My interview at a Hospital with the lions

[garn12]

I had an interview at a Hospital this morning in Ga for one of their ICU units. Basically the interview went horrible and I was ripped to shreds from the moment they walked in through the door. I was interviewed by two nurses and the director. I went to shake their hand one of the RNs did not even extend to shake my hand upon greeting. The entire interview process made me feel horrible.

My background: I graduated from nursing school with my BSN July 2012. I was an extern (float nurse's aide) from December 2010-last October 2012. I have one year experience as an RN on a med surg ortho/spine surgical unit in a level two trauma hospital. I am chair of shared governance on my floor, and I have also charged quite a few times on my unit.

They told me verbatim that "I have no experience". They implied to me that if I get a job here I need to know how to access a patient which offended me because I felt like they were basically telling me I don't know how to assess a patient which is something all nurses do. They asked me if I had any experience with central lines and foleys. They laughed in my face when I told them my hospital I currently work at has an IV team.

At times I would answer questions they cut me off and even re asked the same question which led me to believe that they were not interested to begin with. I would have personally preferred to receive an automated rejection response from HR than to sit in an interview for 30 minutes and be hazed and asked do I know what I'm getting myself into by coming to work here.

The hospital looked nice on the inside and I really feel bad because I want to learn and grow as a nurse and this is the best hospital to be at. However, I felt degraded and as though I haven't accomplished anything at all. The unit director asked me what was our patient satisfaction scores on the unit I work for. I actually don't know that answer but I know it is accessible to the public if she was curious. I thought the interview was about me not the unit I work for???

The unit director then left in the middle of the interview and let the other two nurses finish. Where is nursing going these days? Why are people so rude? If I met the qualifications for applying for the job and I was offered the interview why was it necessary to bring me in to humiliate me?

[AJPV]

I don't agree with KenH & jalyc. Yes, you can take away some learning points - like you might want to strengthen your IV skills, and perhaps you can learn how to come across more confident in an interview. But that DOES NOT excuse the completely unprofessional way they conducted the interview. The objective facts about the interview (ie, the manager leaving halfway through) are not a matter of your overly sensitive subjective interpretation. The manager DID get up early and leave. That really IS completely unprofessional. It is inexcusable. Period. That kind of behavior is an embarrassment to our profession and it fuels an atmosphere of fear and intimidation in the work place. It's not just about your feelings. It puts patients at risk.

[dede1956]

Having sat in on 3 different interviews over the past 25yrs, I can honestly say that I have never had a manager walk out of the interview. Ken H you said you didn't want to be mean or hurtful, all I can say is you have a funny way of showing it. Yes things could have been handled differently throughout the interview process, however, for the manager to walk out...that is inexcusable, unprofessional, and shows exactly what she thought about the person she was interviewing and what she thought about her staff. If the manager had walked out of any of the interviews that I had, I would have excused myself and said "I'm sorry, is there a problem? With the manager is leaving and the interview isn't over yet, maybe we should reschedule for a more convenient time when she doesn't feel rushed

." I probably would have also walked out and counted my blessings that I didn't get the job there or had to work with people who thought they were better than me. I teach my nursing students that when they have someone that is treating them in such an unprofessional way that they probably didn't have a very good preceptor &/or forgot what it was like to be new to the profession. The example these three nurses exhibited to you is the very reason we have the reputation of "eating our young." When asked about my patient satisfaction scores I would have said "No, I don't know the most recent score results but the last ones posted showed..." As for having an IV team where you work, I would love to have one where I work, but would have followed up that statement with "even with the IV team where I work, that is a skill that I would greatly appreciate learning and becoming proficient in." Please don't let the ignorant unprofessional attitudes that you experienced with that job interview jade your perception of the profession or prevent you from continuing to interview and find the job that is the perfect fit for you.

[dede1956]

I have interviewed twice for ICU positions both as a new nurse and an experienced one, and have NEVER been treated that way. I have had some hard core, hard nosed staff interview me for different postions that I was interested in, but with the rounded shoulders that I have developed over the years I knew how to handle them when it came my turn to ask questions. I professionally turned the tables on them and they had no answers for the questions that I asked them...in fact they started to mumble and stutter through their answers. You said that you didn't want to be mean or hurtful, but the way you answered her post shows how unprofessional you actually are. You could have said the same things without the attitude!! There are many ways to get the message across and your way is why we have the reputation of "eating our young." Grow up, learn how to talk to people without the attitude and give constructive feedback that will actually help them grow! If I was interviewed by you with your attitude I would seriously wonder why I spent all that money to come into this professional if I had to deal with arrogance like yours every day I worked. Your obvious lack of support for the new nurse(s) tells me that you have that "I'm better than you, and you will never be the nurse I am." I have been in this profession for 37yrs and I'm a better nurse than you are just from your attitude that you showed in your post. Makes me wonder what type of nurse you really are, and how do you orient new staff. That manager was extremely unprofessional and all three of them demonstrated why JCAHO had to put in work place violence protocols.

[gaonsi]

This post has been very interesting to read. Although I'm terribly sorry you felt disrespected, did you realize the hospital you were stepping into?! You're talking an inner city hospital in a downtown metro area. Sometimes the nurses should not be of concern, but your patient population. And truthfully, if you couldn't handle their aggressive interview style, you'd probably not be able to handle the docs, the patients, the families, the locale, on top of having to step on the floor and be the best regardless of if you're new or not. You're going to an ICU, people are critically sick. They can't be waiting for you while you're dryin your tears in the bathroom and they're going into hemorrhagic shock and the surgeon, RT, charge nurse and anesthesiologist are rushing you to the OR. With all you have to learn, you should be comfortable after a year with basic tasks like IV line maintenance and inserting urinary catheters, giving blood because unfortunately, they can't teach you basics you should have learned in nursing school or at your previous jobs. And they ask you questions about customer services scores not necessarily because they care about the scores of your previous institution but because they want to know that YOU know and are aware of them. That's knowin your performance indicators is something on your mind.

Again I'm sorry, the notion of nurses eating their young still happens and I know I've gone home crying many a times. But I held my head high, waiting until I got out of the parking lot and burst into tears. Don't let people see you sweat, it gives them motivation. Lets all stop pretending that some nurses aren't mean. People are men! They will always be mean, don't interact with them when you're outside of work and simply don't become what you don't like. But also don't take things personally. I guarantee that when you were writing this post, those nurses had long forgotten about you while you're still expending energy being sad and angry at their behavior.