge platform for editing. It offers a variety of editing QuillBot templates for posters, infographics, Just as grammar was taught in PowerPoint presentations, and your early years, you were also many more. It also consists of a taught plethora of el33 FEATURE

ements such as various illustrations. You can also upload any picture for editing, and you can save your design and download it in different formats may it be JPG or PNG. Canva also has a premium account offer, wherein you can access a lot more elements that are not available to basic users. However, there’s nothing to worry about if you’re enrolled in Ateneo. You can use your AdZU account to access Canva Education which is just pretty much similar to the premium account that they offer. Google Docs Does it feel stressful to send your file to your groupmates for them to edit their contribution, and then they would send it back for you to check? Or perhaps even the other way around? Then might as well stop it, because Google Docs is just around the corner. Google Docs is available in Play Store and Appstore, as well as it has a site for computer or laptop users. It is a platform pretty much similar to Word Document. It has the perfect features for academic writing, such as paragraph format options, and it also automatically checks your grammar. But what makes this useful especially in college, is that you can work with your group mates altogether in one file. You can directly add a comment to their contributions or provide suggestions for improvements. You can also share an access link through any messaging applications such as Messenger, Email, Viber, and many more. Google Drive Is your gadget full of files that you can’t install or download anymore? Do you perhaps cherish most of them that you can’t delete or uninstall? Worry no more, as Google drive is just one tap away. Google Drive is one of the most prominent storage applications in our generation. It is available on both mobile phones and laptops. As long as you have a google account, you can freely use all its features. You can store your files, pictures, videos, and create a folder to organize them. What’s more, is that you can also share your files with other people by giving them access within the app itself or the app itself can provide a link for you to share in other applications.

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Volume 3:

How to Survive Nursing? Study Tips That Every Nursing Student Must Know You are probably tired of hearing many daunting remarks about how hard nursing is, how some people flunk out, which compelled you to ask yourself whether you would pass and get that degree or fail just like anyone else. It cannot be denied that nursing is notoriously challenging and difficult, which probably made you think, “How am I supposed to get all these chapters done? Will I be able to retain all the critical information and commit them to long-term memory?” The answer is, yes! It is true that nursing won’t always be a walk in the park. However, with these 10 study tips, you can certainly survive in this course, and probably help you to get on the dean’s list, too! Here are some of the study tips that every nursing student must take heed of.

Discover your learning style

Everyone has a different way of learning. Some people learn best by reading, some by listening, while others by jotting down notes. Thus, you need to find out which of these work best for you as this is conducive for studying.

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Prep for your class

Before your class, read in advance the course material given to you by your instructor as this can immensely help you know what to listen to during the class and also encourage you to participate. Make a study group

Research shows that students who study with their peers are more likely to retain all the information they have learned, as opposed to those who study alone. Hence, gather together with your peers and see if this works best for you. Flip through the reading material first

In nursing, reading is inevitable. Do not try to retain everything on your first pass because you are just going to be discouraged. Instead, flip through the reading material first before you plan on reading the whole chapter and determine which of the information is most crucial.

Reward yourself

If you want to watch your favorite TV show, or get together with your friends virtually, you should tell yourself to finish your schoolwork first as this can help you get motivated to study.

Refrain from cramming for nursing exams

Before your scheduled exam, make sure that you have given yourself enough time to study because the truth is, nursing exams are way too different from any other exams you have taken.

Schedule that study time

Reading materials are unending, thus, when there is something that you need to study, you ought to schedule out a time for that, and you must not avoid it until you feel like doing it.

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Make use of outside sources

Before you read a chapter, use outside sources first and consider them as a “preview” to your reading. This will help you a lot to comprehend easily the contents of the chapter that you are about to read.

Utilize your downtime as your study time

Nursing requires a lot of memorization. To help you better remember what you have just studied, try to create notes and put it on your bedroom walls or anywhere else to help you review it again while you are doing other things.

Take a break if you need to

Your health must always come first. If you feel like you need a break, you should take it because pausing for a moment to unwind and relax can immensely help you to prevent stress and increase your concentration.

