02/06/2026
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๐๐๐๐๐๐ | ๐ ๐๐จ๐ญ ๐จ๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ซ๐ฉ๐จ๐ฌ๐, ๐ ๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ง๐๐ฒ ๐จ๐ ๐๐๐ซ๐ฏ๐ข๐๐: ๐๐จ๐ซ๐ข๐๐ค ๐๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ฎ๐ข๐ซ
Every story begins with a voice. Through stories, we celebrate journeys, preserve meaningful moments, and recognize the people who inspire us. Often, the storyteller remains behind the narrative, content to let others take the spotlight. This year, however, the story turns toward a familiar voice in the community: Jorick Gustuir.
As this yearโs Clinical Excellence Awardee, he now finds himself at the center of a story defined by compassion, perseverance, and a steadfast commitment to nursing excellence.
Before he ever wore a clinical uniform, Jorick imagined a future in journalism and communication. But when the COVID-19 pandemic exposed the challenges faced by the healthcare system, his plans began to shift. What he witnessed during that time opened his eyes to a different kind of callingโone that allowed him to serve people in a more direct and meaningful way. โ๐ ๐ค๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ด๐ฆ ๐ฏ๐ถ๐ณ๐ด๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ฃ๐ฆ๐ค๐ข๐ถ๐ด๐ฆ ๐ ๐ค๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ด๐ฆ ๐ฎ๐บ ๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ฐ๐ฑ๐ญ๐ฆ,โ he shared. โ๐๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ ๐ธ๐ข๐ฏ๐ต ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ค๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ต๐ช๐ฏ๐ถ๐ฆ ๐ด๐ฆ๐ณ๐ท๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ฎ ๐ธ๐ช๐ต๐ฉ ๐ฅ๐ช๐จ๐ฏ๐ช๐ต๐บ ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ค๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ข๐ด๐ด๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ.โ
Like many nursing students, Jorickโs path was far from easy. Entering college as a perfectionist, he carried high expectations for himself. Yet nursing school introduced lessons that could not be measured by grades alone. There were setbacks, personal struggles, financial difficulties, and moments when everything seemed uncertain. Despite these challenges, he continued moving forward, learning that resilience is built not only through success but also through perseverance.
Some of the lessons that shaped him most came from the patients he encountered. During his first actual delivery case, he cared for a teenage mother who remained silent even after being scolded for becoming pregnant at a young age. The experience stayed with him, reminding him that every patient carries a story that extends beyond what others can see.
Outside the hospital, Jorick also found opportunities to grow through leadership, hosting, and pageantry. These experiences helped him find confidence in his voice while reinforcing the same lesson: caring for people can happen both at the bedside and beyond it. In many ways, they taught him to take risks, embrace uncertainty, and trust himself even when the outcome was unclear.
That belief continues to shape his understanding of clinical excellence. For Jorick, excellence is not about recognition or proving others wrong. It is about remaining faithful to one's purpose, continually learning, and becoming a nurse capable of easing the burdens of others.
โ๐๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฆ ๐ธ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฆ ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ต๐ด ๐ธ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ฏ ๐ ๐ธ๐ข๐ด ๐ฅ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฃ๐ต๐ฆ๐ฅ, ๐ฃ๐ถ๐ต ๐ ๐ฏ๐ฆ๐ท๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ข๐ญ๐ญ๐ฐ๐ธ๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ด๐ฆ ๐ฅ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฃ๐ต๐ด ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ฅ๐ฆ๐ง๐ช๐ฏ๐ฆ ๐ฎ๐ฆ,โ he shared. Instead, these became reminders to keep learning, keep growing, and keep showing upโone patient, one experience, and one lesson at a time.
Receiving the Clinical Excellence Award came as a genuine surprise to Jorick. He entered the selection process without expectations, focusing solely on giving his best in everything that he did. Because of this, the recognition felt even more meaningful.
While he acknowledges his hard work, he also believes that his journey was guided by something greaterโdoors opening at the right time, opportunities unfolding where they were meant to, and faith carrying him through moments of uncertainty.
Equally significant to his journey are the people who stood beside him. From his family and friends to his clinical groupmates, professors, administrative staff, and even the utility workers within the college, Jorick recognizes that each person played a role in shaping who he has become. Their kindness, guidance, and belief in him transformed every challenge into something worthwhile. Through them, he learned that success is never achieved alone; it is built alongside the people who walk with you, believe in you, and inspire you.
As graduation approaches, his focus now shifts toward preparing for the board examination. While he chooses to keep many of his plans close to his heart, he affirms that they are rooted in pursuing his dreams, not only for himself, but also for his family and the people he hopes to serve.
To the student nurses, Jorick leaves a simple but heartfelt reminder: do not forget to thank yourself.
In a journey often defined by pressure and expectations, it becomes easy to overlook how far one has come. He encourages students to pause, reflect, and acknowledge their own progress, even in moments of doubt. โ๐๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฆ ๐ธ๐ช๐ญ๐ญ ๐ฃ๐ฆ ๐ต๐ช๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ด ๐ธ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ฏ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ข๐ด๐ฌ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ณ๐ด๐ฆ๐ญ๐ง, โ๐๐ข๐ฏ ๐ ๐ฅ๐ฐ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ด?โโ he said. โ๐ ๐ข๐ด๐ฌ๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐ฎ๐บ๐ด๐ฆ๐ญ๐ง ๐ต๐ฉ๐ข๐ต ๐ค๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฏ๐ต๐ญ๐ฆ๐ด๐ด ๐ต๐ช๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ด.โ
But growth, he emphasizes, does not happen overnight. The answer may not always be โyesโ in the present, and that is okay.
โ๐๐ฐ๐ต ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ธ,โ he reflects, โ๐ฃ๐ถ๐ต ๐ ๐ธ๐ช๐ญ๐ญ.โ
Every story begins with a voice. Now, the voice that once amplified the stories of others takes its place at the centerโnot only as a student and an awardee, but as someone who persistently chose to serve with purpose, compassion, and quiet resilience. And as Jorick steps into a new chapter beyond nursing school, one thing remains certain: the same voice that once informed, inspired, and advocated for others will continue to create impact wherever it is heard. โ Majelyn Guasa and Therese Tolidanes, The Vital Signs
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Zhinny Ren Lao
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