Interview Questions: Interpersonal Effectiveness - Assignment Example

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS Interview Questions Interpersonal Effectiveness • Explain a specific situation where you met resistance from your staff or work group about a directive that was mandated. A directive was mandated that all patient records were to be completed in duplicate (Cohen & Cesta, 2005). This was resisted by the nurses work group because it was perceived to be too much work. Explain your role by describing dialogue related to the situation. Specifically what measures did you incorporate? A meeting was held to sensitize nurses on this directive. Personal accountability measures were also explained whereby all the nurses had to sign against patient records before they were taken away (Buchbinder & Thompson, 2010). What did you learn about group resistance? Group resistance can often be mitigated through the use of dialogue to address various concerns that staff may have (Buchbinder & Thompson, 2010). What was the ultimate outcome? Members of staff understood the importance of record keeping and ultimately embraced it. • Think about a specific time when you had to negotiate with several service chiefs to obtain their cooperation to implement a specific initiative. Tell me specifically how you negotiated with them to attain the desired cooperation and how the implementation of the initiative went. There are volunteers who are assigned to various departments within the hospital. They are supposed to take 3 months maximum in the hospital volunteer programme after which they need to be released. However, there are some departments that have their volunteers overstaying in the hospital for even up to six months. It was thus imperative that the required duration of stay be communicated to all the department heads to make them aware of this directive. Department heads were however reluctant to follow this directive because they benefit greatly from services offered by volunteers and preferred to retain them for as long as they could. The process of accepting a volunteer into the hospital was also long and it often took two months before a volunteer application was processed. The management thus had to negotiate with these department heads to seek their co-operation in releasing volunteers after three months with the promise of expediting the process for accepting new volunteers at the hospital. • Tell me about a meeting in which you had to tell others things they did not want to hear. How did you communicate those ideas to them? A meeting was convened to inform the nutrition department that they would have to move their office to another location within the hospital. The nutrition department did not wish to move because they were accustomed to their current office which was closer to the cleaning utilities that they most often utilized. The reason for such a move was communicated to them verbally to enable them understand that they were being placed closer to the patients they serve for easier access of nutrition feeds at night. What was the result of that communication? The decision was met with much resistance from the members of the department. If you could do it again, is there anything you would change in what you communicated, or the way in which you communicated it? Why would you make those changes? Initially, this information was communicated to the department head only. This time, I would convene a meeting with all the other members of the nutrition department and inform them of the changes to also hear their views. I would make this change in communication because in this manner, the members of the nutrition department would also feel like they are part of the team (Buchbinder & Thompson, 2010). Customer Service • If you were to step back and look at the part of your organization you control, what components of a customer service program would you see? Three components of an efficient customer service program are addressed in the hospital; training, research and analysis (Liebler & McConnel, 2011). Describe each component individually and tell specifically, what your role has been in implementation and ongoing delivery. Training is provided for all members of staff both within the management and the medical department. As the hospital manager, I have been involved in scheduling various professionals to handle continuous medical sessions in the hospital. Research is also conducted to elicit staff and patients concerns about the nature of service delivery within the hospital. Analysis of this information is carried out to improve on patient care and service delivery. My role has included the development of evaluation forms for collection of information including ensuring that each department has a suggestion box (Buchbinder & Thompson, 2010). • Give an example to illustrate how you have improved the experience of 1) your internal customers, and 2) your external customers. I have improved the experience of my internal customers (the members of staff specifically the nurses) by providing an extensive on job training programme for them. I have improved the experience of my external customers (the patients visiting the hospital) by increasing the number of nurses who are available to provide them with care (Masters, 2009). How did you determine improvement was needed and how have you determined the effectiveness of the improvement. I determined whether improvement was needed by conducting a needs assessment on these two categories of customers to elicit their areas of concern (Buchbinder & Thompson, 2010). The effectiveness of improvement was determined through an evaluation process on service delivery within the hospital. • Tell me specifically how you have communicated to line staff that they have permission to go around the “chain of command” to expedite resolution of a patient problem. What has been the result of such communication? Communication to this effect was done through a formal face to face forum with the department heads on the various situations in which they were allowed to go around the chain of command. This communication has been embraced by the members of staff because they felt less threatened with disciplinary action for acting out. Success stories? Some patients do not have appropriate medical cover. There are instances where patients come in critical condition or develop conditions while in the hospital that require complicated and expensive medical procedures. The doctors operated on one such patient without proper medical cover in order to save that patients life. The issues of medical cover and insurance would be handled after the patient was out of danger. This would normally lead to disciplinary action without proper consent from management but because the staff had already been assured of permission to go around the chain of command if the action could be validated, they took command. • In the past, how have you obtained and incorporated customer feedback into your organization’s planning and service standards? Give specific examples. There were complaints by some patients that the food served was either cold or bland. This was communicated to the kitchen staff who complained of inefficient equipment to keep the patient food warm after they have served. It was based on this that the hospital recommended the purchase of new food warmers for patient use. Systems Thinking • Describe a change you are responsible for that improved the performance of your work area or organization. The hospital previously used to use the paper system for communication of memos to members of staff. How did: 1) you come up with the idea for the change, The hospital incurred so much expenditure when it came to use of paper and printer cartridge. Memos were also sent almost every day to each member of staff which made it very tedious for the person printing and delivering to every person. A paperless system of communication was proposed to the department (McConnel, 2004). 