Do you have reliable transportation and the ability to travel if offered our community nurse position?

"Yes, I would have reliable transportation for all four seasons. As you can see from my resume, I have spent time working in the homecare field and relied on personal transportation for driving in the winter, spring, summer, and fall months. I'd love to get an idea for how often your community nursing team is on the road and the territory covered. Can you elaborate more on this?"

Because most community nursing positions require work in patients' homes and within the community, having safe and reliable transportation will be a basic job requirement. Your interviewer asks this question to ensure that you have a safe vehicle for travel and that you are able to commit to the travel requirements for the job.

First and foremost, be open and honest with your interviewer regarding whether you have reliable transportation. Make sure to highlight that you are comfortable driving and that your vehicle will be able to handle any weather and situational driving that you would experience in this role. This question can also allow you a great opportunity to ask any questions relating to the travel requirement. You can certainly clarify how mileage is reimbursed and if a potential company vehicle is an option.

As a community nurse, how would you effectively motivate your fellow team members?

"If you were to contact any of my submitted references, current or past colleagues, and any former supervisors I've had, they would all say that I bring a positive outlook in all that I do and a hardworking attitude no matter how difficult things become. As a community health nurse here, I am a firm believer in leading this team by example and ensuring that all are striving for the highest of goals in promoting the health of the community. When it comes to working with other healthcare professionals and community leaders, I'm confident my experience, knowledge, and communication skills will help us work toward the same goal and provide quality healthcare to the public."

Community health nurses work with a variety of health professionals. This will include other nursing and care staff on your team, healthcare professionals at clinics and hospitals around the community, and with other local government agencies. As the voice and advocate for the people, your interviewer wants to hear that you will be the type of community nurse that will work hard to motivate and win over those that you work with most closely to have the greatest impact on the job.

As you look back on your career and the personality traits that you will bring to this community nurse job, you don't have to be a manager or a team leader to motivate others. Offering a listening ear or providing words of encouragement can make a world of difference to your coworkers. Sometimes, just being a positive influence and showing up to help, can also make a difference. If you have worked in a leadership role in the past, think of ways you helped set clear goals or helped individuals cultivate a new skill. Reflect on your experience and share how you will continue to be an encouraging and motivational nurse in this role.

Do you currently hold the Community Health Nursing Certification? If not, are you willing to pursue this certification in the future?

"No, I currently do not hold a community health nursing certification but I'm certainly willing to pursue the certification if hired. As you can see from my resume, I currently have AGN-BC, AMB-BC, and BC-ADM certifications that I've worked very hard for and am willing to do that again for this certification. Are you able to explain the process for initial certification?"

The American Nurses Association offers a certification and credentialing program in public health nursing. While your interviewer will be able to see if you list this credential on your resume if you do hold the certification, they will likely ask if they don't see it to see if you are certified. Conversely, they want to hear that you would be interested in pursuing the certification if you are offered the position and don't currently hold it.

Not all community health nurse positions require the Community Health Nursing Certification. The job description should make it clear if it is required. If you hold the certification, be sure to let your interviewer know and for how long you've been certified. If you are asked this question and aren't certified, be sure to convey that you are open to the opportunity to become certified. Through the ANA, the certification process has some qualifications and prerequisites. Be sure to familiarize yourself with those. It's also important to note that the National Board of Public Health Examiners also has a certification in public health for nurses.

What do you feel would be your biggest weakness as a community health nurse in this role?

"I know that this job will work with expecting mothers in the community on providing education on birthing and raising a child. While I have firsthand knowledge of parenthood as I am a mother, I don't have direct experience in obstetrics nursing over the course of my career. If hired for this role, I'll be sure to get up to speed on current maternity care techniques and strategies by researching and connecting with former colleagues in the field. I don't see this as any barrier at all if I emerge as your top candidate for the job."

The team you are interviewing with has likely experienced hiring many experienced nurses that have come to the world of community nursing with their own unique weaknesses. The organization asks this question hoping you will be open and honest about what you feel your biggest weakness will be to get a feel for how you will best be oriented and onboarded on their team.