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It cannot be denied that your journey as a student nurse will never be easy. There would come a time in your life where you would ask yourself if you are truly meant to become a nurse. At times, you would also find yourself wanting to give up as you feel like being lost in a long dark tunnel with no way out. However, you have to remind yourself that what you are facing today has an expiration date. Think about the thousands of medical profession als that you see today. They, too, have experienced many difficult circumstances in life before becoming who they are at this very moment. But, they worked hard and got through. Thus, you must hold on to the end and constantly remind yourself that if they survived, why can’t you? Surely, your future self will thank you for fighting hard and for choosing not to give up.

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ONL

INE

CLASS 38

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Un Poquito, Pamparon ANONYMOUS

DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in this article

not

Publication,

The

reflect

those

University,

of or

the the

Academic Organization. Each word is carved from the author’s truth, and every sentence is reality unfolding from the eyes of the writer.

As we march towards May, the City of Flowers blooms with colors. We see Zamboanga City being decorated with pink carnations, making the other vendors adamant in reviving the trend of the bright red roses. However, in order to sell the flowers, one must entice the bee. And these vendors are nothing but the best pamparons in town. The peddlers of reds tell us that specks of black are seen in pink,

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while the other party claims that the rose is as bloody as it gets. In the midst of this pandemic, the former and current city officials created a stage out of the people’s despondency, and with the aid of lengthy lockdowns, we are forced to watch these performers one-up each other by showcasing who has the cleanest right hand while holding dirt on the left. As they intentionally make an aesthetic out of the pandemic, we are becoming prisoners of the theaters of these recycled politicians. “The road to power is paved with hypocrisy, and casualties.” These are the words of a notorious politico himself, Frank Underwood and it does hold the truth, for the recent years of Zamboanga politics

have become a circus ring with propagandas for freaks. Quite recently, a fairytale moment happened when an ordinary Zamboanguena bested Cinderella by having not one, but two prince charming bend the knee and tie her shoes. This act is a prime example of how charity is cheapened by replacing authentic public service with staged sincerity. Joining the platform is another controversy involving very expensive magical pink tents that seem to lose their power after bidding and acquisition. With these lapses of the majority, the opposition is rushing to deepen the cuts by relentlessly striking with spears of condemnation, however, their prosecution errs to show their pursuit of justice for the people, rather they are turning the errors of their enemies into weapons they can wield. Numerous tarpaulins and posters bearing the faces of these people are now cluttering the city corners, and most are the same faces that littered the city during campaign periods a decade ago. They could have just kept their tarpaulins back then to reuse now and save themselves from additional expenses and wrinkles. Tested and

proven ishe heavy narrative of these colorful pamparons, and tested they are for they have been playing a game of Trip to Jerusalem with the seat of power, yet they have proven nothing but the nauseating fact that the Zamboanguenos are yet to be unshackled from political dynasties. With everything going Pendahadas, where shall we find the truth? The months leading to election day is the epoch of a politician’s career; this is when he shines the brightest, charms the hardest, and entices the most. As the protector of our own rights, we should be vigilant of these honey-tongued actors and we must be unmerciful in scrutinizing authentic public servants from seasoned performers. However, this task proves to be difficult for we all know that pamparons make the sweetest palabras.

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TICK! TICK! TICK! ‘SO MUCH DO, TICK! TICK!TOTICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! SO LITTLE TIME TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! SARAH SUSULAN

Tick, tick, tick!

Every second, minute, and hour goes by with every move of the clock. The sun has long since seeped from the sky and the hour is growing late, but as you go through your to-do list, you see several things still not checked off, you wonder “Where did the time go?”. The noise of the clock haunts you as if it is a constant reminder that time has slipped away and yet, you haven’t accomplished anything throughout the day which completely stresses you over. The thought of seeing your unaccomplished to-do list stress feels physically draining to look at. How does all of this get shoehorned into the small amount of time we have in a day?, you momentarily asked. ‘So Much To Do, So Little Time’ is becoming a mantra

of our generation. It is like a common theme humming and lingering in our brain. Our lives have become programmed to face the increasing responsibilities and demands we have, presenting us with ever more complex challenges at a near-relentless pace. It is indeed easy to feel constantly overwhelmed. Hence, we often feel like there aren’t enough hours in a day to do what needs to be done. For many students in this modern society, time has always been our archenemy along with the overwhelming pressure of meeting all the responsibilities at school and at home. Most of us feel like time is something we’re working against,

TICK! TICK! TICK!

