Public Health Interview Questions

[frances81]

So I've landed a phone interview in 3 days time for PHN position!

Dream job!!! Not dream location though :S It's in the middle of the mountains in a small coal mining town 4.5 away from any family; being a single mom of a toddler that matters to me. But it's hard to get RN work at the moment and next to impossible to get a PHN job in the capital region.

So two questions:

-What sort of questions can I expect/ were you asked on your interview??? HR wasn't sure if there would be a knowledge exam portion to the interview, but I want to be prepared in case.

-If I'm offered the job, should I take it? I definitely know bedside nursing is not for me at this point in my life. Perhaps when my son is grown, LDR or nurse-midwifery may be in the cards, but for now I love public health. Could I work a year or so in isolation and try moving back? Torn.

Thanks in advance for any thoughts :)

[angeloublue22, BSN, RN]

You should become familiar with what duties are included in public health nursing since they can be pretty vast including community health assessments, outreach, emergency planning, teaching, allocation of resources, and public health issues that affect your community. You should be able to research these pretty easily on the internet. Since every interview process is somewhat different, it's hard to say if there will be a test or what questions will be asked. Of course, you should take it if it's what you want to do. Trying new things leads to more growth and learning.

[Everline]

It really depends what you will be doing as a PHN. For instance, are you going to be doing immunizations? Working with people who have tuberculosis? School health? Healthy start? Community visits? Family planning? (the list goes on) Will you be in a clinic or out in the field? Whatever the job entails, you should have a grasp on the subject and be able to talk about it. In my interview, they asked very specific knowledge questions related to the work I'd be performing and the patient education I would be doing. They also asked behavior type questions (scenarios), so be prepared to answer things like how you might deal with a difficult co-worker or patient or things about how you handled situations at your previous jobs. That being said, different states, counties and etc. aren't all going to interview the same way, so YMMV, of course. I wish you the best on your interview. Let us know how it went!

[frances81]

Thanks. It's actually a generalist PHN position in a small town so it would encompass all aspects/ types of public health: well baby, maternal, sexual/ reproductive health & sti's, travel, disease control, health promotion & teaching initiatives, injury prevention, etc...I've only had 2 days notice so haven't been able to study up on it all lol.