Behavioral-Based Interviewing Questions & Tips for Healthcare Hiring

In today's competitive healthcare industry, employers like you are always looking for ways to hire the best and brightest talent. One of the most effective ways to do this is through behavioral-based interviews. This is a type of interview that focuses on assessing a candidate's past behaviors and experiences to predict their future performance in a particular role. In this article, we will discuss what behavioral based interviews are, the benefits of this interview style, and how to conduct them for a more effective healthcare hiring process.

What Is a Behavioral Interview?

Behavioral-based interviews concentrate on a candidate's previous experiences to assess whether they've displayed specific behaviors, skills, abilities, or knowledge. These interviews employ behavioral-based questions to reveal how candidates handle work-related scenarios. In essence, these interviews offer insight into how candidates have demonstrated certain behaviors in the past and whether they are likely to continue doing so if hired.

Behavioral-based interviews are a powerful tool for assessing candidates' fit for specific healthcare roles. By focusing on past experiences and behaviors, these interviews provide valuable insights into a candidate's skills, abilities, and work style. By asking candidates about specific situations they have faced in the past, interviewers can gain insight into how they think, act, and make decisions. This information can then be used to assess whether the candidate has the skills and abilities necessary to be successful in the role.

Why Behavioral-Based Interviews Are Effective in Healthcare Hiring

Likely, your organization already uses some of these behavioral interview questions for healthcare. Nevertheless, by understanding the purpose and integrating more behavioral interview questions, healthcare employers can find the most suitable candidates who will thrive in their specific roles. In addition, you can quickly identify some of the biggest healthcare red flags before hiring the wrong candidate. Below are the most impactful reasons to include and emphasize behavioral interview questions for healthcare hiring:

1. Predicting Future Performance: The premise behind behavioral-based interviews is that past behavior is a strong indicator of future behavior. By understanding how a candidate has handled specific situations in the past, hiring managers can better assess how they will perform in similar situations in a healthcare setting.
    
2. Identifying Specific Skills and Abilities: Healthcare roles require a unique set of skills and abilities, including clinical expertise, patient care, teamwork, and communication. Behavioral-based interviews allow hiring managers to delve into candidates' past experiences and uncover evidence of not only essential competencies but also crucial soft skills.
    
3. Assessing Culture Fit & Culture Add: Healthcare organizations have specific cultures and values that impact employee engagement and performance. Behavioral-based interviews help hiring managers gauge whether a candidate's work style and values align with the organization's culture, ensuring a better fit and long-term success.
    
4. Reducing Bias: Some hiring practices, such as resume reviews for keywords, can be susceptible to biases based on factors such as access to opportunities, age of applicant, and cultural variations. Therefore, it is important to assess someone further before excluding them from a position. Behavioral-based interviews mitigate these biases by focusing on the full lived experience of the individual to supplement job-related experiences that can be reflected on a resume. This allows hiring managers to make more informed and fair decisions.

Behavioral-based interviewing has many benefits for healthcare, all of which can lead to making better healthcare hiring decisions.

How to Conduct Behavioral-Based Interviewing for Healthcare Hiring

In order to effectively conduct behavioral-based interviewing for healthcare hiring, it is important to establish a structured approach. This includes developing a set of standardized questions that target the specific skills, competencies, and values required for the role. This not only provides an opportunity for accurate comparison across candidates but also reduces the chances of bias during the interview.

Additionally, it is crucial to actively listen to the candidates' responses, ask follow-up questions for clarity, and evaluate their answers based on predetermined criteria. This requires active listening from healthcare hiring managers, as well as the inclusion of those with multiple perspectives. For example, you may invite a current employee to conduct a peer interview to ask questions relating to organization fit. Involving multiple interviewers with diverse backgrounds enhances the assessment process by providing different perspectives and reducing biases.

Finally, behavioral interview questions for healthcare should be grounded in real-life scenarios that are relevant to the role. This helps candidates demonstrate their problem-solving skills and decision-making abilities in an authentic context. If the candidate is newer to the field, behavioral interview questions may allow for non-healthcare answers, but a healthcare context should be emphasized whenever possible.

Overall, the most important thing about conducting a behavioral-based interview in healthcare is to be systematic and consistent to avoid bias and gather comparable information across applicants.

17 Behavioral Interview Questions for Healthcare Hiring

Depending on what you are trying to determine from the interview question, each healthcare organization may use a different set of behavioral interview questions. Below are some examples based on common skills assessed during healthcare interviews.

Clinical Skills:

1. Tell me about a time you encountered a complex or unusual patient presentation. How did you approach the diagnosis and treatment plan?
2. Give me an example of when you identified a potential error or safety concern. How did you intervene and ensure patient safety?
3. Describe a time when you encountered an unexpected outcome or complication during a procedure or treatment. How did you adapt your approach and manage the situation?
4. Give me an example of how you have stayed up to date with the latest advancements in your field. How do you integrate new knowledge into your practice?
    

Patient Care:

5. Tell me about a time when you went above and beyond to provide exceptional patient care.
6. Describe a situation where you encountered a challenging or resistant patient. How did you build rapport and address their concerns to ensure effective care?
7. Recall an instance where you identified a non-medical need impacting a patient's health. How did you advocate for them and connect them with resources?
8. Give me an example of how you provided culturally sensitive care and adapted your approach to respect diverse backgrounds and beliefs.
    

Teamwork:

9. Describe a situation where you had to collaborate with other healthcare professionals to achieve optimal patient care. What was your role and contribution?
10. Tell me about a time you disagreed with a colleague about patient care. How did you handle the situation?
11. Give an example of when you took initiative to support a team member or delegate tasks effectively to achieve optimal workflow.
     

Communication:

12. Tell me about a situation where you had to effectively communicate complex medical information to a patient with limited healthcare knowledge. How did you simplify the explanation without compromising accuracy?
13. Tell me about a time when you had to provide emotional support or navigate a difficult conversation with a patient or family member. What approach did you take?
14. Describe your experience working within interdisciplinary teams (e.g., doctors, nurses, therapists). How do you ensure smooth communication and collaboration?
     

Problem-Solving:

15. Describe a time when you faced a difficult problem in your healthcare role and how you resolved it.
16. Tell me about a situation where you had to prioritize competing demands or manage a heavy workload while maintaining quality patient care. How did you handle it?
17. Tell me about a situation where you identified a recurring problem or inefficiency within your healthcare team or workflow. What steps did you take to analyze and resolve it?
     

These behavioral interview questions for healthcare delve directly into the candidate's values and competency for the role, regardless of the specific situations they have encountered. Interviewers can use these questions to determine how a candidate will perform in routine and unexpected situations.

Start Using Behavioral-Based Interviewing for Your Healthcare Hiring

Behavioral-based interviews are a valuable tool for healthcare organizations seeking to hire the most qualified and suitable candidates. By focusing on past behaviors and experiences, these interviews provide deeper insights into candidates' skills, abilities, and cultural fit. Through careful planning and execution, healthcare organizations can leverage behavioral-based interviews to build high-performing teams and deliver exceptional patient care.

Looking for more healthcare hiring tips? Check out the iHire Resource Center.