not with. We often feel the urge to fight and race against the tyranny of a ticking clock. Our motivation fell into hibernation as we lost battles against prioritizing to accomplish our workloads that pile up with little time to rest. At first glance, the issue seems straightforward. It’s the feeling that we don’t have enough time to do what we want to do—but it turns out lack of time is never our problem. We just think it is. There will always be a fixed amount of time. The clock will not stop ticking just because you say so. It’s neither “enough” or “not enough”— it is only based on our subjective emotions and expectations that either stifles productivity or leads to a misconception. It’s only when we take a break from the bustle of life or get blindsided by unfortunate events that we get a sense of the truth: Time is not the enemy. It’s the most valuable resource we have. The only real enemies that we have in life are our own priorities and perspectives. The truth is that we always have the time, it’s just that we easily lose perspective of what truly matters and what needs to be taken into account. For most of us, our eyes are bigger than our stomach. We get ravenous and try to take on every single task regardless of what’s already on our plates.We tend to make

time for this unwavering force that we fight against to do more, see more, and become more. But as we’ve all come to realize that this is not the case. When we try to multitask in essence what we are doing is dividing up our time between various tasks switching from one thing to the next trying to complete both at the same time and equally well. This doesn’t work. It’s a fool’s errand. How do you expect to complete one task when you are occupied by another task that takes up most of your time and energy? Think of that. Every student; every person has used conversational expressions like "there aren't enough hours in the day" to describe a common sentiment – that if we had more time, we could do such and be more productive. However, this isn't always the case, everyone has the same amount of hours in a day but we can’t possibly have time for everything, or have time to “do it all”. The key is to live each minute on purpose and carve out time for your top priorities. Learning how to manage your time is a skill that requires constant work. If we want to use our time in the best way possible, practice prioritizing and learn to work with time.

TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! TICK! 41 EDITORIAL

42 EDITORIAL

‘Blowing Out the Flame’ Dealing with College Burnout SARAH SUSULAN

Burnout. We’ve all been there. Burnout feels like the act of blowing out a mighty flame; the act of letting out a deep sigh while saying, ‘‘I have had enough. I can’t take it anymore.’’ College is indeed the time to dig our heels in the ground and work as hard as possible so we can start a successful life for ourselves. With that, students are often ravaged by burnout due to excessive working and exhaustion – coupled with the ongoing pandemic that furthered fan the flames of burnout. So, being a college student has in many ways, become the perfect breeding ground for burnout with an over-the-top workload tied with many stressful nights and demanding schedules. Burnout infiltrates every area of a student life with how you lead, how well you perform, how much you get done, how you interact with others, and how you remain 43 EDITORIAL

focused. It is important to manage this matter to avoid further falling into the burnout pit. Students are well accustomed to the “rise and grind” culture of college, but the overwhelming academic workloads, the pressure to learn vast amounts of information within a limited period, and the amount of stress from obligations has created an even bigger emphasis on the term burnout. We hear it so frequently. But the commonality of the phrase is quite alarming, as it is used to describe college students who have become overwhelmed by stressors and lose motivation for something they once had a passion for. Students often walk through life feeling lackadaisical, emotionally worn out, disconnected and lacking the impetus to learn. Now, in this pandemic, as the effects of burnout begin to creep into the lives of all, it is entegral to

recognize that it is not normal, can be avoided and must be taken seriously. Burnout isolates people in an infernal spiral of stress and exhaustion. If burnout is looming, allow yourself to breathe, step back, move away. Learn to swiftly extract yourself from the flame that harms you and relieve yourself from the burnout that cripples you every day. You must take necessary steps to get your life back into track to prevent burnout from becoming a full-blown breakdown. In order to effectively deal with burnout, recognize what you feel – your needs and your boundaries, and find the sources of your burnout. As you acknowledge the reasons for your burnout, create an antiburnout schedule that will help you allocate your energy over the course of your day so you don’t tap out early. You can lessen the stress by delegating tasks, shifting your priorities or just being realistic about how you want your day to go by and how much time you have in a day. Sometimes the mere fact of freeing a bit of load in one’s calendar can considerably help to relieve the stress and feeling of being constantly overloaded.

