Veterinary School Mock Interview
Master 54 Veterinary School interview questions covering clinical experience, animal ethics, and your commitment to veterinary medicine.
Question 40 of 54
How would you handle a customer who had conflicting opinions and views on the required treatment of an animal?
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Ryan Brown created and launched MockQuestions in 2008.
When answering a question focused on conflict and differing opinions it is important to consider what the interviewer is looking for from your response. Generally, the interviewer is asking this question to gain an understanding of how you handle conflicting situations, but more specifically when it comes to your skills and experience within your profession. The main thing to remember is you are the expert in your field, and you must remain professional at all times, so try to get this across in your answer.
Ryan Brown created and launched MockQuestions in 2008.
"If I was presented with a situation where a customer had differing opinions on the treatment of an animal I would listen to their opinion, showing I was understanding their concerns or reasoning, before explaining the correct and professional way of proceeding (along with the reasoning behind this choice). Best practice is useful to help customers understand decisions so I would ensure they fully understand the reason behind the choice being made, and would ensure I was professional at all times."
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Anonymous Answer
These situations are bound to occur, and I have experienced customers who do not entirely agree with the suggested treatment plan. As a veterinarian, I would trust the knowledge I have from school and experience. Of course, I would always keep an open mind when it came to being receptive to new knowledge in the veterinary world. To the customer, I would give the reasons for my plan of treatment and explain all of the benefits. I would be willing to listen to their opinions and be able to explain why I believe my treatment plan is best. Of course, I would do this in the most professional way possible while helping the customer understand the reasoning behind my plan.
Rachelle's Feedback
You sound very confident in your ability to handle situations like this. It's a great point you make about being open-minded and receptive to new knowledge from reputable sources.
Anonymous Answer
I would educate the client to the best of my ability on why I recommend the treatment. However, I would also let the customer know that overall, it is their decision. I would also ask if there is any other way I can better clarify the treatment I recommend. For example, I often educated clients on heartworm prevention, successfully persuading people on its importance.
Rachelle's Feedback
It seems you would take a very respectful approach. Education is also very important. Good answer!
Anonymous Answer
First, I would listen to the customer so she felt that her concerns were being heard and not ignored. Once she voiced her opinion, I would then explain the treatment that I have in mind and the benefits that come with it. Throughout this process, I would remain professional, calm, and collected.
Rachelle's Feedback
Listening to someone's concerns is an excellent first step to opening up a conversation with conflicting opinions. Your professionalism shines through in this response.
Anonymous Answer
I would ensure I explained the treatment in a simple manner and explained the benefits and success rate and how it would improve the quality of life for that animal. I would make sure to listen to their opinion and understand any of their reasons or concerns. I would ask if there was any way I could better clarify the treatment but let them know that overall it is their decision.
Rachelle's Feedback
Great! Your answer shows a lot of professionalism and highlights your ability to look at situations from multiple perspectives. It's terrific that you would work on educating your client rather than just giving push back and pressing your opinion on them.
Anonymous Answer
As the RCVS code of conduct states, the veterinarians first consideration should always be animal welfare. Therefore, if a client's opinions and views may be deleterious to the animal's welfare, while you cannot force the client to do anything, it is important that you try to promote the treatment you think is necessary and explain the impacts if the animal doesn't have treatment. You should also try and understand where the client is coming from and listen to what they are saying, since you are a team and are working together for the common goal of helping the animal. This will allow the client to feel more understood and comfortable listening to you for advice. If you believe the animal is in serious jeopardy, it may be appropriate to consult an animal welfare agency such as the RSPCA.
Rachelle's Feedback
This is a good start! Since the question asks 'how would YOU,' I suggest changing your phrasing from 'royal you' statements to an 'I/me' focus. This will help your answer come across as more personal vs. a lesson in ethics for the interviewer.
"As the RCVS code of conduct states, the veterinarian's first consideration should always be animal welfare. Therefore, if a client's opinions and views may be deleterious to the animal's welfare, while I cannot force the client to do anything, it is important that I try to promote the treatment I think is necessary and explain the impacts if the animal doesn't have treatment. I would also try and understand where the client is coming from and listen to what they are saying since the client and I are a team working together toward helping the animal. This approach would allow my client to feel more understood and comfortable listening to my advice. If I believed the animal was in serious jeopardy, it may be appropriate to consult an animal welfare agency such as the RSPCA."
Anonymous Answer
In a case like this, I would fully respect and listen to the client and make sure I understand and acknowledge their opinion. At the end of the day, you and your client both want what's best for the animal. I am the expert in the field so I would explain why the treatment I favour is more beneficial for the animal and I would use this as an opportunity to educate the client as well. I need to bear in mind that I cannot force the client to choose the treatment that I have in mind so I can only strongly advise them to.
Rachelle's Feedback
I like that you position yourself as the expert and take an education-based approach with your client. The assumption that your client would have the animal's best interest in mind is a nice mindset default, and it's evident that you would ensure that this was, in fact, the case by educating your client on best practices and the options available to them.
Anonymous Answer
I would take them to a private room where the treatment options could be discussed. I would listen to them and make sure they feel like I am taking in what they're saying so they feel significant. Depending on what they say I might recommend treatment plans or charities, however, I would say to them that the treatment I am recommending is what is best for their animal as animal welfare always comes first. Through doing this I would try to educate the owner on the importance of the treatment.
Amanda's Feedback
I can sense your ability to empathize with others in your answer. You've done a good job outlining the steps you'd take to help the customer understand why a specific treatment is the best course of action. Consider strengthening your answer further by relating what you'd do if consensus couldn't be reached. Would you refer to another veterinarian?
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