roanne

Hello! I'm a new Infection Control Practitioner in a 750-bed hospital in Manila, and I'm assigned to do the surgical site infection surveillance. I'm having a difficult time monitoring the patients after they've been discharged, I can only monitor them while they're confined in the hospital. But there are studies that say 20% to 70% of SSIs occur after discharge from the hospital. How do your IC professionals in your facility do post-discharge SSI surveillance? The doctors and nurses in our hospital are not that cooperative. They're unwilling to fill out extra survey forms/questionnaires, or even answer simple assessment questions, especially the surgical residents. There are at least 50 surgical procedures that happen in our Operating Room everyday. I have to do the job myself, and it's proving to be difficult. I'd really appreciate it if anyone gave me an idea how to do SSIS. Thanks!

So, if you pass NCLEX with only 75 items, does it mean you're really good? :)

I just learned through Pearson Vue's Quick Results service that I passed! I did it at 75. Thank you for your replies. :)

Hi. First of all, I'm sorry if I'm posting in the wrong thread, but I'm not sure where else to post my questions. I'm a Filipino nurse and I applied for RN licensure in Maryland. I took the NCLEX in Manila on December 1st this year. I don't know anyone else who applied in Maryland (most people went for California or Vermont), and I want to know how long will it take MD BON to send me my test results? It says on their site that they send results 5 days from the test date, but I live outside the US. Also, does Maryland BON give out the license immediately once a candidate passes the NCLEX? Or is there a waiting period? I heard California BON requires its successful applicants to have a US social security number first or immigrant visa or something before they will release licenses.

Would leaving your unit for 5 minutes to go somewhere, like the restroom or your locker room, be considered abandonment of duty? A co-worker did that and our unit manager told her to make an anecdotal report because it was already abandonment of duty.

I didn't sign up for any English class, but I wouldn't say I aced the test (if acing it means getting a 9 :)). I got 8, which was good enough.

Oh, mine begins with '455'... thanks!

I took my IELTS exam on April 12, 2008 in Manila, and I got an overall band score of 8. In Listening, I got 8.5, Reading and Writing 7.5, and Speaking 8. With lots of practice, I believe any candidate can do well. :) The Listening module was very easy for me. I got positive feedbacks from other candidates and they also found it the easiest among the 4 modules. There's no other way to pass this test but to listen carefully to the recording, and keep your eyes on your paper the entire 30 minutes. I missed one answer, and I nearly panicked. If that happens to you, just focus on the next item so you won't miss any more. Be careful when the speaker begins to talk really fast because he might overenunciate a word or two, for the sake of testing how keen your listening skills are, I guess. Also, there are some words that are purely British. Thankfully, I didn't encounter any unfamiliar British word in the actual test, it's just something I encountered while practicing at homeFor instance, "The lorry crashed near White Street at 7 in the morning." Lorry is British for truck, so if that was supposed to be the answer and you happened to miss it, and you have no idea that it is a some sort of vehicle, then you'll have a difficult time guessing the answer based on context clues alone. . At the end of the test, try your best to recall the last thing you heard before you missed the answer. The last resort is to guess intelligently. Don't leave anything blank, because who knows, your guessed answer might be right. I didn't enroll in any review center, so I didn't know that in the actual test, we would listen from loud speakers, and not with headphones. I practiced the Listening module at home using my iPod, so I pretty much got used to listening in a quiet environment. Try to practice at home with slightly distracting noise in the background because in the actual set-up, there are people in the room who could cough or sneeze right at the moment when an answer is being relayed by the speaker, and you might miss that. My test was held in Dusit Hotel Nikko's grand ballroom, the place was HUGE with a large volume of candidates. The candidates are alphabetically arranged, and because my surname begins with a 'V', I thought I got an unfortunate seat in the very back, quite far from the speakers. It doesn't matter, IELTS test invigilators make sure that everyone could hear the recording very well. The Reading module was okay. The articles get longer and harder as you go. To make things easier to find later on, I underlined topic sentences and encircled important details that might be asked later, like names, places, dates, events, etc. Try to spend 15 minutes or less in reading answering each article, so that you'll have lots of time to go back to skipped items and check your answers. The True-False-Not-Given type of test really drove me nuts, because there's a fine line between False and Not Given. It's very tricky. But with enough practice, I eventually got the hang of it. A friend shared with me a tip on the Writing module and that is to write a good introduction and a good conclusion. The body is not to be taken for granted, but it can be less impressive and less critical than the other 2 parts of the essay. I'm not sure if that applies to the first task as well, which is the graph interpretation. I did Task 1 first because I found it easier. My topic was quite easy, it wasn't too technical. It helps a lot if you're into writing diaries and blogging, and being a wide reader. :) I had my Speaking test 2 days later. My examiner was an old Australian woman. She was nice and unintimidating. She would smile from time to time during the first part of the test. My conversational English was good, but when we got to the third part of the test, I kind of rambled. I began to stutter and use certain word repetitiously. I think my answers themselves were repetitious. LOL. I still wonder why I got an 8. I wouldn't rate myself an 8, I'd give myself a 6.5 or 7. My topic was very ambigious, something about change in general. When it comes to the Speaking test, I prefer more technical subjects like global warming, bioterrorism, etc. I dunno why. I guess I just like science. Because I got an 8 in the Speaking test, I guess what they say about the difference between Filipino and foreign examiners are partially true, but then there are also lenient Filipino examiners. Another friend who took the IELTS was assigned to a Filipino one, and her question was something like, "Name an elderly person whom you admire the most.", and she began with "My lola....". The examiner mouthed to her "grandmother" (because the Speaking test is recorded) and my friend was able to correct herself. Filipino words are a huge no-no as we all know. So, that was my experience on the IELTS test. I hope you do well on your exam. God bless! :)