To fight the flame of burnout, you should rekindle and ignite a new fire that will remind you of the reason for your hard work. When you are in your worst days or burnout state, try to remember what you are fighting for and do something you can control, maybe scheduling and taking breaks. Burnout can’t always be avoided through scheduling alone, but it still helps. Let yourself just be and reflect as this is sometimes exactly what your body and mind need most. Organizing your day and creating time for yourself will help douse the flames of burnout while it is still kindling. Having these changes will be in your favor, you’ll have more energy to make progress and be able to slowly dig yourself out of the hole of exhaustion. Remember that you don’t always have to be moving, catching up, or optimizing yourself and everything that surrounds you 24/7.

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School-Life Balance: Finding Time for Leisures SARAH SUSULAN

We all wear many hats in life. We fill more roles at once: to be a student, friend, classmate, peer and be our own person. As multiple roles compete for our attention as we spend time on one role, it is quite overwhelming to juggle these roles at once. Seemingly, our time is already being stretched too thin, it will never be an easy feat to balance personal demands, family obligations and personal responsibilities. Oftentimes these multiple roles can lead to conflict, but in order to optimize 45 EDITORIAL

functioning, it is a must for students to find a balance between the various roles one plays by assessing priorities. By attempting to make incremental changes to attain the ideal School-Life Balance, we manage to allocate our time for personal leisure. When we are used to having too much on our plates, most of us may feel the ambivalence about "doing nothing." We live in a society that places a high value on productivity and so most people carry a heavy load of the need to remain

productive. Regardless of your situation, our lives are jam-packed with so much activity that at times it feels like there's little room for things we view as less important than our tasks. When you’ve got a full plate, who’s got time for hobbies or leisure activities? Hence, we develop a mindset that views leisure as something extra or more of a reward for completing the things we “have” to do rather than a necessary part of our lives. There are common misconceptions about leisure saying that it is a waste of time. This way of thinking is wrong as leisure is far more than that. “Time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time.” This line holds a true sentiment for most of us. Within “the grind” culture of most students today, we tend to think that whatever it is that is not academic related is a waste of time. Instead, finding ways to escape from the daily grind will help you function more productively. Once you return to work you will undoubtedly have to wait. Leisure isn’t just a “bonus” after working long hours in demanding school and personal life. Leisure is, at its most basic level, doing something that peaks your interest, with no particular obligation or need to get things done. Whether your form of leisure is playing sports, reading a book, listening to music, playing video

games or keeping up with a show on Netflix, it’s vital to make time for things that are not school or work. Spending every waking minute of your life focused on school will drain you of energy — both mental and physical. No matter how much you love or how much you may enjoy the course you are in, everyone needs time to be away from their obligations. Engaging in positive leisure pursuits fosters wellness and enriches the quality of our life. In a world focused just as much on our successes and upward mobility, the ideal school-life balance feels surreal to achieve with the increasing demands and competing pressure placed on students from both school and life. Even though finding the balance between school and personal life is challenging, the positive effect it will have on your overall health and wellness will be more worth the effort. Balancing a social life and academic success doesn’t always have to be a battle, but rather a compromise — carve out your time exclusively for your school and personal responsibilities but don’t forget to set aside time leisure activities just for YOU. Find the types of activities that make you feel good and help you to recharge your batteries so that you can face your commitments and responsibilities with renewed energy and a renewed sense of purpose afterwards. 46 EDITORIAL

SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST KATHERINE CAMPO

Many believe that education is the key to success, and it seems that the Philippine Department of Education thinks so as well. In 2020, a worldwide pandemic occurred, defining the global health and exceptional socioeconomic impasse of the current time. As the COVID-19 pandemic has become a major global health crisis, government institutions have released protocols and restrictions to curb the spread, including the closure of academic institutions. It prompted the rise of 47 EDITORIAL

a new normal to enable the continuation of the educational system despite the closure through online learning. It allows learners to learn through real-time synchronous sessions, modules, and uploaded video lectures. However, as students and teachers continue to save themselves from the fatality of the virus, they must also face the everyday struggles imposed by this distance learning setup. As students continue to keep up with the academic demands and workloads, they face technical difficulties that

make their situation more difficult than it already is. In this situation, it seems that it has become a matter of survival, and in the rankings, the ones with financial advantage lead while those who are unprivileged trail behind – and if this goes on, hard work and academic resilience might not be enough.

