Interview Questions (Fairview)
Why did you decide on a career as a nurse?
- Working with patients at Noran Clinic as a sleep technologist gave me a desire to be more involved in overall care and in advocating for patients - I find a lot reward in understanding and helping patients. - Developed a desire to be more involved in caring for others.
What do you find rewarding about this job?
1) Med-Surg - Being exposed to several conditions and learning how to assess and manage care for a wide array of different conditions 2) Cardiac Telemetry - Providing education on management of chronic heart conditions - The responsibility over a vital organ such as the heart. To my understanding, things can change quickly - Learning about arrhythmia, their causes, and how to manage them (seems objective) - An area that I excelled in at nursing school was psychopathology. I love understanding how disease process work and how to solve problems. I feel this is a setting where I can put my knowledge to work and learn more through experience. 3) Neuro - Learning more and more about the brain and neurological conditions - Learning how to assess for subtle changes and build that nursing intuition 4) Ortho - Helping people have a comfortable transition from surgery to home - Providing education
Where do you see yourself five years from now?
1) Med-Surg (cardiac) 2) Cardiac step down 2) Cardiac ICU 3) Cardiac cath lab/ ER 4) NP
Do you have any questions for us?
1.) What top three things would you say are the most important skills to develop as a nurse on this floor? 2.) How do you measure improvement? 3.) What does the training process look like?
Tell me about yourself.
1.) Worked as a registered sleep tech. Enjoyed the technical aspect of the job and working one-on-one with patients. Developed a desire to be more involved in patient care. 2.) Decided to go to nursing school. Graduated December of 2017, got registered, and then began working at a transitional care unit.
AIDET is an evidenced-based communication model. What does it stand for?
A - Acknowledge the patient's name and give him or her a warm smile I - Introduce your name and what your role is (your the nurse) D - Give a timeframe of how long you'll be working with the patient and how often you'll be dropping by. E - Explain what to expect for the day (medications, physical therapy, possible discharge, and possible procedures) T - Thank the patient and ask if there is anything you can do for them
Discuss a time when you were a role model to other peers?
Explain working with students or new workers as a sleep tech. Lindsay example with TCM
What does FICA stand for?
F - Ask about their faith. "What do you believe in that gives meaning to your life?" I (Important) - "How important is your faith (or religion or spirituality) to you?" C - "Are you a part of a religious or spiritual community?" A - How can we accommodate for your care? *I usually find this to be a good segue to ask if he or she has any cultural concerns that may need to be accommodated for
How much overtime are you able to handle?
I understand from previous experience my limitations (Noran experience working five nights in a row). I know the importance of self-care so that I can provide care to a high and safe standard.
Tell me what you feel your greatest skill as a nurse is?
I've been told that excel at helping patients feel at ease and deescalating situations. S - Pt coming from a hospital in South Dakota after back surgery. C - Just arrived to the TCU and was in tons of pain and needed Oxycodone, which had not arrived from the pharmacy yet... A - Explained the situation to the patient and family and what I could do. I explained that I could get oxycodone from our E-Kit, but it would be a process and could take 30 minutes. Then I got the patient in a comfortable position in bed and gave her Tylenol. R - Although the pt and family were upset about the mishap with the oxycodone not being received by the pharmacy on time, they were at ease after I explained the situation and what I could do. I was able to establish a good relationship with the pt and family.
Tell me about a time you went above and beyond for a patients.
IV Dilaudid patient
How would you respond to a nurse who appears to be stealing medications?
Inform the supervisor of your suspicions. Give them details.
Tell me about a situation where you had a conflict with another nurse, nursing aid, or a doctor? How did you deal with it?
Lantus pen situation with Bonnie -------------------------------------------------------- Nurse late 5-10 minutes consistently So I talked to him and said hey I've noticed a pattern of being a little late. I'm concerned because I'm not able to get started with my patients until we've decided together which patients we'd work with. She was alarmed and apologized. She said he didn't think it was a big deal and didn't realized how it affected my ability to be more prepared for the patients. It never happened again.
Tell me about a time you accommodated for someone culturally?
Muslim patient at Noran (prayer during the study) - Asked the interpreter before the study began if the patient has any cultural or religious needs to be accommodated for
What do you find is the hardest part about being a nurse?
Not always having the answer - e.g. the woman with diverticulitis who continued to have diarrhea. *Explained what was being done to help find answers
Tell me about a time you provided high-quality customer service?
Ortho patient situation: - Attentively listened to patient - When she felt understood I offered to go over her allergies
Give an example of a time when you anticipated problems and were able to influence a new direction
Pt having surgery to amputate finger next morning; heparin injection was scheduled at HS ---------------------------------------------------------- S - Heparin injection order on PointClickCare MAR C - Pt already received a dose in the hospital A - Looked up hospital MAR for last dose and verified that it was received that afternoon R - Avoided a potential error and harm to the patient
Tell me a time when you made a mistake. How did you respond?
S - Giving double dose of Amlodipine
Tell me about a time you noticed an error. How did you respond?
S - Heparin injection order on PointClickCare MAR C - Pt already received a dose in the hospital A - Looked up hospital MAR for last dose and verified that it was received that afternoon R - Avoided a potential error and harm to the patient
Explain a time when you have had a disagreement with a coworker and how did you handle that disagreement?
S - Nurse asked me to share a Lantus pen with a patient of hers. C - It's a safety concern, but I also want to be supportive of my co-worker. A - I explain that this was not a safe thing to do because of the potential of blood back flow. I told her that I would not share pen and that she would have to either contact pharmacy to get a new pen that night or contact the on-call physician to get permission to get Lantus from our emergency kit. R - She wasn't happy, but ultimately it was the right thing to do.
Tell me about a time you worked with a difficult patient?
S - Patient who was non-cooperative coming from the hospital as an admit. Pt didn't allow me to do my admission assessments. A - I stated, "Listen, I am responsible for ensuring that you receive the right care and safest care. I need to make assessments to ensure that. I understand you are tired, but to refuse this care is to go against medical advice and I'd need to report that to your doctor and nurse practitioner if that's your wish." R - The patient wasn't happy, but she allowed me to do my assessments and we moved on.
Can you give an example of when you assumed a leadership role?
S - Precepting a student C - Pushed nystatin down the G-tube - Explained that accidents happen, but how can we make sure it doesn't happen again. - Contacted pharmacist (showed her how), reported incident
How do you handle the stress of the job?
Self-care is an important value for me. I like to stay physically, mentally, and spiritually fit. Running is very therapeutic for me and also being a part of a faith community. While on the job I like to stay well-organized. I'm very meticulous, yet at the same time I allow for flexibility. I like to take notes and recap on my job. If there is a mistake I make or something that I can improve, I'll write it down and address it. I also try to work towards delegating whenever it's appropriate.
Why are you the best nursing candidate for this position?
Well if you're talking about hiring me over someone else, I really can't make that judgement. All I can tell you is that I'm not going to be the same nurse 6 months from now. I'm deeply committed to continually improving because I want to master any area of nursing that I'm introduced to. So I can't say that I'm better than any of the other applicants. I don't know who the other people are who are applying.
***How do you deal with someone who isn't satisfied with your patient care?
Wife of patient who had a laryngectomy S - Non-verbal patient who was post-laryngectomy, had severe pain, and he did not want to fall behind on.