This is a time to be honest with yourself and with your interviewing team. You can feel confident that your interviewer sees you can succeed in the role given the fact that you are interviewing, so feel free to be honest and genuine. Be sure to read through the job description of the community nurse position you are interviewing for and come to your interview prepared to discuss what you feel is your biggest weakness. To further your answer, make sure to have a plan for how you will overcome this initial hurdle should you be hired for the role.

Do you have experience speaking in front of a large audience? What size groups are you comfortable speaking in front of?

"Yes I do, but it has been fairly limited over the last 12 years of my career as a registered nurse. I am an active member of my church and have given the guest sermon many times in front of a congregation of about 150 people. While at first I was a bit nervous, I have become much more confident over time. As a community health nurse here, I would feel very comfortable and confident in the subject matter and would be able to generate fruitful conversations with the attendees of presentations and forums."

Community nurses will be expected to lead discussion groups on public health issues and present information to groups in a large scale setting. The team you are interviewing with needs to be sure that you will be comfortable and confident leading discussions with large groups of people to be successful in this role.

While public speaking has always been a top fear of most people, you need to stress to your interviewer that you are a confident and effective public speaker. If you have specific examples of diverse groups you've presented to, use those examples to show your interviewer that you can work with a wide variety of people.

What are some challenges in the public health field that you see nurses facing in the near future?

"I would envision that the continuing lack of infrastructure surrounding public health policies in this country will continue to make things difficult for frontline providers like those in this role. Having a few friends that are community health nurses, I know that they have lobbied their local legislatures and this is something that I'd love to do in this role. I know that funds are limited and I believe advocacy to have funds appropriated in the best way is likely the best solution in the meantime."

As with any subspecialty in the field of nursing, challenges will be faced both now and in the future of community nursing. To get an idea of your knowledge and insight into the field, your interviewer wants to hear your own personal opinion on what the biggest challenges will be in the coming years.

Prior to your community nurse interview, be sure to research and read up on the issues that are facing the community nursing and healthcare field. As you do, you'll quickly find poor community health, an abundance of work, and limited resources are challenges the field is facing. Come to your interview prepared to discuss what you see as one or two of the biggest issues that will persist into the future. Speak from the heart as you discuss the hot button issues and don't hesitate to give your own professional opinion on how to best solve the issues.

Talk about a time where you had to deal with a major change within the workplace. How did you handle that situation and what did you learn from it?

"Looking back on my career as an RN, it's been full of change and I am confident in saying that I've always adapted quickly and with a positive attitude. Whether it has been the implementation of a new EHR system or new equipment in the hospital, the willingness to learn and grow is always huge. A couple of years ago, the small organization I was a part of was bought out by a larger health care organization. It was a tough transition because it impacted personal lives in the form of new benefits and compensation, but I kept an open mind when others on my team did not. I took the time to talk with new leaders and learn how changes were going to positively impact things. I know that in this public arena, change will be a constant and I know that my positive outlook and ability to adapt will bode well for me as a community nurse."

Working in the public setting as a community health nurse, you will often be subject to frequent changes brought about by new policies and laws. Community health nurses need to be continually flexible in their work and their way of doing things, so your interviewer wants to hear you talk about a time you did just this during your career.

As you answer this question, your interviewer will be looking for your ability to remain flexible when things change on the job. Furthermore, they're hoping to hear that you can be a leader among your peers in accepting and adapting to the change. Discuss an example where you were open to change and how it made your day-to-day life on the job different, while being able to adapt quickly and effectively to the change. Reiterate to your interviewer that you know your future as a community health nurse will be full of fun and exciting changes and that you are excited about this aspect of the job.

If you could create any public health initiative in this role with an unlimited budget, what would it be?

"Wow, this is a great question! If given this opportunity, it would be a full-scale program that educates and eventually eliminates the drug epidemic that has hit our city, state and country. From my perspective, it would start with resources for education that start from a young age and continue into adulthood. Knowing that this is almost impossible, funds would have to be put into programs like keeping kids involved in their community through fun activities to help them make the right choices at a young age. It would also involve job programs for individuals graduating high school to ensure that opportunities were available for all. There would be so many wings that would stem off this program, it would be amazing to one day lead an initiative like this with vast funding."

A hypothetical question like this gives your interviewer the opportunity to learn a bit about your passions in the community health nursing field. It also allows you to shed some light on what your ultimate goals are if you are selected as the top candidate for the job and are ultimately offered the position.

