Farm girl tops nursing exam, wishes to work in RP for now

MANILA, Philippines - Wading through thick mud to plant rice required her to muster a considerable amount of physical strength. But for Jovie Ann Alawas Decoyna, maneuvering her way in a bustling medical facility just to attend to patients was way harder. On Friday noon, all her hard work and the sleepless nights paid off when Decoyna – a native of Bakun town in Benguet who used to juggle school and rice farming – was announced as the topnotcher of the Nursing Licensure Examination given on Nov. 29-30, 2008. Decoyna, who finished her nursing course at the Baguio Central University (BCU), emerged at the summit of a 39,455-long list of names of the nursing hopefuls who hurdled the exam. “Sobrang overwhelmed ako. Hindi ko inexpect na makakapasa ako. Pero in-entrust ko lang talaga lahat kay Lord [I was so overwhelmed. I did not expect to even pass. But I just entrusted everything to the Lord]," Decoyna told GMANews.TV in a phone interview from Baguio. Her 89-percent mark might have easily gave her leverage over her fellow hopefuls, but Decoyna’s passion to serve Filipinos first is what really sets her apart from most of them. Decoyna shared to GMANews.TV that she would rather secure a job first at a local hospital in the country – particularly in her home province of Benguet – than take the first plane ride to a well-known, nurse-importing country. She said that the global economic recession – which has been shutting down business in major world economies since late last year – had made her decision to stay for now the more urgent. “Although sinasabi nila na recession-proof daw ang nursing industry, sa tingin ko naaapektuhan pa rin kami [I think the nursing industry still gets affected by the global recession despite some people saying it is recession-proof]," Decoyna said. “Kung mayroong opportunities naman dito, kunin mo na dapat iyon [That is why if an opportunity present itself to you here, you should grab it]," she added. Closer to home But don’t get Decoyna wrong. She is not in it for the money. Her decision to practice her profession in the country takes on a more meaningful, intimate reason. The 24-year-old lass said she is thinking twice about immediately flying out of the country because she would rather stay closer to home, and attend to her family. “Gusto ko dito kasi malapit din ako sa family ko [I want to work here than abroad also because I am much nearer to my family]," she said. Decoyna is the youngest of six children from a big farming family. And his father’s being a farmer and her mother’s being an overseas Filipino worker could only do so much to make both ends meet at the Decoyna household. Still, she throws all her gratitude toward her parents, siblings, and friends – who she fondly refers to as her “support persons" – as they are the ones who had been her inspiration ever since she decided she wanted to don a nurse’s attire. “Tinuruan kami [sa school] na i-consider lagi ang health ng aming patients, pero syempre dapat unahin ko rin ang kalagayan ng aking family," said Decoyna, who earned her first degree in Bachelor of Science in Biology at Saint Louis University in Baguio in 2005. Sifting through her academic credentials could easily give away the fact that Decoyna was a top performer in school, having been a consistent honor student during her elementary and high school years. Mommy, come back Buying party hats or preparing lechon are not in Decoyna’s list on how to celebrate her victory. Rather she wanted the celebration to be as simple as going back to her home town of Bacun, Benguet to see her father and siblings. In fact, she even wanted to persuade her mom – a domestic helper in Taiwan for the last 15 years – to fly back home and fulfill a long-time promise. “Sabi ko kasi dati sa kanya, kapag nagkatrabaho na ako, umuwi na siya dito. Pero mahirap umuwi kasi pag umuwi siya baka hindi na makabalik," she shared. [I told her once I land a job, I want her to come back here. But my wish could not easily be done because I am fearing that she might lose her job in Taiwan once and for all when she returns here.] “Pero dapat kasi mag-rest naman siya at ako naman ang magtatrabaho [But it’s about time that she rests while I work]," she added. Decoyna said her mom broke into a mixture of laughter and tears when she called her up in Taiwan to announce the good news. Asked what her secret was all throughout the time she was both self-studying and attending review lessons for two months at the local Mind Movers Review Center, she said: “If you really want to practice your profession, you need to make sacrifices and be patient." - GMANews.TV