"As providers, DOs don't necessarily run things to the extent that government or the third-party payers do. But we have a voice--the most important being championing our patient's needs. What happens in the health care system trickles down to what happens to each patient, and I can make my feelings clear through the appropriate outlets--legislative and even media--if I find a direction that hurts my patients and needs correction."

Careful with this one, because it's politics. The hospital or group with whom you're interviewing has a lot at stake depending on how the health care system co-exists in both capitalism and socialized programs, like Medicare. You want to sound knowledgeable, concerned, and caring for patients (at all costs), without actually taking a side. This is difficult to do, and the examples provided here show you how.

"I think that as long as I keep a watchful eye on the economic processes that both advance medical care and innovation while also tending to the needs of the underserved, I can be prepared to add input--even at a legislative level, if need be. How the health of the health care system goes, so goes the health of my patients. I can affect it only by paying attention and being ready to contribute my thinking when it seems necessary or would prove useful."