As you are given permission and unlimited funds to begin any public health program you wish with this scenario, make sure you take advantage of the question and discuss what your biggest dreams could achieve in this role as a community nurse. As you answer, speak from the heart as you discuss why this program would be important to you and the impact it could potentially have. Additionally, don't hesitate to walk through how you would build the program from the ground up and the resources you would use along the way.

If hired for our community health nursing position, what type of communicator would you be?

"I'm a very open, honest and direct communicator and would come to your team as a community nurse who is confident in speaking in front of large groups and providing quality information. The colleagues and patients I have worked with throughout my career have always appreciated my professional and compassionate approach as I love to ask questions in any conversation to ensure that I can better gauge and understand the person. I also would come to this role with solid written communication skills, whether that be through email communication or drafting formal documents. My current role has exposed me to writing procedures and patient care documents, which I've really enjoyed."

To excel and set yourself apart as an effective community nurse, having clear and concise communication skills will be vital. During the interview process, your interviewer will be able to determine the type of communicator you are and if you are able to communicate clearly. They ask this question to hear your own self-reflection on your communication style.

When answering a question like this, try not to pigeonhole yourself in the multitude of communication style descriptions that are out there such as assertive, aggressive, etc. Instead, focus on the communication skills you possess and try to highlight how they will help you in the community nurse position you are interviewing for. Since you will be communicating with colleagues, patients, and members of the community both verbally and through writing, be sure to highlight the skills you bring in both of those forms of communication.

What do you feel you would enjoy most about this role as a community health nurse within our organization?

"Honestly, there is so much about this role that would bring me joy in my work. From developing intervention plans for groups and individuals to hosting vaccination clinics, I know that I will be helping the overall health of the community in this role. But what I would most look forward to is helping diagnose and solve the largest health issues this population is facing. I feel this is an aspect of my work that's been missing now that I'm an experienced and competent RN."

Compared to clinical nursing roles in hospitals and clinics, community nurses have historically had a much higher job satisfaction rate. To ensure you help continue this trend, your interviewer wants to hear that you are enthusiastic about this opportunity and they're giving you the chance to speak on what you feel you would enjoy most about the job.

This is your chance to display your passion as a future community health nurse. However you answer, be sure to discuss a specific duty or aspect of the job that you are interviewing for and speak with passion when you describe how this will bring you joy each and every day on the job. Maybe you enjoy working with a particular group of people or there is a topic that excites you to teach your community about because it personally speaks to you.

In your experience as a nurse, in what ways do you most often see people making poor choices in regard to their health?

"When you look at leading causes of death like heart disease and stroke, dietary choices and exercise are a huge contributing factor. These are aspects of public promotion that I would prioritize in this role and I firmly feel these are best promoted starting at a young age. Healthy lifestyle choices are a habit. Once bad habits start, they are very difficult to break. I'm also very in tune with the opioid crisis happening in our region and it has had a major impact on the overall health of our community."

As a community health nurse, part of your work will involve promoting wellness in schools, public forums, and government offices. To get a feel for your overall gauge on community health, your interviewer wants to know your personal perspective on the major contributing lifestyle factors to poor health in the community.

Prior to your community nurse interview, be sure to put some thought into a question like this and do as much research as possible on the community/region where you are interviewing. Online research with entities like the CDC and other governmental agencies will give great information on the greatest health risks. Come to your interview prepared to discuss the lifestyle choices that lead to these top health issues and give your own thoughts on how to best educate and prevent poor health choices in the future.

In this community health nurse role, why do you feel that collecting data and tracking results is an important aspect of the job?

"Community nursing and healthcare should always be focused on the top health issues facing the population and the most consistent way to gauge these top issues is through the collection of data. I'm assuming that community surveys, public forums, and focus groups are how data is collected in this role and I'm excited to learn more and hit the ground running. While I don't have direct experience in data analysis software programs, my proficiency in learning new programs should bode well for me if I'm fortunate enough to join your team."

Community health seeks to address the needs of specific groups of people within cities, towns or rural areas who may be predisposed to chronic health conditions or communicable diseases but lack resources to seek healthcare. The community's health may be compromised due to environmental hazards, infectious diseases, poverty, etc. Community health nurses engage in data collection and assessments to gain a solid understanding of the community's health needs and initiate wellness programs. Your interviewer needs to know that you are aware this will be an active part of your job in this role and that you would come excited and well-equipped to succeed in this overarching task.

