How to approach Home Health RN interview as a new grad?

Nurses Job Hunt

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I graduated form a BSN program in May and took the NCLEX-RN on Friday, two days ago. Assuming that I passed the NCLEX, I should be ready to pursue my first nursing job. To date, I have had only one nursing job interview. The interview was for a hospital residency program and it didn't go as well as I had hoped (and I didn't get the job). I know that hospitals are where most new grads go to get experience and training, but I don't really like the hospital setting. I dislike running around like crazy managing four or five patients at a time. A few weeks ago I spoke with a manager at a home health agency about working there as a new grad RN and she told me that they'd be happy to talk with me after I passed the NCLEX.

Feel free to post comments on the viability of a new grad in home health, but what I'd really like to know is how to approach an interview at a home health agency. The truth is that I think I'd prefer to work with one patient at a time without constant interruptions. I genuinely enjoy patient education and I relish any time that I get to speak with or teach a patient about their medical conditions. I'd like to learn to do wound care, and maybe dialysis or other time-consuming tasks that medical-surgical nurses don't typically have time for. But during the interview, I don't want to sound like I'm choosing home health just because I can't hack it at a hospital. How should I approach an interview with a home health agency?

Also, I'm a male and I'm in my 40's. I'm not sure if my age was a factor in not being hired by the hospital. The lead interviewer at the hospital asked me multiple questions about where I went to high school and she was able to determine that I went to a high school that no longer exists, thus she determined my approximate age, which I thought was inappropriate. I'm pretty smart and I love helping people. I'll listen to anyone who has advice or knowledge that is relevant to my situation. Thank you!

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