Nurse interview questions

For a resting adult I expect heart rate 60 to 100, respiratory rate 12 to 20, blood pressure around 120 over 80, temperature near 37 Celsius, and SpO2 at 95 percent or above.

• Respiratory rate is the earliest warning sign, so a rate above 24 or below 8 makes me look closely before anything else moves.
• I read trends across the shift, not one number, since a heart rate climbing from 80 to 110 matters more than a single high reading.
• A systolic under 90 or SpO2 under 92 on room air triggers a rapid escalation and I stay with the patient.

I use a correctly sized cuff on a bare, supported arm at heart level with the patient rested and quiet.

• A cuff that is too small reads falsely high, so the bladder should wrap about 80 percent of the arm.
• I inflate 20 to 30 mmHg above the point the radial pulse disappears, then deflate slowly at 2 to 3 mmHg per second.
• Systolic is the first Korotkoff sound and diastolic is where the sounds vanish, and I document the arm and position used.

ADPIE is Assessment, Diagnosis, Planning, Implementation, and Evaluation, a loop I run on every patient rather than a one-time checklist.

• Assessment gathers the data, and the nursing diagnosis names the actual patient problem, for example impaired skin integrity, not the medical diagnosis.
• Planning sets measurable goals with the patient, then implementation is the actual care I deliver and chart.
• Evaluation asks whether the goal was met, and if not I reassess and adjust rather than repeat the same plan.

Subjective data is what the patient reports and objective data is what I measure or observe.

• Subjective is the patient saying my chest feels tight, which I chart in their own words.
• Objective is a heart rate of 118, diaphoresis, and an SpO2 of 91 that I can verify.
• I pair them because a complaint plus supporting signs builds a far stronger clinical picture than either alone.

I work systematically from head to toe so nothing is missed, starting with a quick check that the patient is stable.

• Neuro and level of consciousness first, then respiratory and cardiovascular including lung and heart sounds.
• Abdomen for bowel sounds and tenderness, skin for breakdown and IV sites, then extremities for pulses, edema, and movement.
• I compare findings to the baseline and the reason for admission, and I flag anything that does not fit for follow-up.

I use a structured approach and I treat the patient's report as the primary source.

• PQRST guides me: provocation, quality, region and radiation, severity on a 0 to 10 scale, and timing.
• For patients who cannot speak I switch to a behavioral tool, watching grimacing, guarding, and vital sign changes.
• I reassess after any intervention, usually within 30 to 60 minutes, and document whether the pain actually dropped.

I verify the right patient, drug, dose, route, and time, and I extend that to documentation, reason, and response.

• I confirm identity with two identifiers against the band, never by asking are you Mr Smith.
• I check the drug and dose against the order and the label three times, including right before it is given.
• I document immediately after administration, never before, and I watch for the expected response and any reaction.

I need 4 mL, using desired over have times the volume.

• Desired is 500 mg, on hand is 250 mg in 2 mL, so 500 divided by 250 is 2, times 2 mL equals 4 mL.
• I sanity check that a doubled dose needing a doubled volume makes sense before drawing it.
• For any high-alert drug I get an independent second nurse to verify the calculation and the pump settings.

Reconciliation is comparing the patient's actual medication list against what is ordered to catch omissions, duplicates, and interactions.

• I do it at admission, at every transfer of care, and at discharge, since those are the points where lists drift apart.
• I confirm the home list with the patient or family and pharmacy, not just the last chart, because outdated lists carry errors forward.
• I flag discrepancies to the prescriber rather than assuming, for example a home beta blocker that was never reordered.

I follow the five moments: before touching a patient, before a clean or aseptic task, after body fluid exposure, after touching a patient, and after touching their surroundings.

• Alcohol rub is my default because it is faster and more effective on most organisms.
• I wash with soap and water when hands are visibly soiled and for spore-forming organisms like C. difficile, where alcohol does not work.
• The before-aseptic and after-fluid moments protect the patient and me the most, so I never skip them under time pressure.