First, you want to make it perfectly clear that you understand why the collection of data and eventual analysis is so vital to the overall health of the population that you will work with. It is vital that the community nurse assess the health needs of his or her community. Make sure to mention that conducting health needs assessments is important, that you are willing to get up to speed on the institution's approach to conducting them, and that you are always willing and ready to bring new ideas to the table. If you have direct experience in data analysis during your time as a nurse, be sure to talk about that experience, what you learned and what you can bring to work in this community nursing role.

If we were to talk with some recent patients that you cared for, how would they describe you and the healthcare you provided?

"Throughout my career, I have been consistently described as knowledgeable, compassionate, and friendly on patient surveys and from the colleagues that I work closely with. Putting patients at ease and making them comfortable has always been my goal and will continue to be as a community nurse in this role. I'm confident that my knowledge, compassion, and educational approach will greatly benefit all the patients that I will work with in this role."

Face-to-face patient care as a community nurse will come in many forms, such as: maternal care for expecting mothers, helping to control outbreaks of communicable diseases, refugee care, etc. It will be important for your interviewer to have a good feel for the way you care for patients directly, so they ask this question in hopes that you will be forthright and honest with them.

Talk openly and honestly about your strengths in your interactions with patients by speaking from the patients' perspectives. This is an excellent question for you respond with self-reflection. If you have examples of direct feedback that you've received from patients or survey data, do not hesitate to highlight the positive feedback you've received and how that will apply to this job as a community nurse.

Tell us about a time you were proud of a team you were a part of in the healthcare setting. What role did you play in that effort?

"A few months ago, I had a patient on my caseload that was confined to their house due to some severe weight and health issues. My focus as a home health nurse has always been to help patients achieve the most satisfaction out of their life given their health and home limitations, and a dream of this patient's was to get outside and go hunting with his son. In working with the patient's physician and a team of CNAs, we were able to make his dream come true for a weekend that he will never forget. I led the charge to ensure the patient was well cared for and prepared the week prior to leaving that he had all medications ready for his trip. Involving the patient's son was vital as well. I knew the work was all worth it by the smile on the patient's face the following week and seeing photos of their memories."

Community nurses are asked to work closely and partner with clients, colleagues, and esteemed members of the community in a team-based effort. Whether you will be helping to lead these efforts or work under the leadership of others, the organization you will join wants you to take pride in the group collaboration. With that, your interviewer gives you the chance to talk about a team effort you were proud to be a part of.

Prior to your interview, think of a time you felt a sense of pride and accomplishment in a team effort during your time working as a nurse. If possible, try to paint a clear picture of the situation, who was involved in making it a great team effort, and what the outcome was. If you can relate your answer to a direct patient care situation, that is even better. Ensure that it's clear you would always take pride in your future work as a community health nurse with their organization.

What aspects of our organization interested you to apply for this role?

"Working for Washington County, where I have spent a majority of my adult life, would be such and honor and a privilege for me. On top of the ability to serve my fellow neighbors and the future of this great county, I know many people who are employed here and absolutely love it. Your nondiscriminatory values and collegial workplace would be great to be a part of and I would love be a part of the team in your public health department."

Community health nurses are most often employed by government or non-profit agencies, and this is quite different from the wide array of employers that hire registered nurses. In posing this question, your interviewer wants to hear that you are committed to the mission, values, and vision of the organization that you are interviewing with.

Before your community nurse interview, be sure to research the mission, values, and goals of the organization you are interviewing with and make sure you give a thoughtful, genuine answer as to why you were drawn to this organization specifically. As you answer, discuss the values of the organization you hold near and dear to your heart to prove your long-term dedication if hired.

What inspired you to pursue a career in nursing? Have your personal motivating factors changed now that you are pursuing a career in public health?

