Interview Questions
Describe US health care delivery system problems
In affordable care act: there is no strategy for preventative, need more incentives, regulate the pricing of procedures, retooling of entire system is needed, problems with the Obamacare website when it first started, when I was at Dr office we still submitted claims using dial-up
Tell me about a time when you've been disappointed in a teammate or fellow group member. What happened? How did you approach the situation?
A person that doesnt complete the work or effort that they are suppose to take. Confront the person on the side, listen to problems and find out what it specifically wrong. Offer solutions, practice together, pointers, offer own time was it just a hard week?
How do you handle stress?
Take each responsibility one and at time. Keep a level head and focus on the immediate task at hand. Like in the ER I was shadowing during the summer: triage
From what you understand of medical school, what part of the program will be most difficult for you?
Time management. Sticking to a strict schedule and even planning relaxing time. Juggling multiple responsibilities, studying for exams, not being able to do things like go to 6hours symphony rehearsals every week
What experiences have you had working with diverse populations?
- Elijah's Soup Kitchen NB, high school, first look at poverty - Guatemala: working with the indigenous Maya population, having a shaman and bone settter explain to us their culture and have a spiritual ceremony, better understanding on how their culture shapes their perspective of health and well being important to keep in mind to be culturally sensitive when practicing medicine
If you could change one aspect of your personality with a snap of your fingers, what would you change?
I am stubborn, sometimes it prevents me from considering other ideas or suggestions. Id rather have an open mind Better has a doctor when trying to diagnose a patient's illness
How do you go about making important decisions.
Ask around. Get opnions and advice from people preferably who have been in that situation. Consider all points and make a decision based on logic. Ex:
Describe how you can effectively deal with someone in crisis.
Assess the situation. Are they in danger to themselves other people, do we need to call the ambulance, how can I help: emotional support, or do they need medical treatment comfort them, do they just need a person to talk to and offer them a helping hand Ex: lady who slipped and feel on black ice outside of Dr. Lee's. Applied pressure to laceration on head until ambulance arrived. Kept talking to her and monitored her awake/ alertness
Tell me about a time when you demonstrated initiative.
Being the first and last person to talk to patients at Dr. Lee's office, I discovered that many diabetes patients were apprehensive of starting insulin injections. With the support of Dr. Lee, I developed a 30 minute teaching session where I would educate patients on insulin and diabetes, and to perform a demo injection with brands such as NovoLog or Victoza. One lady who was absolutely terrified of needles was able to overcome her fear and start self-administration after I coached her and held her hand through the process. I enjoyed helping patients in any way possible to make their healthcare experience positive and comfortable.
What are the best and worst things to have happened to you?
Best: Worst: death in the family
Describe any travels that you have undertaken and exposure o other cultures than your own.
China Guatemala
What do you do when you are not at work or school?
Clarinet What documentaries on something I didn't know about before
Tell me about a time when you failed.
Clarinet state auditions after getting 1st place regionals for central Jersey Lesson Learned: stay humble, you have to work for you want and earn it
If you discovered a classmate cheating, what would you do?
Confront the classmate. Ask why he did it, was he stressed that week? personal emergency? too much work? remind him of the consequences of cheating if it was a big assignment, go to teacher, if it was a little homework offer alternatives: study groups, tutroing if you have time
Describe a situation in which you were dependable or demonstrated initiative. One in which you were not as dependable as you would have liked.
Dependable: at the lab, completing time points Not as dependable: when I was shadowing at St. Peters and hispanic patient that did not speak any enlighs, although I have taken spanish in high school and a semester in college, I was unable to utilize medical terminoly and act as a translator for the physician Something I wasnt to improve on and practice in the future
If there were an accident on the highway, would you stop and help victims, knowing that doing so might lead to a malpractice claim against you?
Do I have the ability to help the situation
Tell me a time when you faced a conflict or anger with another individual.
Dr. Lee's Office, disgruntled patient who waited too long for an appoitment, calmly explain the situation and listen to his points. explain that the doctor needs to spread his time fairly over all patients and offer a possible solution: reschedule his appointment if he is late for something, ask if he could wait another 30mins (specific amount of time
What was your favorite college course and why?
Fossil Hominin Anatomy, where we compare the functional anatomy of humans, their hominin ancestors and live relatives Ex: olecranon of the ulna and how it has evolved different morphologies to suit every species usage Different perspective of human anatomy and different understanding of why our bones are the way they are, structure and shape wise in context of function and natural selection
In what course did you get the worst grades? Why?
General Biology Took it over the summer, fast paced and Uzwiak was a dickhead
How do you plan to finance your medical school education?
I am fortunate enough to have parents to have agreed to pay for half of my med school education, and I will take out the rest in loans
What are your career plans and what led you to these decisions?
I aspire to become a pediatrician.
How do you handle failure?
I bounce back. Look at what mistakes I made and she what I can improve on. Ex: At the lab many experiments fail. Western blot of the protein pAMPK, because phosporylated it is very fragile. careful collection methods, every step needs to be tweaked
What do you think about euthanasia?
I had to euthanize my dog, she was 15, which is practically 110 in human years she lived a full life in ways doctors are not suppose to harm only help however keeping a individual alive, we question quality of life
Describe your style of communication and interacting with others. Give an example of a situation in which you had to utilize effective interpersonal skills.
I like to listen carefully and respond in a way that the person I am communicating with will understand fully. Such as when I am volunteering at the hospital as a care companion, I sit with patients when relatives or family members aren't able to make it and they need some company. My goal is to make them feel comfortable and take their minds off the ailments..
Would you like academic medicine as a career?
I personally think I would have to go practice medicine before I could teach it properly. I want to also help people directly, one reason why I wanted to go into medicine in the first place and not be stuck teaching possibly as a part time job, one class a week. It is important to impart knowledge and continue learning
If you could start your college career all over again, what would you do differently?
I wouldnt change transferring from NYU to rutgers, I think that was an important decision in my life. I learned
What do you hope to gain from this experience?
Learning more about myself, what are my strengths and weaknesses and how to exploit and improve them.
Discuss a book that you have recently read?
Into the Wild by Joh Krauker Chris McCandless https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2wqfMsVqSI
Tell me about why you are interested in this program?
NJMS UH Cancer center Opportunity to work with diverse population
How do you handle blood and gore.
Pretty well. In the ER shadwoing this summer I was able to witness graphic incidents 1) lebanese man, swelling of throat, emergency surgery in the ER 2) taking out 11 stitches from a back of a boys head hit with soccer cleats during a game, head down his head
What steps have you taken to acquaint yourself with what a physician does?
Shadowing, keeping the same ours as my mentor
What do you feel is the purpose of Medical School?
To prepare me for the responsibilities and roles of being a doctor, not just how to cure people with medicine but how to interact and help them both emotionally and physically.
Is medicine a rewarding experience? Why
Yes, the followup, seeing a patient improve due to your efforts
How would your teammates describe you? How would your professors describe you?
dedicated teamplayer: how can be improve as a group, held study sessions driven: I want to comprehend things, I want to learn, eager, enthusiastic knowledgeable, consistent, reliable
What else do you want us to know before you leave today?
leave of absence for a year
If you were a cookie, what cooke would you be?
m&m candies: lots of colors, fun, delicuos chocolate reflects my diverse experiences
What do you think is the most pressing issue in medicine today?
modification of gene, GMO foods, CRISR technology