2) You go about implementing the change The proposed changes were implemented within the administration first to determine its feasibility. 3) staff responds to the change The staff embraced the idea of a paperless system of communication because they were able to receive the updates from their phones which was much more convenient. 4) you measure the outcome of the change? In looking back, what things would you do differently? The outcome of the change was measured through a cost benefit analysis of the operating costs that the hospital incurred with the new paperless system of communication. Looking back, I think I should have implemented this system sooner because of the significant benefits it is currently offering the hospital. • Tell me about a specific time when you had to assist your staff in understanding the relevance to the organization of an aspect of their work. The records staff were assisted in understanding the importance of an efficient record keeping system. What mechanisms did you use to communicate with them? Communication of this aspect was done through the use of a training programme to update them on the emerging trends in record keeping. How effective was the communication? This method of communication was effective because it was presented as a learning session. How did you evaluate that effectiveness? Effectiveness was evaluated through an evaluation of the implementation process. It was evaluated whether the processes that had been shared had been implemented in operations ((Buchbinder & Thompson, 2010)). • Tell me about a specific decision that you made within your organization that had unexpected consequences outside your organization. How did you deal with those consequences? In order to ensure accountability of personnel within the accounts department, it was decided that each cashier would only handle their accounts and not any other persons. In the event that there are supposed to be refunds made to a patients account then only the responsible cashier could assist the patient. This became a problem when one patient who had been previously served by a cashier during the night shift wanted to check out in the morning and wanted his account settled and his balance refunded by the hospital. But the cashier who had been on night shift was not available at the time. The patient was furious because all the other cashiers refused to assist him based on the hospitals accounts policy. The patient was referred to the management where he was refunded out of pocket. But this issue was addressed to provide for proper systems of handing over among members of the accounts department. Flexibility/Adaptability • Describe a major change you have made in the past two years. I implemented a computerized system of patient management within the hospital. How did you accomplish the change? A proposal was sent to donors who provided funds for provision of computers for each department within the hospital. Training and sensitization was then carried out among members of staff on the use of these machines (Liebler & McConnel, 2011). What difficulties did you encounter and how did you work through the difficulties? Some members of staff would not embrace the use of a computerized system of patient management. Some of the computers and computer networks failed during critical moments of operation leading to necessary inefficiencies in hospital management. A support team from the information technology department was engaged to work through the difficulties associated with the use of computers. What personal factors assisted you in making the change? My determination allowed me to work through the challenges I faced in the implementation of this system. Would you do anything differently if you had to do it again? I would place some necessary measures in place to handle some of the unexpected problems we faced with the implementation of the system. I would start training on the use of these systems much earlier. • Tell me about a specific time when staff reductions required restructuring of the workload. There was a time when there was a countrywide strike from doctors in the country because of pay requirements. Patient care was left solely to the nursing staff. How did you do the restructuring? The nurses had to work longer hours and those who were on leave were recalled back to cater for the shortage in patient care (Masters, 2009). Who specifically did you involve? All members of the medical and administration team were involved in the matter. How did you involve them? They were informed of the situation and the sections of the hospital that would be temporarily closed down. They were advised on which hospital to divert their patients to in case of emergencies. The medical team was then informed of what was expected of them. Why did you involve those whom you did? The medical team was involved because they are the ones who are directly involved with the care of patients whose lives were important above all else. The management team was also engaged to start a mediation process with the doctors. • According to Peter Senge, the one single thing a learning organization does well is to help people embrace change. Convince me/us that you are an effective change agent by describing an experience or experiences from your past. The doctors strike was in response to various issues that they had in relation to work experiences. I managed to develop a mediation team that was able to address the changes that they required. They were back to work the next day. Creative Thinking • Explain the approach you use for performance improvement. Explain specifically how you identify problems, what strategies you incorporate to measure the impact of the problems, how you deal with the problems, and how you measure success or failure. Track one problem you have dealt with from identification to closure. A needs assessment is used to identify problems (Buchbinder & Thompson, 2010). Department heads are asked to identify their areas of greatest need. To measure the impact of the problems then an investigation is conducted onto the matter using various independent bodies. The problems are then addressed by institutionalizing a change mechanism and success or failure is tracked through an evaluation process. The nutrition department presented a problem about unavailability of warm water for patients to use at night. The public health department was assigned the role of investigating the problem. They reported that there was indeed a problem of that nature. A meeting was held with the hospital management and it was agreed that new hot water dispensers would be availed within the patient wards to provide them with warm water for night use. Interviews were conducted among the patients and nursing staff to evaluate the intervention. • Tell me about a specific benchmark study that you