Important LPN Interview Preparation Guide

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Most people are going to answer something along the lines of “Because I like nursing.” This is fine but a bit boring. You should use anecdotes and stories about your personal experience to liven up your response so that you seem more like a person than a nursing automaton regurgitating memorized information.

Critical situations and tough patients motivate me. In my last job, I was confronted with a patient, who was not handled by a number of nurses, later I took charge of him and solved his problem by understanding his situation. I really love to overcome challenges.

In my first job, I made a mistake in the patient’s chart. Fortunately, my supervisor noticed it. Since then, I always double- check my charts.

Practice nurses are not usually required to be strong team leaders. It’s usually the practice nurses themselves who are led as part of a team. They receive instructions from senior personnel and help them.

The interviewer is basically looking for clues that will shed light on your work ethic and interpersonal skills. Direct quotes work well. "Jill always said I was dependable" is a direct quote that says a lot.

I think for me, the most difficult part of being a nurse, is when I have a patient that is very uncomfortable, or in a lot of pain, and I cannot comfort them.

There are several ways to assess: You set big challenges for yourself and met them. Your achievement is a big success. Your boss told you that you were successful.

I am sure that I was successful. I have dreamt to work for your company and I can do anything to make my dream become true. And I am really interested in this job, for my passion not for money.

This is a highly inappropriate question to ask, especially during a first interview. Asking this question can lead the interviewer to believe that salary is more important to you than the actual position… not a good impression to make. Unless the interviewer brings up salary, be patient with this as well.

Absolutely, I feel it's important to stay informed about trends and news in the nursing profession. I'm a member of the [insert association here], and the [insert association here].

The settings in which nurses work can quickly turn into pressure-cooker environments. To be blunt, the interviewer does not want to hire anyone who is so emotionally fragile that they'll shatter like plate glass when faced with the day-to-day pressures of the job.

I would first ensure that the patient had no valid complaints, and then just be patient and reassuring that we were doing everything we could for them.

Practice nurses may be required to do that in certain situations. Their task is to monitor recuperating patients and they are most often the ones to be nearby when an emergency situation arises. You can also add an explanation of how first-aid or emergency procedures are applied, or give an example that actually happened.

Employers often ask for greatest strength or strengths during an interview. This can provide valuable insight into a nurse and their self-concept. Take the time to think about a complete and honest answer to this question. Do not misrepresent or exaggerate yourself to sound good. Everybody has their own strengths. It is important to recognize these and highlight them. Common answers to this question can include: patience, intelligence, problem solving ability, dealing with stress, interacting with patients or their families, etc. The list of possible answers to this question is almost unlimited. The important thing is to be confident but not arrogant. Be assertive and proud of your strengths!

If the doctor was not happy with my care of a patient in some way, I would want to know how, so I could take corrective action to remedy the situation. If I needed to, I would even bring the question to my supervisor for help resolving the issue.

If you have healthcare experience, they want to know how you have dealt with angry doctors, emotionally upset families, or difficult patients. If you lack healthcare experience, you can discuss a difficult situation that occurred in school or a previous workplace.

No matter how much research you do on the organisation, the only way you will have a clear picture as to what exactly will be expected from you is by getting that information directly from the interviewer. Although the job of an LPN is generally the same, duties may differ slightly from organization to organization, state to state and department to department.

This question is a simple one yet can make a huge difference in the day to day functioning of your job as an LPN. Some LPN's are the leader of their unit, supervising over nursing assistants, CNA's, or personal care assistants. In this case the primary individuals being worked with would be subordinates and the nurse bears responsibility not only for their care but care of those being supervised. Of course, LPN's are always supervised by a Registered Nurse or a physician, however they may not be physically present at all times. Sometimes LPN's work with a team of other LPN's to ensure duties are completed. Nurses are always part of a larger healthcare team but it is good to get an idea of who primary interaction will be with, after the patients of course.

Flippant and humorous answers should be avoided. Since the intention is to seem like a motivated individual capable of making serious commitments, you should discuss your goals for your career in the nursing profession. Depending on the time frame mentioned in the question, you might want to adjust your response for more realistic outcomes.

My previous job taught me so many things and developed necessary qualities required to be a proficient nurse. But now, there is no room for growth, and I am looking forward for new challenges to thrive in nursing.

Provide an answer showing your passion to work in the health care field but with your own personal touch. Say something like, “I have known since I was a child that I wanted to work in a job where I could truly help others and know that I want to enter the health care industry in some way. When I was in high school, my grandmother became too ill for us to care for her on our own. My family hired a home health agency to provide nursing care for her. Now my grandmother is doing very well and I truly believe a lot of that is because she had such wonderful nurses. I decided to become a CNA because I would like to help others the way those lovely ladies helped my own grandmother.”

My last boss at the hospital where I worked taught me the importance of time management. He was extremely deadline-driven and wouldn’t take excuses if the job wasn’t done properly and on time. His no-nonsense approach pushed me to work harder and manage my case loads much more efficiently.

Insert any nursing specialty into the blank space provided. You will stand out to the interviewer as a candidate who truly has passion about the specialty if you know more about it than the average person. If your dream is to work as a nurse in a well-baby nursery, you'd better be knowledgeable about the area in which you envision yourself working.

I enrolled myself in an advanced course for improving my managerial skills and also attended various seminars for enhancing interpersonal skills.

I realize that some patients are more difficult to deal with than others, whether it is because of their medical condition or because they have a certain disposition. At my previous job, I came across an elderly gentleman who was extremely cantankerous because of dementia. Right away, I tried to find the cause for his anger. I eventually discovered that it was because he was experiencing physical pain. When I took steps to remedy that pain, he calmed down a little, and we were able to treat him properly.
Since I first got into nursing, I’ve always strived to cultivate empathy for patients, and that has helped me immensely whenever I come across someone who seems like they may not want to be helped.

This is commonly asked before, after, or together with the previously mentioned question. When preparing for this common question, take the time to really think about your weaknesses and how you can improve them. Be honest with yourself and find areas where you need personal or professional improvement. There are several ways to approach this question. One way to answer this question with a positive spin is answering by stating a weakness in which you have or are currently improving. This shows a potential employer that you are conscientious and capable of self-improvement. Consider the following example:

“Being organized was not always my strong point; however at my last job I worked with a co-worker whom I admired for her time management ability. She helped me to develop a system for time management and organizing my day. This has helped me and I plan to continue my self-improvement.”

In this sample response the nurse identifies a potential weakness, organizational skills, then goes on to explain how they recognized the weakness and are attempting to fix it. Another great way to answer this question is to focus on nonessential skills. These are skills that are not necessarily needed to complete a job. For example, as a nurse communication skills are very important. Some nurses are great at communicating one on one with patients or in small groups with family members yet they lack the ability for public speaking to larger groups of people. If this is true, be honest. State your weakness but don’t forget to also emphasize the strength that goes with it.