"When I began my pursuit of a nursing career in college, I knew that I was made to help people when they are at their most vulnerable. Over the last nine years I've worked in an outpatient clinic setting and a fast-paced emergency setting, making a positive difference for each of my patients which has driven me to become a better nurse, and it has made all the hard and emotional days worth it. Over the past few years, I've become close with a community nurse who has shed light on all of the great aspects of the job. Having the ability to have a greater impact on public health programs and community education is very appealing to me. I've lived in this region my entire life and would be very motivated to help give back to the youth, elderly, and everyone in between in this role."

Internal drive and motivation are important to the success of any community health nurse because they are working a majority of the time without direct supervision and are out in the community most days. Your interviewer wants to hear that you are a motivated and driven nurse, so they pose this question to hear what initially motivated you to pursue your career as a nurse and possibly how your motivation has changed throughout your career.

To start, speak from the heart and clearly discuss what prompted you to pursue a career in nursing. Speak passionately as you outline your drive to help others and provide compassionate care. To truly solidify your answer and prove that you would be a driven community health nurse, try to think of the bigger picture and what motivates you to help educate and promote health among the greater population.

Do you belong to any nursing organizations or read any nursing-related publications? How do these help you stay well-informed and educated in the field?

"I'm a firm believer that immersing myself in several nursing associations, reading as much as I can, attending conferences, and completing continuing education credits has helped me become the competent and successful nurse that I am today and has prepared me for success as a new community health nurse. I'm a very active member of the ANA, ASRN and NLN, having held a local regional leadership role in the NLN for the past four years. Whenever possible, I love attending national conferences to hear great speakers and network with other professionals. Currently in my living room at home, I have the latest copies of the ANA books and am currently listening to its See You Now podcast. Over the course of my career, I've learned so much that I brought into practice from my involvement in nursing organizations. if hired for this role, I know the ANA offers community health nursing certification and I would look into pursuing that at the earliest possible time."

The healthcare field continually changes with new technology, new patient care techniques, and new research methods. Registered nurses need to stay current in their work. Because community nurses work in such a niche subspecialty of nursing, your interview knows that staying educated and up-to-date in the field will be important for the candidate they hire.

As you answer this question, simply walk your interviewer through all of the ways that you stay educated in the nursing field. Make sure to highlight journals you read, groups you belong to, continuing education events you've attended in the past, and highlight some key sources of information along the way that have helped you progress in your career. If possible, try to connect the ways you currently stay educated to your future career as a community nurse.

Talk about how you typically prioritize your work as an RN. How do you feel your methods will help you in this role?

"Juggling a busy workload has been something I've been working on and perfecting throughout my career. I started my career by working on busy inpatient units. To successfully navigate a full unit required the ability to prioritize the highest needs first based on acuity, and then staying organized to ensure that no tasks were left undone. As I've transitioned to home health nursing, I've developed more skills relating to time management and planning. I'm confident that these skills will help me step into this community nursing role and handle the job with ease."

The duties of a community health nurse can involve a variety of daily tasks in addition to long-term project work. This can include managing a caseload of patients, travel, email management, and planning for upcoming education and prevention presentations. If they're going to seriously consider you for this role, your interviewer will need to know you have a solid method for organization, are efficient with time management, and be able to keep up with your work.

To best showcase your ability to handle the multitude of daily tasks and project work you will be doing as a community nurse, it's best for you to discuss a prior role where you had to balance a wide array of work and competing priorities. Your interviewer knows that the ability to utilize time management skills and organizational resources will be vital for the nurse they hire, so be sure to highlight the ways that you keep yourself organized in your work.

Have you ever encountered a situation that involved an irate colleague or patient? How did you handle that situation and what did you do to achieve a positive outcome?

"Yes, I definitely have as an RN that has over eight years of experience in the field. I always think back to a time early in my career where a family member was very upset over the path of care that was determined for her father and she became very upset while the care team was meeting with her. She said some very regrettable words to the physicians and nurses and everyone left the room except me. At that time, I took the time to listen to her and ask questions to better understand the root of her anger. In the end, it turned out she had some skewed views of healthcare and outcomes and by me taking the time to educate her, she was in a much better place. As a community nurse in this role, I'm sure to encounter patients with painful wounds or communicable diseases and they will be in a very difficult place. By approaching them with empathy and respect, I'm sure I can help curb any potential outbursts that may occur."

