Interview Questions

halohg, RN · Apr 27, 2019

You have an ill child in your health office with a temp of 102 at 10am in the morning, you call parents to pick up, after several attempts you reach Mom however she states, she is unavailable to leave her brand new job and tells you to keep the child in your care and send home on the bus. How would you handle?

A student presents to the health office straight from the bus with a prescription bottle of medication and a parental note with instructions to give the medication after lunch. How would you handle?

or something like, you have a daily med order and although you gave advance warning to low inventory several times, the student has run out of medication. You have called the Grandmother (sole guardian) who is elderly and does not drive, she asks if she can just send the medication with the student on the bus as she has no other options or anyone to assist her.

you have a known asthmatic and despite several attempts by phone, mail, email, back pack notes, etc. no rescue inhaler has surfaced to the health office as ordered by her primary care doctor. Student presents with cough, wheezing, and states her asthma is acting would you handle?

triage scenarios, what would you do first: at the same time you have a vomiting student, a diabetic comes for their BS testing and insulin, a KG student from recess with a bump to the head, and a phone call from an irate parent...what do you do first, and how do you handle the rest. They may ask several of these types.

a student presents and states that her boyfriend and she had unprotected sex last night and she is worried about pregnancy.

a teacher calls you about a student with a bruised eye and a concerning story on how it occurred.

student presents from the bathroom and states that she threw up, (no witnesses) no fever or any other symptoms, you assess the student and find her symptoms are not excludable for the rest of the day, however the teacher wants the student sent home.

School sports deadline for physicals has come and gone, however on tryout day you have 3 students in your office asking to be cleared so they can play today, and now their parents are calling as well adding pressure.

student presents after being sent by a teacher with possible signs of being high or drunk

good Luck

nycNurse2b · Apr 27, 2019

Can’t thank u enough for taking the time to respond and give me all these questions and scenarios. I’m most appreciative!

It appears my subbing days have paid off. I feel like I have seen or heard of many of these scenarios firsthand.

Many thanks for the good luck wishes.

Pcherry001 · May 1, 2019

Goodness... any help on how to answer the questions? I’m thinking about applying for our school nurse position. I work in peds currently so feel confident about actual nursing care, but a lot of those questions seem to be based on policy. How would you suggest someone prepare for an interview with no school nursing experience?

RatherBHiking, BSN, RN · May 1, 2019

Several of those questions you could just answer "follow policy". Some of them you should have a little idea of what would be best.

I had things like:

What would you do if you were called to a classroom and a student was lying on the floor? (Well go assess your ABC's, see if they are conscious, get details from everyone if they saw what happened, call 911 if needed, have someone grab AED if needed, administer seizure med or check blood sugar depending on health issue.)

What would you do if a child says he was being hurt at home but teacher thinks he's lying? (Assess for any bruises and call CPS)

Triage things like who would you take care of first if you had a kid with a broken arm and a diabetic who was slurring their words. (Diabetic care first or call for help if the broken bone kid looks ready to faint while you're checking a sugar.)

How do you handle things with an angry parent or staff member?

What are your strengths and weaknesses? ? Don't say whiny kids annoy you. I hate this question but be prepared with something.

What would you do if you see a child struggling to breathe? (Are they allergic to anything or have a hx of asthma, are they choking? Allergic give epi pen, asthma give inhaler, choking clear airway if can or give Heimlich, call 911)

A child is sent to you suspected of being high so what do you do? (Do a drug assessment (check pupils, pulse, awareness, ability to follow directions, etc) and if they do seemed impaired notify the administrator and call parent and make aware and have pick up or whatever the policy is. Possible drug screen required or at least recommended. Just depends on school policies.)

Kind of brush up on asthma care, diabetic care, seizure care and emergency meds, allergen care and epi pens, common ADHD meds and side effects, autism, etc.

Anything you aren't sure how to answer just say so. Don't pretend you know it all. They don't expect you to know everything and may be checking to see how you handle an instance where you aren't sure what to do.

Good luck!!

jnemartin, BSN, RN · May 1, 2019

I always go in to interviews with a few pre-prepared scenarios that I can loop into various questions. For example, I might think of a specific scenario where I had to think on my feet and assess/intervene, or a specific scenario dealing with difficult patient/parents. These stories can be used for both the soft skills questions and hard skills/technical questions.

I try to pick "middle of the road" stories/scenarios, not the most extreme case. For example, once VERY early in my career, I was asked about how I handled a conflict with a coworker. I gave this SUPER dramatic story in full detail (I'm cringing now!) and needless to say, didn't get the job - I probably looked like a drama queen! This might sound like an OBVIOUS piece of advice, but when you are on the spot, your mind tends to go to the most obvious, strong memory. So practice answering those "negative" questions so that you come off as measured and always end it positively.