Many believe that the continuation of the academic year still has a positive impact on some aspects. In the year 2020, the Department of Education opposed the idea of an academic freeze as it could bring forth impending effects such as learning loss and did not want students to be deprived of the opportunity to learn. Additionally, online learning enables academic institutions to be creative as they could make use of various platforms of learning if all had equal access to the tools needed for the digital shift. Furthermore, it would also affect the operations of academic institutions as there is a possibility of more schools and businesses to shut down. The pandemic has already caused a high rise in unemployment rates as more people continue to be jobless due to the closure of institutions. As students are out of the campus, businesses that cater to students have already shut down, and due to a low number of enrollees and the inability to meet the standards of a distant learning setup, schools have no choice but to halt operations. However, the persistence of imposing an online setup for learning has had no consideration for those who have been struggling financially and mentally due to the pandemic.

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Even before the pandemic, academic pressure has already been present among students due to the extensive amount of workload given before, during, and after class hours. Now that online learning is technology-centered, new obstacles continue to arise as technical difficulties and lack of equipment have become major issues affecting flexible learning. In addition to this, academic institutions were led to believe that students now have more time on their hands thus the increase of the amount of workload given to students. Since the educational system has also taken a digital shift, schoolwork and requirements have also been digitized which has somehow increased difficulty. Online learning now utilizes various platforms to enhance remote learning methods for students despite being in their own homes, however, access to these require the presence of technological equipment such as personal computers, laptops, tablets, and mobile phones as well as a stable internet connection and power source to constantly stay online for school-related activities. This then resulted in a culture shock for all learners since most 49 EDITORIAL

were unprepared for a major shift as they were used to the physical model of education in their respective schools and campuses. However, if one comes from an elite private school or is financially capable of affording distance learning equipment and a conducive learning environment, one could easily cope up with the demands of online learning. However, for those who have been financially struggling, even more so during the pandemic, they have nothing else to rely on except their resiliency, hard work, and perseverance to continue education. A student may have excellent academic performance but might struggle with the hindrance of technical obstacles and technology illiteracy. Some may brag about how they clutched their term papers before midnight, but others are already struggling to find a way to begin the assignment. Power and connectivity are also issues. Students living in provincial areas have a hard time finding the best signal to access the internet for research purposes, while others could even play and stream with the bandwidth of their internet service providers. This shows how disproportionate this educational arrangement is for unprivileged students.

Along with the threats of the pandemic, academic institutions and the Department of Education must be considerate of the situations of their students as not everyone can cope up with the new normal. The struggles have already been evident, from nonconducive learning spaces to unreasonable amounts of digital workload. As education is now considered a need for every student to achieve their goals and aspirations, everyone must be able to cope up with the same pace of learning. And if the agency is concerned with ensuring that education must be attainable to all, regardless of social classes, the concept of survival must not be brought to the table in the first place. Because if the talks of survival among the fittest are present, it only means one thing; there are neglected students which then contradicts their promoted mantra of "No student left behind". Educational institutions must come up with effective learning alternatives to foster the gain of knowledge for students, and keeping up with an unreasonable arrangement is not the answer.

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Philippines’ battle against the COVID-19 pandemic: Are we winning? SAMEER NGO

ore than a year and a half into the pandemic, an average to little progress has been the

facade of the Philippines. Behind that progress are millions of Filipinos hoping for this health crisis to end already. The government’s pandemic response may seem like caring for its citizens, but if there is certainly more that they could do, then how does this make any sense? If battling this pandemic is taking a toll much more than the country’s progress, then how are we winning? The dire situation of the country is not to be taken lightly, as various strategies and plans of the government have already been proven ineffective throughout the year. But it seems like government officials are much busier with their feuds than creating a concrete plan for the pandemic, which concerns a lot of people. They strongly believe that this pandemic will just be 51 EDITORIAL

solved with some protocols. They have, again and again, implemented lockdowns in various places in the country, as if it is their best plan to stop the pandemic. Health protocols remained the same. In fact, out of all the countries in Asia, the Philippines is one of the few countries, if not the only, which still requires its citizens to wear face shields. Even with all the health protocols and lockdowns in the country, we are not even half to winning this battle. In fact, the number of COVID-19 cases is increasing at an exponential rate. A year into the pandemic, the confirmed cases were recorded as more than half a million. As of early September, the country has already reached over 2,000,000 confirmed cases. This is beyond alarming, even with all the budget allotted for the country’s covid response, the situation has even become worse. Although, the country has already received millions of vaccines. A total of 33,706,950 doses were already administered as of September 1, 2021. Most, if not all,

were donated by other countries. Was the country’s budget even used properly? Some 67 billion peso worth of deficiencies were even reported in mid-August. Even if the country has received millions of vaccines from other countries, the situation has not gotten any better. A new variant of the coronavirus has already been detected inside the country and frontliners are suffering more than ever.

