LTC Facility Nurse Interview

MJLPN727 · Jan 18, 2018

Nurse to patient ratio, CNA/LNA to patient ratio, who can you call for support if things start going badly and is this person available all shifts to reach out to? Do any administrative nurses ever work on the floor? What are their policies on certain medications - do insulins need to be checked by 2 nurses? Are there blood pressure med parameters for every time you pass a BP med or do they do monthly/ weekly vitals? Is there a unit manager to handle admissions, patient appoittnments etc or are floor nurses responsible for paperwork as well? Just a couple things I've noticed from my time as a floor nurse that I would ask about.

amoLucia · Jan 21, 2018

Just use some judicious selective choices when you're interviewing. You don't want to appear picky and a potential problem to management.

Yes, it is true that the interview process time is an opportunity for you to get to know the facility and to get that 'sense' or 'feel' for the place. But the facility holds the upper hand so you need to careful.

Oh, I do like to know if there's any union, esp for CNAs. That is important to know.

princessjoycee · Jan 22, 2018

I wish I saw a post like this before my experience with applying to LTC because if I had known about certain situations I would have reconsidered my decision on taking the position.. oh well LOL

Newgurl17, CNA, LPN · Jan 22, 2018

I wish I saw a post like this before my experience with applying to LTC because if I had known about certain situations I would have reconsidered my decision on taking the position.. oh well LOL

Same! My mindset was that I just wanted to work and thought that because the facility was newer that it would be better than the facility I'm currently at. They were also hiring at their assisted living facility so I asked if I would be able to work there as well as needed. I should have asked about the nurse-resident ratio!

bluegeegoo2, LPN · Jan 22, 2018

Don't be surprised when you get lied to about ratios. Of course they're going to tell you that they're good.

Things I look for in a potential employer:

Does the building smell like urine/feces when you walk in? If so, turn around and walk out.

How do the residents look? Is their hair combed? Clean clothes/face/hands?

Does the staff look fairly relaxed? Do you hear laughter? See smiles? Or does everyone look like they're stressed? Rushing? Going to cry? (Side note: A building I was touring didn't look bad, but a nurse I met literally HUGGED ME and begged me to accept the position. Should have been my clue...)

Sign-on bonuses are a big clue to poor staffing. The bigger the bonus, the more desperate they are to get staff in place. Which means they are short as hell. Avoid.

A potential employer will tell you what they think you want to hear in order to hire you on. Hear what they have to say but observation of the environment will usually tell you all you need to know.

Newgurl17, CNA, LPN · Jan 23, 2018

Don't be surprised when you get lied to about ratios. Of course they're going to tell you that they're good.
Things I look for in a potential employer:
Does the building smell like urine/feces when you walk in? If so, turn around and walk out.
How do the residents look? Is their hair combed? Clean clothes/face/hands?
Does the staff look fairly relaxed? Do you hear laughter? See smiles? Or does everyone look like they're stressed? Rushing? Going to cry? (Side note: A building I was touring didn't look bad, but a nurse I met literally HUGGED ME and begged me to accept the position. Should have been my clue...)
Sign-on bonuses are a big clue to poor staffing. The bigger the bonus, the more desperate they are to get staff in place. Which means they are short as hell. Avoid.
A potential employer will tell you what they think you want to hear in order to hire you on. Hear what they have to say but observation of the environment will usually tell you all you need to know.

The receptionist/scheduler gave me a hug when I first met her.... I thought she was just super friendly or something!

Alex_RN, BSN · Jan 25, 2018

There is a lot of good information here. This would make a good article.

Newgurl17, CNA, LPN · Feb 26, 2018

After being hired for your first nursing job, were there any tell-tale signs that, "hey, herhaps maybe I should run from from this place"? I was working my second nursing job and I feel like there were a lot of things that I noticed at this facility like, useless emar, not being able to chart due to not having a login, no access to handscanner, being interrupted on first orientation day, being asked to work when the DON KNEW you were sick... Then yesterday, one of the nurses said something like, "the nurses here are dropping like flies!", to which I replied, "like getting sick?" but then this nurse says because a few nurses are now part-time.