Standard precautions apply to every patient regardless of diagnosis, while transmission-based precautions add protection for a known or suspected organism.

• Standard means treating all blood and body fluids as infectious: hand hygiene, gloves, and PPE as the task requires.
• Transmission-based are contact, droplet, and airborne, chosen by how the organism spreads.
• An airborne case like TB needs a negative-pressure room and an N95, while a droplet case like influenza needs a surgical mask within about a metre.

Donning goes gown, mask or respirator, goggles or face shield, then gloves, and doffing reverses the dirtiest-first logic.

• I remove gloves first since they are most contaminated, then goggles, gown, and mask last.
• Hand hygiene happens after removing gloves and again after all PPE is off.
• I take the mask or respirator off last and outside the room when airborne, because that protects my airway until I leave the exposure.

Sterile technique keeps an area free of all microorganisms, while clean technique reduces numbers without a fully sterile field.

• Sterile is for invasive procedures like catheter insertion, central line dressing changes, and wound packing on a deep wound.
• Clean is for tasks like a routine peripheral IV site check or a simple dressing on an intact surgical wound.
• I never let a sterile field touch an unsterile surface, and if I doubt it stayed sterile I treat it as contaminated and restart.

I pick the smallest gauge that meets the therapy on a straight, palpable vein, usually in the forearm.

• I avoid areas of flexion, the side of a mastectomy or fistula, and I start distal so I can move proximal if I miss.
• I clean with chlorhexidine, let it dry, insert bevel up at a shallow angle, and advance the catheter once I see flashback.
• I secure with a transparent dressing, date it, and confirm patency with a saline flush before running fluids.

Infiltration is fluid leaking into tissue, so the site is cool, pale, and swollen, while phlebitis is vein inflammation, so it is warm, red, and tender along the vein.

• For either I stop the infusion and remove the cannula, because leaving it running makes both worse.
• Infiltration gets limb elevation and a warm or cool compress depending on the fluid, and I watch for a vesicant extravasation.
• Phlebitis gets a warm compress and documentation with the visual scale, and I restart access in a different limb.

That is about 31 drops per minute.

• The hourly rate is 1000 divided by 8, which is 125 mL per hour.
• Drops per minute is volume times drop factor over time in minutes, so 1000 times 15 divided by 480 equals roughly 31.
• On a pump I would just set 125 mL per hour, and I count the drip only for gravity sets, rechecking it periodically.

I explain the procedure, position and drape the patient, and set up a sterile field before touching anything.

• After hand hygiene and sterile gloves, I clean the meatus with my non-dominant hand, which then stays contaminated and does not touch the catheter.
• I lubricate and advance the catheter until urine returns, then advance a bit further before inflating the balloon so I do not inflate in the urethra.
• I inflate with the exact volume on the balloon port, secure the tube to the leg, and keep the bag below bladder level.

The biggest lever is asking daily whether the catheter is still needed and removing it as soon as it is not.

• I keep a closed drainage system, the bag below bladder level, and the tubing free of kinks and dependent loops.
• I do meatal care with soap and water, not antiseptics, and perform hand hygiene before and after handling the system.
• I never disconnect the system to collect samples, using the sampling port instead, since every break invites bacteria.

I assess the wound bed, size, exudate, edges, and surrounding skin, and I look for signs of infection before choosing a dressing.

• I measure length, width, and depth, and describe the tissue as granulating, sloughy, or necrotic rather than just saying it looks fine.
• Exudate level drives the choice: a dry wound needs moisture like a hydrogel, a heavily exuding wound needs an absorbent foam or alginate.
• I document with the same method each time, ideally a photo with consent, so the next nurse can judge whether it is healing.

I identify risk early with a tool like the Braden scale and build prevention into routine care.

• Repositioning at least every two hours, off-loading the heels, and using a pressure-redistributing mattress for higher-risk patients.
• I keep skin clean and dry, manage moisture and incontinence, and inspect bony prominences at every turn.
• Nutrition and hydration matter, so I flag poor intake, because a malnourished patient breaks down faster and heals slower.