What characteristics do you think are important for healthcare professionals to have?
"Confidence is one thing I think is important. It's hard to believe in someone who doesn't believe in themselves."
"We all possess different qualities and that is what makes a great team. If I were responsible for interviewing and hiring new employees,I would look for someone who has a genuine interest in the job and a desire to grow and learn. None of us knows everything there is to know about each disease or treatment. Being willing to learn and share what we've learned with one another makes us a better team and benefits our patients and those who will need care in the future."
There is more than one reason for asking this question. First, the interviewer wants to know what qualities you think are important to perform this job. Second, and most importantly, your answer will tell the interviewer if you hold yourself to the same standard as you do others. If you want to see certain characteristics in your peers, you should be able to tell the interviewer with confidence that you possess those traits, as well. This question is one that interviewers often use to distinguish sincerity on the part of the candidate.
"I believe that honesty is important no matter what job title a person holds. I have found that being honest with people creates an atmosphere of mutual trust and respect. Those qualities, I feel, are essential when building rapport with patients and co-workers."
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
Always eager to learn and grow in the field. Critical thinking, dependable, proactive.
Rachelle's Feedback
These are very important characteristics, for sure! To complete your response, can you share which of these characteristics you possess, backed by examples?
Anonymous Answer
I think one important quality to have is the ability to adapt and be flexible. This is important because things are going to happen that are out of your control during your shift and you need to be able to adapt to that and provide quality care. Pediatrics is a specialty that requires a lot of adaptabilities as you have to be creative in how you explain things to children to get them to let you provide care to them. Another quality to have is a desire to learn because healthcare is a profession that is constantly evolving as new research comes out. As a new grad I know there will be a lot to learn but I am eager to ask questions and learn everything possible during the residency and even all throughout my career as a nurse. This is a quality I displayed all throughout my clinical rotations and precepting because there was a lot of skills that I had never performed or diagnoses I had never cared for before so I asked experienced nurses and my instructors if I needed guidance on how to do something or a question answered about a disease process. Another quality that is important to have is attention to detail because you need to pay close attention to things so you don't overlook anything and harm the patient. I do this by coming in early and looking up my patients, writing down pertinent information, and paying close attention when doing my med passes.
Cindy's Feedback
Great! Good answer.
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