Midwifery topnotcher recalls hardship; UCU salutes RMs
After securing 8th place in the November 2021 Midwife Licensure Examination, Almera T. Rivera shared her success story during the Thanksgiving, Recognition and Testimonial Program on December 8, 2021, at the University Audio-Visual Room.
“Noong review, pinagpray ko talaga na [maging] topnotcher [ako], one to five. Tinaasan ko talaga yung pangarap ko. Pero dahil naistress na ako masyado, nagpray ako ulit kay Lord na kahit six to ten na lang po. Ibigay nyo na sa akin kung para sa akin talaga ito,” Rivera said.
The topnotcher recalled her struggles when she could not get the scholarship for her dream school.
“Noong 2011 after ng graduation ko ng high school, binigyan ako ng application form para sa scholarship ng Fabella sa course na Midwifery sponsored by DOH. Kaso ‘yung provincial hospital ng Tarlac City ay hindi pinasa ang papel ko sa Fabella. And alam natin na ang Fabella ay producer ng mga midwives sa Pilipinas,” she revealed.
“Naging frustration ko iyon dahil pakiramdam ko hindi na ako makakapag-aral. Noong hindi ako natanggap sa Fabella, nag-stop ako ng two years. After noon ay nag-enroll po ako sa dito sa UCU noong 2013 pero tumigil din dahil hindi kulang talaga sa budget,” she added.
Rivera said that it was her strong fighting spirit for her dream that drove her to enroll at UCU. Despite the challenges along the way, she still managed to enroll for one semester but had to stop eventually due to financial struggle.
“Nagwork ako sa Pampanga. Although maganda na ang aking trabaho at kumikita na , gusto ko pa ring mag-aral sa kursong gusting-gusto ko. Kaya iniwan ko yung work ko kahit for promotion na ako at nag-enrol ulit dito sa UCU noong 2018.”
Almera also shared her glory days when she finally got the elusive scholarship from the DOH.
“Nag-apply ako sa DOH with the help of our dean. Kahit walang kasiguraduhan, nag-go pa rin ako. By December ay na-approve po kami [for scholarship] and sobrang thankful po kami dahil sa dinami-dami ng nag-apply ay dalawa lang kami na nakapasok,” said she.
Meanwhile, the Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Noel Guevara commended the newly registered midwives, saying that their success is also a reflection of the quality of instruction the University has to offer in the College of Health Sciences (CHS).
“Our dear passers, you gave the flame to our torch. Naramdaman namin yung init. May you pass your legacy to the incoming takers,” said Guevara.
“Gone were those days when we treated this course [midwifery] as just simply a sideline course. Remember that you, midwives, are the persons who will cut the umbilical cord of a baby and [that] you play an important part in the life of a human being,” as he emphasized the importance of the midwife profession.
Moreover, CHS dean Dr. Christopher Banez noted that success is not determined by the number of students but rather by the number of passers.
“Although we are small, we always make sure na ang School of Midwifery is always at the forefront of performance in terms of board licensure examination,” he said.
Faculty members of CHS, Dr. Banez and Dr. Guevara, joined together to award the certificate of recognition to the newly-registered midwives and the plaque of recognition to Rivera.