5 Common Health Facilities Surveyor Interview Questions & Answers

I have more than two years of experience inspecting facilities. In my previous job, I was given the responsibility of determining the compliance of employees with food safety policies at the factory where I worked. This responsibility required that I complete a detailed monthly inspection of the factory with a checklist. I completed these inspections for over two years and helped the facility to maintain compliance with FDA requirements.

Completing inspections requires a surveyor to have expert knowledge of the policies that a facility must follow to comply with state or federal policies. Additionally, a surveyor must understand the application of the policies in a real-world environment at the health facility. To prepare myself for an inspection, I would carefully study the policies and procedures outlined in the survey and take careful notes. I would also become acquainted with the types of facilities that I would be inspecting, including the health care providers, management and support staff and their general responsibilities. Lastly, I would interview and seek guidance from experienced inspectors to learn from their wisdom what to expect during the survey. All of this preparation would help me be best prepared for the inspection.

In my previous job as a quality assurance specialist at a health facility, I was given the responsibility to train and spot check the staff’s hand washing. As every health facility understands, proper hand washing prevents infection transmission between staff and patients. To best fulfill this function, I completed un-planned inspections and had to directly train staff if they were not properly washing their hands after procedures. On one occasion, I remember a doctor who was quite unhappy when I reported his non-compliance with this procedure. After he spoke in a heated tone to me, I reinforced the policy and explained that it was his and my shared responsibility to protect patients. Because I was respectful to the doctor, he came to know that I truly cared about the patients, and all of his subsequent hand washing inspections were perfect.

I have two years of experience in which I worked in a hospital environment in the quality assurance department and three years as a patient safety coordinator at a primary care clinic. These experiences helped me to understand how both large and small health care facilities function.

Throughout college, I had to learn to quickly take good notes that I could reference in the future to master materials required for my classes. One of the biggest challenges I had in college was in a chemistry class in which the teacher would talk quickly and did not use a PowerPoint or write notes on the board. My notes were so good that many students in the class asked me for copies. Developing this skill was really important professionally as I have always taken great notes at inspections and meetings.