Give me an example of a workplace challenge you encountered, and how you handled it?
As an addiction nurse, you may face various workplace challenges. Internal struggles or co-workers struggles. Tell the interviewer about a situation you faced and how you handled it. Burnout, people problems and not being challenged may be a few issues you could bring up.
"A workplace challenge I faced was when I did not have enough nurses on staff to cover our night shift. Because we had enough nurses to only cover the shifts it made it difficult to get by if someone was out sick. I spoke to my Director about the situation and suggested a PRN nurse. Now, double shifts aren't necessary, we just contact our float nurses, and they can cover."
"In my previous position, we had a couple of nurses who were unreliable with their documentation. This lack of documentation meant that the covering nurses were often confused or left with only pieces of information. We overcame this by expressing the concern to our union leader. It was the only way we could ensure policy and procedures surrounding documentation were met at all times."
"As an addiction nurse, there is a new challenge each day including shortages of staff, supplies, rooms, and more. Over the years, I've learned to prioritize these challenges, delegate as needed and not allow it to affect my work."
Community answers are written by other candidates practicing this set. Reading how others frame the same question is one of the fastest ways to sharpen your own.
Anonymous Answer
I prioritize, make a plan, and delegate when work gets challenging. For example: when we have a tight schedule, during the daily meetings, I come up with a plan to give clients that are late the option to reschedule, or we will fit them in. I also pitch in to take vital signs, complete drug screenings, etc.
Rachelle's Feedback
It seems you are very interactive in the workplace and highly organized. Any interviewer should greatly appreciate this answer.
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