5 Common Emergency Room Nurse Interview Questions & Answers

I have always enjoyed helping people and find great satisfaction in providing care to people who need medical attention. When I was young, my little sister had cancer. Watching her go through medical treatments was difficult and it taught me the importance of skilled, caring medical staff. Ever since that time, I have wanted to help people in the way those nurses cared for my sister and my family.

In a position I worked in previously, we used a specific method for checking in patients that I felt was outdated and inefficient. At an appropriate time during one of our staff meetings, I made several suggestions that I thought would improve the process. The supervisor was specifically looking for ways to increase efficiency but disagreed with my opinions about the check-in process. He didn’t utilize any of my ideas and didn’t change the intake process. I continued to use the old system and, even though I thought our patients would have been served better by a new method, let the issue drop as it wasn’t worth having contention in the workplace.

I have always done well with deadlines and thrive in a fast-paced work environment. During my time at the urgent care clinic, I have helped numerous patients with illnesses, injuries and health crises. One particular day a mother brought in her young child, who had been quite ill. During the intake process, the child became unresponsive and I had to think quickly and act calmly. I immediately began checking the child’s vital signs, sent the other front desk worker to get the doctor and began cardiopulmonary resuscitation, which I continued until a physician took over. The child was ultimately revived and my ability to act quickly using the training I had acquired was an integral part of saving that child’s life.

I am extremely detail oriented. Whether I’m charting and keeping records, noting patient conditions or administering medication, I always double-check my work. Efficiency is important, but not at the expense of accuracy, and I believe in removing as many barriers to accurate care as I possibly can. I am also very observant. I tend to notice the details about patients’ conditions that others miss. Whether it’s a glassy look in their eye or a certain way they are clutching their abdomen, I look for and record details that may offer clues into the causes behind a patient’s condition.

It is always very difficult for family members to see someone they love suffering, and I understand that first hand. During my time at the urgent clinic, I dealt with several family members who came in with a patient who required immediate transfer via ambulance to the emergency department. In each of these cases I spoke calmly, clearly and honestly to the individual. I acknowledged the patient’s condition and assured the family that the medical team would strive to provide the best possible care for their loved one.