Pediatric Nurse Mock Interview

Master 29 Pediatric Nurse interview questions covering patient care, family communication, and clinical scenarios.

Question 15 of 29

Why do you think nurses often report experiencing 'burn out' and what do you do to help try to prevent that?

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Darby Faubion has been a Nurse and Allied Health Educator for over 20 years. She has clinical experience in several specialty areas, including pediatrics, medical-surgical, critical care, and hospice.

"I had a great mentor when I was in nursing school. She told me if I didn't remember anything else she told me, that I should always remember to take care of myself. I have grown to understand what she meant. If we are bogged down physically and emotionally, it is easy to become overwhelmed and experience feeling burned out."

Darby Faubion

"Unfortunately, I can speak from experience about burn out. When I was a new nurse, I thought I could work all the time and that I was invincible. I lost several patients within a short period of time and the toll of the loss was very overwhelming to me. Since then, I have learned how to work hard, but to also work hard at caring for myself as well."

Heather Douglass

Heather Douglass has over 20 years of experience as a Career Coach, Recruiter, and HR Specialist. Much of her experience is as a Technical Recruiter in the healthcare industry.

Being a healthcare provider is a great responsibility. Unfortunately, because of the great responsibility, many providers do report experiencing the need to take a break. The interviewer wants to know that you are capable of handling stress and that you know when to ask for help.

Heather Douglass

Heather Douglass has over 20 years of experience as a Career Coach, Recruiter, and HR Specialist. Much of her experience is as a Technical Recruiter in the healthcare industry.

"I understand how some healthcare providers can experience burn out. It has nothing to do with wanting to change professions or leave a job. Sometimes it's just hard to lose patients or to feel like we can't save them all. I try to schedule myself some personal time, whether its a few days away when I am off work or going hiking. Anything to help create some balance in my life."

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Anonymous Answer

I think nurses experience burnout because it is not an easy job. It can be an emotionally and physically draining job at times, which is why it is crucial to take care of yourself and to remember the reasons why you love your job. After a rough day, I also write down the positive things that happened before going to bed.

Rachelle's Feedback

Excellent answer! Offering insight into your own routine is a very nice touch.

Anonymous Answer

Nurses are very passionate people and truly love what they do. We put some much into our work to help others. I believe we forget to take time for ourselves. I love to take vacations or bake to help prevent burn out.

Lauren's Feedback

Terrific response; you demonstrate a level of introspection and reflection to safeguard against burn out in order to stay healthy. I enhanced your response slightly.

Over the years, I have experienced many colleagues who have burnt out. Nurses are very passionate people, and we genuinely love what we do. We put so much time, focus, attention, and energy into helping others, that we sometimes forget to nurture ourselves. Having a healthy work-life balance allows me to safeguard against burn out. I love to bake, take vacations, and decompress with family and friends.

Anonymous Answer

I think nurses often experience burnout because they don't take enough time to care for themselves. Nursing is a very physical and oftentimes emotional profession and if you don't take time to care for yourselves you are vulnerable to burnout. Some things I do for self-care to make sure I am ready to come back to work and give care to my patients at my fullest potential are I enjoy spending time outdoors whether that is going on a hike with my dog and friends, swimming, or just relaxing outside in a hammock, reading a book. I also make sure I know when to say no to things such as if I have worked a night shift and someone asks me to do something early in the day I usually will say no because I know that lack of sleep will drain me a lot faster. Once a month I find one self-care activity to treat myself to whether that is getting a facial or a massage. I find doing something like this once a month gives me something to look forward to at the end of a busy work week and helps me feel more energized and refreshed. Other things I do are journal every night just to get my thoughts out and it helps me debrief at the end of the day. I also take my dog for a walk every day which allows me to have some time to get some exercise and enjoy the outdoors.

Cindy's Feedback

Very good. A good balance is indeed a great way to avoid burnout. Your answer is convincing! Nice work.

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29Pediatric Nurse Interview Questions & Answers

1.Tell me about a time you had to deal with a distraught family member and how you handled it.

2.What characteristics do you think are important for healthcare professionals to have?

3.What made you choose to become a pediatric nurse?