Now that the country’s situation has gotten much worse, nurses and other medical workers receive double the stress than those seated in positions, even though their salaries differ a ton. Somehow, that little progress of the country is worth the same amount of appreciation. However, with this government, it is safe to say that we are still far from winning this battle.

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The Reality of Being a Nurse PATRICK TAN

"Why did you decide to enroll in Nursing?" Amidst all the hectic requirements, dozens of medical terms to memorize, expensive tuition, and RLE to add to the wound, this question seems to be something that nursing students ask themselves as they experience the various hardships of the course. For the most part, society sees nursing as a heroic profession, while students themselves see this profession as a passport out of poverty. Unfortunately, things are not as simple as those in the real world out there. 53 EDITORIAL

For starters, it is evident that despite being the frontline heroes amidst the pandemic, nurses are ironically not being treated like one. As nurses are at the most risk of getting the COVID-19 and battling it 24/7, the government has failed to prioritize our medical workers. Due to the government's lack of pandemic response and various loopholes around the healthcare system, the nursing staff is overworked yet underpaid. In the usual case, there is one nurse for every twelve patients, but in the present scenario, a nurse has the burden of dealing with two hundred patients.

Additionally, with an average salary of less than 20,000 a month for nurses in the Philippines, it is a far cry from how our neighboring countries pay their nurses. Added to the fact that the hazard pay of nurses has reportedly been delayed to some and the amount of the incentive pay is barely minimal, it is not an exaggeration to say that the government is giving injustice to our heroes. Instead of focusing on the pandemic and the frontline workers, it is painfully evident that the government has put its eyes on the military, politics, and infrastructures. An ironic spin as the people who are at less risk earn more and the projects of the Malacañang Palace give off the notion that the well-being of people is not their primary interest. With the report of the Commission OnOf Audit (COA) flagging the corruption in our country, the government has no excuses why the budget of one of the vulnerable sectors in the pandemic is insufficient. To add salt to the wound, nurses also face discrimination as society looks upon these heroes in a negative light. People sometimes viewed nurses as simple "yayas" who do not deserve to have four years of education or who are people who are getting their hands dirty all the time. The downplaying of the profession has served to be a great

invalidation to the sacrifices that nursing students have made. Additionally, as news of increasing infection and death tolls are often shown in the news, the sight of doctors and nurses aiding the sick seems to be comforting. It came as an ironic surprise when some began to turn against these heroes amidst their sacrifices. Reports of nurses being attacked became news, with many experiencing eviction, ridicule, and harassment. Despite public appraisal for their heroic sacrifices, the sad reality is that our nurses fear for their lives as the risk of stigmatization weighs almost as heavy as their exposure to the deadly virus. 54 EDITORIAL

These negative factors have served to be a deterrent for Filipino nurses to stay, hence many leave the motherland to pursue greener pastures with the dream of elevating their lives or being the breadwinner of their families. Our reliability and high level of English, coupled with our hospitality and a strong sense of voluntarism, have proved to be a strong incentive for foreign countries to hire Filipino nurses. However, as the pandemic has changed the status quo, the benefits of "numerous job opportunities abroad" might be put into question in the coming years. Filipino nurses will find it hard to work abroad without some sort of connection as they have to worry about visas and passing the foreign country's national exam. Not only that but competition in the industry is heavy as it is stated in the news that there are an estimated 200,000 registered nurses who are still unemployed, and an estimated 80,000 graduates every year to join an already saturated job market. Unfortunately, with the pandemic having emphasized that nurses are valuable, it is a high probability that foreign countries will start to prioritize their training of their own nurses and therefore, discouraging the hiring of foreign staff. Added to the fact that with many applicants, hospitals, especially from outside the country, will usually recruit those with years of experience, leaving most graduates with nothing. 55 EDITORIAL

Being a nursing student entails a lot of stress. It is clear that sacrifices such as family time and numerous breakdowns must be made. The pressure of the board's exam also weighs upon us. However, the road of difficulties will still not stop there as reality has seen to it that the life of a nurse is not as easy as simply getting a job outside and having a smooth life after. Henceforth, it is only necessary that our eyes will be exposed to the grim reality of being a nurse as early as now to steel ourselves of what to expect in this journey that we are taking.