Registered nurses often deal with patients, patients' family members, and co-workers during stressful times and community health nurses are no exception. These stressful times can lead to emotional outbursts like rage or sadness and since you'll be representing a public organization and the general public in this role, your interviewer needs to be assured that you can handle these situations in a respectful and professional manner when they arise.

Before your community nurse interview, be sure to think of a situation that shows your ability to diffuse a high-conflict situation. When dealing with an angry patient, it is essential to demonstrate your listening skills, problem-solving skills, and ability to remain calm and collected to deescalate the situation. A great way to win over your interviewer is to think of a hypothetical situation that may arise in a community health nurse role and describe how you would handle the situation.

Have you participated on any project teams or other administrative projects during your career?

"Yes, I have been very open to admin duties and project work throughout my career and fully understand the importance of how that work impacts the lives of so many people. In my current role, I'm in charge of unit shift scheduling and take pride in this work as it ensures that we are fully staffed at all times. It often requires a great deal of communication among the team and I'm proud to do that. Throughout my career, I've worked on several large project teams and that work has been very rewarding. Last year, I helped lead a drive for charity donations. This project involved planning, preparation, communication, and organization. In this role as a community nurse, I would look forward to researching and preparing valuable presentations for the community and helping to lead volunteer programs around the region."

On top of the individual care that community nurses provide to patients, there are a lot of other administrative tasks and projects that you will be tasked with if hired for the job. Your interviewer will be looking to get a sense of the administrative and project work you have done throughout your career up to this point and that you are open to all of the tasks you will be responsible for as a community nurse.

Prior to your interview, it will be imperative that you read and reread the job description of the community health nurse position so you have a good feel for every aspect of the job. As you answer this question, you'll want to highlight any job duties you've had that included being part of large project teams and administrative tasks. Knowing that typical community nurse jobs involve educating the public, building health programs, and managing office tasks like email management, be sure to highlight these skills you have developed that will lead to instant success in the role.

What patient education skills would you bring to our team as a community nurse?

"One of the greatest aspects of my nursing career has been helping patients understand their conditions and teaching them the life changes they can make to live a healthier and more fulfilling life. For me, educating patients has always been about ensuring they understand every aspect of their condition and I do so by asking them questions and allowing them the opportunity to ask questions. Over the last few years, a close friend from nursing school has told me about all of the rewards of being a community health nurse. I'm confident I will thrive when talking to and providing information to the public in this role. I'm comfortable and confident in front of large groups and will always try to make things fun and engaging."

As you are well aware, providing education to individuals, in both small and large groups is a vital part of any community health nurse role. While your interviewer may have a sneaking suspicion of your experiences in this realm from looking at your resume, they want to hear you discuss the patient education skills you have developed throughout your career. Additionally, they're hoping that you'll give examples of instances you may have taught on a large scale and that you are comfortable in this setting.

Education and providing medical advice is a huge component of community health nursing, so you want to highlight the skills and abilities that you will bring to this role. If you have direct experience providing large scale presentations on health information, be sure to talk about that experience and what you learned that you can bring to this role. If you don't have this direct experience, there isn't a need to fret. If that is the case, you'll want to elaborate on your individual patient education skills and be sure to bring up a time where educating a patient made a big difference for them. In the end, make sure your interviewer walks away from your time together confident in your ability to handle this aspect of the job.

Describe a time you provided care for a patient whose values or beliefs were different from yours. What did you do in that situation to ensure quality care was provided?

"The greatest aspect of being a nurse is getting to provide care to patients from all walks of life and all different backgrounds. If I'm fortunate enough to be hired as your next community nurse, you'll quickly find that I will thrive in an environment where I will work closely with the elderly, school aged children, and everyone in between. In my current position, the clinic serves a high population of LGBTQ patients and they are great to work with. I have a particular patient that I've provided a lot of education to on some severe health issues and, as always, I treat them as if they were my own family member. This is a value I look forward to bringing each and every day in this role."

As a community health nurse in this role, chances are high that you'll be working closely with a very diverse population. It's important to demonstrate awareness and sensitivity to a community's culture. Knowing this, your interviewer needs to be assured that you will be able to work effectively with all members of the community you will be responsible for in a caring and professional manner.