assisted with and how that study was applied within your organization. I assisted in the development of a study that evaluated the impact of employee remuneration on service delivery. This study was presented to the human resource department for consideration to make the necessary changes which included the implementation motivation programme for the staff. • Describe a creative endeavor you can take ownership for that impacted on the efficiency or effectiveness of your organization. I initiated the continuous medical education programme within the hospital that was meant to increase knowledge on the emerging trends in medical intervention all over the world (Cohen & Cesta, 2005). This improved efficiency of patient care within the hospital. Organizational Stewardship • Describe a time when one of your staff or your work team was working above work expectations. The secretary in the department was often staying late after a meeting to compile the final document of the minutes of a meeting held. What was your response? How did the other party/parties respond? My response similar to those of other members in the department was that of commendation for the good work done. • Describe a time when one of your staff or your work team was working below work expectations. The person in-charge of the records department was often delivering the monthly report for their department quite late every month. What was your response? I decided to summon the person to my office and find out what the problem was. How did the other party/parties respond? The employee in-charge of compiling the final report for the hospital was not very happy with the late reports. What was the ultimate outcome? I decided to assign more help to the records department especially during the end of the month when reports are compiled. A phased method of compilation was also initiated such that reports could be compiled every end of the week to lessen the burden at the end of the month. • List three characteristics you feel you possess that make you a sensitive, effective leader. Give a specific example to illustrate the application of each to your work setting. I am willing an open for discussion with other staff members as relates to work. This is seen in the case of the records department in-charge who was unable to complete their reports. I have initiative as depicted in my ability to initiate continuous medical education programmes within the hospital to ensure efficient patient management. I am determined to ensure that all the cost effective processes that I have initiated in the hospital are managed to success. This is in relevance to the paperless form of communication that was adopted by the hospital (Buchbinder & Thompson, 2010). • Tell me about a specific time when a subordinate had a personal need that conflicted with the needs of your organization. One of the nurses had a baby and could not accept to be scheduled for night duty in the hospital even though nurses are required to work even night shifts. How did you address the conflicting needs? What was the result of the way you handled the situation? The nurse was transferred to the outpatient department and scheduled for only day shifts for some time. The member of staff appreciated the consideration that had been given to her. • Tell me specifically what you have done to create an atmosphere of trust and empowerment within your sphere of influence. What tangible results have you seen from your efforts? I have constantly assured the members of staff that my doors are open. All personal matters with the employees are also handled with utmost confidentiality to ensure that are able to trust me with their problems. Personal Mastery • Describe a time when you disagreed with an evaluation or feedback you received about your performance. There was a time that the members of staff provided feedback that I did not effectively handle employee matters as regards compensation. How did you handle the situation? I convened a meeting to address all issues that had been raised without asking the source of feedback. No employee was victimized but some of the recommendations they had implied were addressed. What impact did it have on you? What did you learn? I understood that evaluation was a necessary process for self-improvement. I took it positively with the understanding that checks and balances have to be in place to ensure success (Liebler & McConnel, 2011). • Specifically, what are you doing to keep up with changing concepts in healthcare management? What attributes do you possess that make you able to keep up with the times? Give an example to convince me that you can keep up with these changing, chaotic times. I attend meetings and training sessions that deal will emerging issues in health care management. I am initiative and an avid reader, qualities which allow me to keep up with the changing chaotic times. I have been able to successfully manage a doctors strike and steer them back to the path of productivity. I believe this is one of the hardest areas for most health care management teams owing to the nature of financial times that we are in. • Tell me specifically about the professional activities in which you are currently engaged to enhance your professional capabilities. I am currently engaged in medical research activities within the hospital. This has enabled me to research on some of the advanced cases in medicine to further my professional knowledge in medicine. • Tell me about a specific time you sought specific feedback on your performance from subordinates. Specifically, how did you use the feedback? Cite specific changes resulting from the feedback? There was a time I requested an evaluation from subordinates on their relationship with the management of the hospital. It revealed that the health care management team was not exactly accessible by the subordinate staff. I utilized the feedback positively to appoint a subordinate representative from the members of staff who would articulate their issues during meetings. Technical Skills Technical knowledge, skills, and abilities are specific for every position. • Rate yourself on a scale of 0 to 10 with 0 indicating no knowledge or skill and 10 indicating above average knowledge and skill on the following areas: (would have approximately 10 areas of knowledge or skill specific to job—would range from specific job skills such as typing/work processing to higher level skills such as negotiation and conflict resolution). Skill / Knowledge Rating Typing 9 Information Technology 9 Emerging Medical trends 8 Financial management 7 Budgeting 8 Research 9 Communication 9 Negotiation 7 Conflict resolution 7 Reporting 9 (McConnel, 2004) • Give an example of how you have used a technical skill in your field in your current position. My computer skills have enabled me to implement the paperless method of communication within the hospital. References Buchbinder, S. and Thompson, J. (2010). Career Opportunities in Health Care Management. Jones & Bartlett. Cohen, E. and Cesta, T. (2005). Nursing Case Management: From essentials to Advanced practice. Elsevier Health Services. Liebler, J. and McConnel, C. (2011). Management Principles for Health Professionals. Jones & Bartlett Masters, K. (2009). Role Development in Professional Nursing Practice. Jones & Bartlett. McConnell, C. (2004). Managing the health care professional. Jones & Bartlett Learning. Read More