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incorporated in the events roster are tagged to be in-line with this agenda “...because they contribute to making the programme more gender-balanced and more urban, and offer the opportunity to connect with the younger generation,” according to IOC President Thomas Bach.

Photo retrieved from: Red Bull BC One World Final 2020. (2020, November 28). Kastet Hits an Airfreeze in the Finals against Madmax [Photograph]. https://img.redbull.com/images/w_3000/q_auto,f_auto/redbullcom/2020/11/29/zmfuzzwgtwmbkrqnxksa/red-bull-bc-one-world-final-2020-kastet-airfreeze

BREAKDANCING TO DEBUT AT THE 2024 PARIS OLYMPICS R HASAN S. ALAMIA II

ecognizing Breakdancing’s potential to entice a younger fanbase, especially in the digital age, the International Olympic Committee confirmed the sport’s inclusion at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. Competitive Breakdancing (Breaking) was one of the quartet given a “go-signal” to make its debut

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in the Paris Olympics as the other three – skateboarding, sport climbing, and surfing – had already appeared in the recently concluded 2020 Tokyo Games. With the vision for the 2024 Olympics being concentrated on gender equality and the youth, the four sports that Paris has recently incorporated

Unfortunately, Breaking’s inclusion had rolled the eyes of some. Regardless, Paris Games Chief Tony Estanguet chose to brush the criticisms aside. In an interview with Reuters, Estanguet said that there will always be a few critics, but overall, the majority of the feedback coming from the various regions of France regarding this matter had been positive. Despite the additions, the IOC also trimmed down the overall events from 329, as it was in Tokyo, to 319. Furthermore, the total athlete quota has also been diminished to 10,500 as compared to 11,000 in the recent Tokyo Games. According to Bach, these adjustments are merely essential measures in order for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games to be “fit for the PostCorona World”.

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Ugas: Nasungkit ang kampeonato kontra kay Pacquiao via unanimous decision ROBIE D. ALMAZAN

atagumpay na napanatili ng Cuban boxer na si Yordenis Ugas ang kanyangChampion WBA Welterweight belt matapos ang matinding sagupaan at umaatikabong 12 rounds na bakbakan laban sa tinaguriang “Pambansang Kamao” na si Manny Pacquiao. Ang maaksyong labanan na pinanood ng sambayanan ay ginanap sa T-Mobile Arena sa Las Vegas noong ika–22 ng Agosto taong 2021. Halos dalawang taon ding namahinga si Pacquiao mula sa karera ng boxing, kung kaya’t ito rin ang nagbigay sa kanya ng daan upang maging determinado at sabik sa pagkapanalo. Simula pa lamang ng laban ay ramdam na ng bawat manunood ang kaba at saya sa muling pagsabak ng kanilang pambansang pambato na si Manny Pacquiao kontra sa hindi inaasahang Olympic challenger ng Cuba na si Yordenis Ugas, na may 26 wins, 4 loss, at 12 K.O. to na hindi ipahalata sa kalaban at tapusin ang laban. 61

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Round 1 pa lang nang nagpamalas na ng natatanging tapang, natural na bilis, at liksi ang pambansang kamao. Ito’y sa pamamagitan ng pagpapakawala ng isang over right hand na suntok, ngunit dahil sa reach advantage ni Ugas at bilis ng kamao ni Pacquiao ay pawang nagkakapaan ang dalawang boksingero sa pag-iisip ng na-aayong estratehiya sa laban. Round 2 nang agad na nagpalitan ng matitinding kombinasyon ng suntok ang parehong boksingero. Round 3 nang maging agresibo si Pacquiao at nagpaulan ng sunod-sunod na straight punches kay Ugas. Round 4 nang nakabawi ng bahagya si Ugas at bumwelo ng panaka-nakang counter punches at body shots. Round 5 nang medyo nakakabisado na ni Ugas ang liksi ng pambansang kamao kung kaya’t bumira ito ng kanyang left hook at straight body punches kay Pacquiao. Round 6 nang ininda ni Pacquiao ang hindi inaasahang leg cramps, ngunit pursigido pa rin ito na