It's important to remember that in this role as a community nurse, you will be expected to work closely with people from all walks of life and all racial, ethnic, cultural backgrounds, genders, sexual orientations, religions, and other belief systems. To successfully answer this question, you should give a specific example of a time when you recognized a patient's values and beliefs differed from yours and explain how you worked with them in a compassionate and attentive manner.

If offered this role as our next community health nurse, how much supervision do you feel you would need in your initial months on the job?

"This is a great question and honestly one I put a lot of thought into even prior to applying. This is a dream role that I've been preparing for over the course of my career and I'm confident that my skills and abilities will allow me to jump right in and succeed in a short period of time. Of course, becoming familiar with the day-to-day duties of this community nurse position will be important, so I'm not naive in thinking I can step in from day one and hit the ground running without any supervision. I would foresee shadowing to be a huge part of my orientation when it comes to parts of this job like presenting public educational seminars and preparing wellness materials. Can you please elaborate a bit on what you expect the orientation plan would be for the person you hire?"

The organization you are interviewing with knows that a majority of the candidate pool they will consider will be coming from direct patient care roles. If you are one of those candidates, explain to them that your transition into the community nursing field is one you have mentally prepared for. In asking this question, they want your honest assessment of the initial training you feel you will need and how long you think it will take for you to be up and running on your own.

This can be a tricky question to answer, so think it through ahead of your interview and be prepared to give an answer that illustrates that you are "coachable" without being too dependent or needy. You also want to project that you are confident and competent without being arrogant or troublesome for the nursing team that you'll be joining. Your interviewer ideally wants the best of both worlds, so be prepared to describe your competency, initiative, and willingness to both ask for and receive feedback and direction.

Given your work experience and knowledge, what makes you the ideal candidate to join our organization as a community health nurse?

"When I heard about this role a few weeks ago, I was very excited because I'm confident that the last ten years of my career have fully prepared me to step in and succeed in a dream job like this. As you can see, I have spent a great deal of time working in a family practice setting where prevention, education, and performing basic health screenings were an integral part of my job. I really love the educational component of the work of an RN and I'm confident that I can step into this role and be a dynamic speaker and advocate for the people in this region. On top of this, I grew up here and consider this region home. I want my friends, neighbors, and those that I share this area with to be as happy and healthy as possible so we can continue to be one of the best places in the country to raise a family."

Because community nursing is such a small niche subspecialty of the entire nursing field, it takes a special type of person to thrive and succeed as a community nurse. Your interviewing team has likely been through the recruitment ringer before and has probably seen some fail miserably in the role. To ensure your success, they pose this question to ensure that you have the drive, motivation, and skills to succeed.

Your goal in answering a question like this will be to successfully highlight your ability to meet and exceed all expectations of the unique community nurse role you are interviewing for. It will be imperative that you know the full job description in its entirety prior to your interview. As you answer, you'll want to highlight all of your prior work experiences that have prepared you for the specialized duties you will be taking on in the job to really impress your interviewer.

As a prospective community nurse, what is your overall availability to work evenings?

"Throughout my career I have been very flexible in working many different shifts and hours. This has included being on call, working evenings, weekends, and holidays. I have the sense that most of the work in this community health nurse role will be day shift hours on weekdays, with some occasional educational presentations and seminars that fall on the weekends. I'm fortunate that our youngest child now has her driver's license to make it to her activities on her own, so any hours required for this role will work for me."

Community nurses are a very unique breed in the nursing field because they work at different locations and have required duties that can fall on weekdays, evenings, and weekends. No two days are the same on the job. Depending on the exact position description and duties of the community nursing position you are interviewing for, your interviewer will want to be sure that you can meet all hour requirements for the role you are interviewing for.

Your first clue into answering this question will be to carefully read the position description for the community nurse role to see if the hour requirements clearly stated. If they are, ensure that you are very clear with your interviewer that you can meet all of the demands of that aspect of the job. If not explicitly stated, there may be other clues in the job description that can give you a hint of what the working hours will be. For example, if community education sessions will be part of the job, you can certainly expect some evening and weekend work. As you answer, you want to be honest with yourself and your interviewer on your overall availability to meet the time demands of the job. Make sure to highlight any personal commitments you have.