Hi! Does anyone have any idea if they've already released the Certificate of Registration of June 2007 NLE passers with surnames that begin with the letter V? Thanks!

I have a similar question. I'm taking the NCLEX here in the Philippines, and when I pass it, I intend to go to the US on a tourist visa as well. My aunt is friends with the head of the Philippine Nursing Association in CA, and she said it wouldn't be a problem for them to sponsor me (or something like that) and for the hospital (or whoever is in authority) to convert my tourist visa to an immigrant visa. But if what you said is true, then I'll have to apply for a VisaScreen (?). My mom said that if I do that, and the immigration finds out that I have a tourist visa, they will cancel my tourist visa? Is this true? I don't want to lose my tourist visa, because I visit my fiance in CA every 6 months. I think it's much better to have it than hope for an immigrant visa which is not guaranteed to be available because of the retrogression.

Hi! I'm currently applying for RN licensure in MD, and I'm aware that they require English proficiency tests and certain band scores to be eligible to take the NCLEX. I'm thinking of taking the IELTS, but what if I don't meet the band scores required by their BON? (Speaking = 7, Listening + Reading + Writing = 6; overall = 6.5) Will they deny me the eligibility immediately, or can I retake the IELTS exam? My main concern is that *if* I won't get satisfactory band scores, they'll reject my application, and then I'll have to file a new one.

Is VSC Visascreen? I'm not applying for that, because I have other means of getting into the US, but thanks. I dunno how else to check with the BON besides through their website, an international long distance call is too expensive.

I hired the services of an agency to process my application for licensure in Maryland. We're currently sending my credentials to CGFNS to be evaluated and verified by them, because it is one of the said state board's eligibility requirements. Now, when my agency filed an application to CGFNS online, they checked if Maryland requires English proficiency test results, and it said "Not applicable" (the person assisting us showed to us the monitor screen). I was surprised, and I'm confused because it still says on MD BON'S website that one of their eligibility requirements is an English test (IELTS, TOEFL-IBT, or ILA). Could CGFNS be wrong? Or is it possible that MD BON's website is simply not updated? Should I still take my IELTS exam just to be sure?

Hi! I have a question about the fingerprint cards. I'm applying for RN licensure in Maryland, and I got 2 sets of fingerprint cards in my application packet. One is orange and the other one is blue (which is the FBI card I presume). Is the orange one the DOJ one? Because I'm not sure where I should have it done. It is indicated there that the fingerprinting should be accomplished by the CJIS? So, what do I do with it? Should I also bring it to the NBI?

Hi! I'm Roanne and I'm a newbie here. I'm a new RN from the Philippines. I just received the NCLEX application packet from my uncle in MD, and I pretty much know what to do with the requirements, with the exception of the fingerprint cards, particularly the State one (the orange card). I know the FBI one (blue) should be taken to the National Bureau of Investigation and be accomplished here in Manila, but I'm not sure about the orange card. I mean, it says there it should be done by the CJIS (which is obviously based in the US) or something, and without it, I can't be given an eligibility to sit for the exam. What am I supposed to do with the orange card? :) Thank you in advance!