hindi ipahalata sa kalaban at tapusin ang laban. Round 7 nang unti-unting nakakabawi ang pambansang kamao ng panaka-nakang suntok kay ugas gamit ang jab. Round 8 nang bumira si Ugas ng kanyang sariling left hook na nag patigil kay Pacquiao ng bahagya sa ring at dipensahan ang sarili. Round 9 ng sinubukan bawiin ni Pacquiao ang momentum at kumonekta ng ilang solid shots sa katawan ni ugas. Round 10 nang kapwa boksingero ay nagpaulan ng kanya-kanyang suntok sabay dinepensahan ang mga sarili. Round 11 nang kumonekta muli ng kaliwang suntok si Pacquiao sabay na nagpaulan ng straight punches sa katawan ni Ugas. Sa natatanging huling round 12 ay pinilit ni Pacquiao na patumbahin si Ugas gamit ang left hook nito, ngunit nagpamalas ng natatanging dipensa si Ugas at bumawi ng matitinding counter punches at left straight sa katawan ng Pambansang kamao. Naging

dikit ang laban sa pagitan ng dalawang boksingero kung kaya’t humantong ito sa judge’s decision 115-113, 116-112 and 116-112. Nagtapos sa pagkapanalo at pabor sa Cuban bokser na si Yordenis Ugas via unanimous decision ang laban. Dismayado ang boxing fans sa Tmobile arena sa ikinahantong ng laban ng pambansang kamao, ngunit agad rin namang humingi ng paumanhin si Pacquiao sa kanyang solid boxing fans dahil sa kanyang pagkatalo. Nagpamalas ang kapwa boksingero ng sportsmanship at respeto sa isa’t-isa. Wika ni Pacquiao sa kanyang interview ay ininda niya ang pagpilipit o cramps ng kanyang pawang hita at paa sa pagsisimula ng round 5-6. Gayunpaman, lubos ang kanyang pasasalamat sa lahat ng kanyang solid boxing fans, at higit sa lahat sa kanyang pamilya.

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Nija Abam (1, 2, 3) Joshua Edaga (4, 5) Natasha Martin (6)

Daily Battles 1 of Essential Workers amidst 2 the Pandemic 3

Zefanie Fernandez (1, 2) Muzhaheeda Ismi (3,4) Kezzia Luzon (5,6) Natasha Martin (7)

3 1 2

Things to do during the pandemic 7

“Unpaid Heroes” Abdel Aziz Awab

“Retdem and Siblings pt. 2” Nurbrianne Nafysha Anupol

“Kaya mo ‘to, future RN!” Nurbrianne Nafysha Anupol

“Alice the Magical Nurse”

“When will this end?”

Rianne Gwyneth Dela Paz

Covid Variants

“Who told you to multiply?!”

ISSUE NO. 1

PACEMAKER PACEMAKER EDITORIAL EDITORIAL BOARD BOARD

MODERATORS: Dr. Dyana Marciana M. Saplan & Mr. Julius C Lapasaran Editor-in-Chief Acosta, Fea Gerlyn

Associate Editor Mundoc, Rheem

News Writers

Head: Sarabia, Cheska Montecalbo, Maria Grace Felicettes Pastor, Charisma Acosta, Fea Gerlyn

Feature Writers

Head: Almiñana, Almira Eugenio, Tasha Mundoc, Rheem Dionga, Queendel Guan, Grena Abellon, Tracey Faye Ngo, Sameer Jadji, Shariefa Aine Jhan

Editorial Writers

Cartoonists

Head: Anupol, Nurbrianne Awab, Abdel Aziz Dela Paz, Rianne Gwyneth

Photojournalists

Head: Edaga, Joshua Luzon, Kezzia Abam, Nija Fernandez, Zefanie Martin, Natasha Ismi, Muzhaheeda

Head Copyreader Renolla, Clouise

Social Media Head Campo, Katherine Susulan, Sarah

Facebook Page Content Head Abellon, Tracey Faye Ngo, Sameer

Consultant

Susulan, Sarah Campo, Katherine Ngo, Sameer Tan, Patrick

Usman, Yushrina Lim, Jeremy Martin

Sports Writers

Delos Santos, Beatrice Ladjahon, Haneen Lozano, Johanna Antoinett Mujahid, Juhaida

Alamia, Hasan II Jadji, Shariefa Aine Jhan Almazan, Robie

Layout Artists