Community Nurse Interview Questions

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1. Do you have reliable transportation and the ability to travel if offered our community nurse position?
2. As a community nurse, how would you effectively motivate your fellow team members?
3. Do you currently hold the Community Health Nursing Certification? If not, are you willing to pursue this certification in the future?
4. What do you feel would be your biggest weakness as a community health nurse in this role?
5. Do you have experience speaking in front of a large audience? What size groups are you comfortable speaking in front of?
6. What are some challenges in the public health field that you see nurses facing in the near future?
7. Talk about a time where you had to deal with a major change within the workplace. How did you handle that situation and what did you learn from it?
8. If you could create any public health initiative in this role with an unlimited budget, what would it be?
9. If hired for our community health nursing position, what type of communicator would you be?
10. What do you feel you would enjoy most about this role as a community health nurse within our organization?
11. In your experience as a nurse, in what ways do you most often see people making poor choices in regard to their health?
12. In this community health nurse role, why do you feel that collecting data and tracking results is an important aspect of the job?
13. If we were to talk with some recent patients that you cared for, how would they describe you and the healthcare you provided?
14. Tell us about a time you were proud of a team you were a part of in the healthcare setting. What role did you play in that effort?
15. What aspects of our organization interested you to apply for this role?
16. What inspired you to pursue a career in nursing? Have your personal motivating factors changed now that you are pursuing a career in public health?
17. Do you belong to any nursing organizations or read any nursing-related publications? How do these help you stay well-informed and educated in the field?
18. Talk about how you typically prioritize your work as an RN. How do you feel your methods will help you in this role?
19. Have you ever encountered a situation that involved an irate colleague or patient? How did you handle that situation and what did you do to achieve a positive outcome?
20. Have you participated on any project teams or other administrative projects during your career?
21. What patient education skills would you bring to our team as a community nurse?
22. Describe a time you provided care for a patient whose values or beliefs were different from yours. What did you do in that situation to ensure quality care was provided?
23. If offered this role as our next community health nurse, how much supervision do you feel you would need in your initial months on the job?
24. Given your work experience and knowledge, what makes you the ideal candidate to join our organization as a community health nurse?
25. As a prospective community nurse, what is your overall availability to work evenings?

Community Nurse Interview Questions

1. Do you have reliable transportation and the ability to travel if offered our community nurse position?

2. As a community nurse, how would you effectively motivate your fellow team members?

3. Do you currently hold the Community Health Nursing Certification? If not, are you willing to pursue this certification in the future?

4. What do you feel would be your biggest weakness as a community health nurse in this role?

5. Do you have experience speaking in front of a large audience? What size groups are you comfortable speaking in front of?

6. What are some challenges in the public health field that you see nurses facing in the near future?

7. Talk about a time where you had to deal with a major change within the workplace. How did you handle that situation and what did you learn from it?

8. If you could create any public health initiative in this role with an unlimited budget, what would it be?

9. If hired for our community health nursing position, what type of communicator would you be?

10. What do you feel you would enjoy most about this role as a community health nurse within our organization?

11. In your experience as a nurse, in what ways do you most often see people making poor choices in regard to their health?

12. In this community health nurse role, why do you feel that collecting data and tracking results is an important aspect of the job?

13. If we were to talk with some recent patients that you cared for, how would they describe you and the healthcare you provided?

14. Tell us about a time you were proud of a team you were a part of in the healthcare setting. What role did you play in that effort?

15. What aspects of our organization interested you to apply for this role?

16. What inspired you to pursue a career in nursing? Have your personal motivating factors changed now that you are pursuing a career in public health?

17. Do you belong to any nursing organizations or read any nursing-related publications? How do these help you stay well-informed and educated in the field?

18. Talk about how you typically prioritize your work as an RN. How do you feel your methods will help you in this role?

19. Have you ever encountered a situation that involved an irate colleague or patient? How did you handle that situation and what did you do to achieve a positive outcome?

20. Have you participated on any project teams or other administrative projects during your career?

21. What patient education skills would you bring to our team as a community nurse?

22. Describe a time you provided care for a patient whose values or beliefs were different from yours. What did you do in that situation to ensure quality care was provided?

23. If offered this role as our next community health nurse, how much supervision do you feel you would need in your initial months on the job?

24. Given your work experience and knowledge, what makes you the ideal candidate to join our organization as a community health nurse?

25. As a prospective community nurse, what is your overall availability to work evenings?