4.Have you ever had a disagreement with a coworker? If so, how was it resolved?

5.What about your job as a pediatric nurse gives you the most satisfaction?

6.Nurses at our facility often work on rotation. Are you willing to work, nights,weekends, holidays, or overtime if needed?

7.Have you ever cared for children with autism, and can you share your knowledge of one of the disorders within the Autism spectrum?

8.Have you ever done wellness exams or given immunizations to pediatric patients?

9.Working in a pediatric unit requires a great deal of attention to detail and often multi-tasking. What do you do to help keep yourself from becoming overwhelmed?

10.What about your work feeds your spirit?

11.What would you say is your greatest strength as a pediatric nurse?

12.What changes have you seen in terms of children's chronic health issues since you became a pediatric nurse?

13.Has there ever been a time when you received negative feedback, and how did you handle it?

14.What advice would you give to a nurse who is about to begin a career in pediatrics?

15.Why do you think nurses often report experiencing 'burn out' and what do you do to help try to prevent that?

16.Have you ever been in a situation in which a co-worker put a patient in jeopardy? If so, how did you handle it?

17. Have you had any special patient or experience that you could share with me that would tell me what it's like to be a pediatric nurse?

18.Why do you think you are a good pediatric nurse?

19.What is a challenge you face being a pediatric nurse?

20. If you could choose a specific schedule or shift, what would it be?

21.In addition to providing care to seriously ill children, pediatric nurses must attend to stressed out family members. How do you approach offering support to family members?

22.Has there ever been a time that you had a disagreement with a coworker? If so, how was it resolved?

23. What are some things you would like for people to notice about your personality?

24.If you were offered a position that requires travel, would you accept it?

25.If you were the person responsible for hiring new employees, what qualities would you look for in a candidate? Do you think you possess those qualities?

Pediatric Nurse Mock Interview

Why do you think nurses often report experiencing 'burn out' and what do you do to help try to prevent that?

29Pediatric Nurse Interview Questions & Answers

1.Tell me about a time you had to deal with a distraught family member and how you handled it.

2.What characteristics do you think are important for healthcare professionals to have?

3.What made you choose to become a pediatric nurse?

4.Have you ever had a disagreement with a coworker? If so, how was it resolved?

5.What about your job as a pediatric nurse gives you the most satisfaction?

6.Nurses at our facility often work on rotation. Are you willing to work, nights,weekends, holidays, or overtime if needed?

7.Have you ever cared for children with autism, and can you share your knowledge of one of the disorders within the Autism spectrum?

8.Have you ever done wellness exams or given immunizations to pediatric patients?

9.Working in a pediatric unit requires a great deal of attention to detail and often multi-tasking. What do you do to help keep yourself from becoming overwhelmed?

10.What about your work feeds your spirit?

11.What would you say is your greatest strength as a pediatric nurse?

12.What changes have you seen in terms of children's chronic health issues since you became a pediatric nurse?

13.Has there ever been a time when you received negative feedback, and how did you handle it?

14.What advice would you give to a nurse who is about to begin a career in pediatrics?

15.Why do you think nurses often report experiencing 'burn out' and what do you do to help try to prevent that?

16.Have you ever been in a situation in which a co-worker put a patient in jeopardy? If so, how did you handle it?

17. Have you had any special patient or experience that you could share with me that would tell me what it's like to be a pediatric nurse?

18.Why do you think you are a good pediatric nurse?

19.What is a challenge you face being a pediatric nurse?

20. If you could choose a specific schedule or shift, what would it be?

21.In addition to providing care to seriously ill children, pediatric nurses must attend to stressed out family members. How do you approach offering support to family members?

22.Has there ever been a time that you had a disagreement with a coworker? If so, how was it resolved?

23. What are some things you would like for people to notice about your personality?

24.If you were offered a position that requires travel, would you accept it?

25.If you were the person responsible for hiring new employees, what qualities would you look for in a candidate? Do you think you possess those qualities?

26.What fuels your passion for your work as a pediatric nurse?

27.Have you ever worked in an environment where your co-workers were from diverse backgrounds?

28.Is there a particular story about a pediatric patient that was personally moving for you?

29.How do you respond to an emergency situation at work?