What to look for when interviewing for peds PDN?

caliotter3 · Jun 17, 2014

First, what kind of peds experience and specific experience for child with this condition. Often the parents can get a "feel" for a nurse's suitability by this response alone.

Misread the question but still feel this response can tell the parents what they need to know. A new grad who has never worked with trached kids at all is probably going to come across as being too nervous for the assignment.

Trauma Columnist · Jun 17, 2014

Yeah, the mom is very nervous and will want someone who is very confident and experienced. Thanks

caliotter3 · Jun 17, 2014

I have found the initial experience question is sometimes difficult to navigate no matter how well prepared I feel for the interview.

SDALPN · Jun 17, 2014

Ok, I have a question for all you peds PDN RNs. My granddaughter, who is 2 had a stroke recently. She will be going home with a trach, no vent, and a g-tube.
parents will be interviewing for 16 hrs of care per day.
other than, what is your experience with this type of pt, what kinds of questions should parents ask?

Ask about experience. No experience is bad, no homecare experience means they will need to adjust to a different environment. Ask them about how they would handle different situations. Ask how they handled themselves in an emergency and describe the emergency. Ask why they are doing the job they are in and future career goals. That will tell them if the person wants long term or short term work. Ask how many different private duty patients they have had. The parents should also give their expectations and house rules to see how the nurse responds and if they are ok with them or not.

Observe the nurse for confidence vs lack of confidence. Keeping in mind some nurses get nervous in interviews. Observe the nurse to see if they respect the home. Does the nurse walk in and ask if its ok to wear shoes, do they wipe their feet on the welcome mat, do they just sit down anywhere or ask to sit, do they start picking up objects in your home or do they ask. Does the nurse seem uncomfortable with pets that may be in the home. Do the pets act strange around the nurse. Does the nurse make eye contact. Is the nurse timid...a timid nurse might be afraid to be an advocate for the child. It may sound bad, but does the nurse drive a reliable car...you may want to look at what they drive. Of course anything can happen to the newest car on the road, but if it looks like parts may fall off you may get lots of call outs without a back up plan. How does the child react to the nurse. Does the nurse interact with the child. Does the nurse ask questions like they are interested and if the nurse is very well experienced there may be less questions asked so keep that in mind as well.

eeffoc_emmig · Jun 18, 2014

Keep in mind too, that LPNs are quite capable too. I've worked plenty of cases in which I've had to teach RNs how to do procedures. I just say this because your post asked the RNs what to ask in the interview.

CloudySue · Jun 18, 2014

Yes, don't discount LPNs. Every aspect of care that your granddaughter needs is within the scope of practice of LPNs. In my state, PA, the only thing we LPNs cannot do is administer blood or chemotherapy, admin push meds into a central line, and pronounce death in the absence of an MD.

Trauma Columnist · Jun 18, 2014

Thanks everyone!

What good questions!

Fortunately there are no pets in the household but she does have two older (5 y/o and 6 y/o) siblings who will be in and out also.

No, I won't discount LPNs at all. In IL, you get X amt of money, not X amt of hours/day so it actually would work out fine for LPNs. With the exception of the trach, she will be doing pretty well I think. However, due to the complete vocal cord paralysis, she can not clear her secretions at all and fills up VERY fast.

ventmommy · Jun 19, 2014

I'm sorry to hear about your granddaughter. Since the parents are new to trachs, and I'm going to assume are not nurses, I would suggest absolutely no new nurses.

I would inquire not only about their trach experience but also their toddler experience, and OT/PT/ST experience as well since I would guess that she is intensively undergoing those therapies.

See how they interact with her.

Help them make a care notebook for her. Make sure that emergency procedures are posted and practiced.

I would strongly encourage the parents to join one of the trach parents groups (I don't think I'm allowed to post a link if I remember correctly) as lots of parents post photos of rooms set-ups, types of supplies, care notebooks, etc. There are also a lot of TBI groups although many of them have a heavy focus on SBS. They'd still be welcome in any of them.