Top 7 ICU Nurse Interview Questions to Ask

Strong teamwork is crucial within any functional healthcare team. This is especially true in high-acuity environments like the intensive care unit (ICU), where staff are often asked to manage complex care and engage in rapid decision making. If you’re looking to fill an ICU vacancy, asking the right ICU nurse interview questions can help you identify the candidates who will strengthen unit collaboration and support positive clinical outcomes.

In this facility guide, you’ll learn seven high-value intensive care unit nurse interview questions. Alongside strong response examples and follow-up suggestions, these can help you glean the necessary insights into each candidate’s experience and judgement.

To reach top talent for your interviews, use a clear, targeted ICU nurse job description that reflects the specialized skills and qualities your team needs. Browsing local ICU nurse job openings can also ensure your advertised ICU nurse salary, benefits package, and scheduling options are competitive. Once those foundational hiring steps are complete, you’re ready to begin scheduling interviews.

Use the downloadable candidate evaluation form below to keep conversations focused and support hiring decisions that serve your team and patients alike.

Why ICU Nurses Are in High Demand

Intensive care nurses have a unique skill set required to care for patients with complex medical needs. Their job duties involve managing advanced equipment and multiple drips while closely monitoring patients for subtle condition changes. This requires a knowledge base that’s developed with time, experience, and advanced training.

Competent ICU nurses can be hard to find — and just as difficult to keep. For many nurses, the ICU is seen as a jumping-off point for an advanced practice career. For others, working in a stressful environment that challenges a nurse’s morality and personal values can cause irreparable burnout.

The ICU’s high risk for employee turnover is compounded by the stress of growing nursing shortages nationwide. As facilities compete for experienced, talented professionals, many are increasingly relying on new-graduate nurses, even in high acuity environments like critical care. This means that hiring practices should be complemented by thorough onboarding and training initiatives in addition to comprehensive retention strategies that encourage staff to remain with the organization.

ICU Nursing Interview Questions

As a hiring manager, it’s important to accept the fact that turnover is inevitable, and you may find it more important to focus on a nurse’s competency and skills instead of their potential for longevity. These ICU nurse interview questions are designed to help managers find the best fit for current needs while considering the generational challenges impacting the future of nursing.

1. Provide an example of a situation where you had to make a clinical decision under pressure and time was limited. What happened?

ICU nurses frequently have to make split-second decisions, as a patient’s conditions can change at a moment’s notice. This question evaluates the decision-making skills necessary to thrive in this environment. It also allows a nurse to demonstrate resourcefulness and willingness to ask for help in emergencies.

This question can be customized depending on the type of ICU you’re interviewing for. For example, consider tailoring cardiac ICU nurse interview questions to reflect the needs of patients recovering from heart surgery.

What to listen for:

• Demonstrates an ability to problem solve under pressure
• Understands the nursing chain-of-command and who to ask for help

Potential follow-up questions:

• Have you ever made a mistake on the job? How did you work to minimize patient harm?
• What are three qualities of a high-performing multidisciplinary team?

2. Describe a time you showed initiative to make improvements in a nursing unit. How was your idea received?

Taking initiative is important in the ICU, as the bedside nurse is often the first person to catch condition changes that require an intervention. By asking ICU RN interview questions about innovation and adaptability, the interviewer can evaluate a nurse’s readiness to bring new ideas to the team. Whether it’s through a quality improvement project or simply bringing up a patient concern during rounds, it’s always a good sign when a nurse is comfortable contributing to team decisions.

What to listen for:

• Shows excitement and curiosity at the opportunity to improve health outcomes
• Demonstrates strong communication skills and leadership traits

Potential follow-up questions:

• What strategies do you use to reduce the incidence of central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs)?
• Have you ever presented research findings at a nursing conference? If so, tell me a bit more about your experience.

3. Give an example of a time you prevented a small problem from becoming a major issue and potentially compromising patient care. What was the outcome?

A candidate should be able to demonstrate the ability to analyze problems and anticipate the outcome. This can inform important clinical decisions, which can be a matter of life or death in the ICU.

Some candidates freeze when asked situational questions on the spot. Consider having a bank of ICU nurse interview questions and answers to suggest common scenarios if they need help getting started.

What to listen for:

• Prioritizes patient safety over personal pride
• Understands the importance of speaking up during a critical situation

Potential follow-up questions:

• What would you do if you witnessed a coworker completing a task against company protocols?
• Have you ever been a part of a poorly performing team? How did you work through the challenges?

4. Give an example of a time you advocated for patient safety despite differing opinions. What happened?

Patient advocacy is essential in the ICU, where nurses often speak for individuals who aren’t able to make decisions for themselves. When team members disagree on a decision affecting patient care, a nurse is challenged to maintain professionalism while offering another viewpoint. Find out how the candidate would handle this common situation for medically complex patients.

What to listen for:

• Represents the patient and advocates for their wishes during ICU rounds
• Understands the importance of collaborating with support staff like therapists, social workers, and the palliative care team

Potential follow-up questions:

• Have you ever had a patient refuse treatment? What was the outcome of the situation?
• How would you support a patient or family member who just received bad news?

5. Describe a time when you had to solve a problem, whether it involved a patient or another care provider, with very little guidance.

This question measures a nurse’s ability to use critical thinking at the bedside. Nurses face many decisions throughout the shift, and their clinical experiences help inform quick decisions. By asking problem-solving ICU nurse interview questions, you can get a better sense of their decision-making processes and how they arrive at solutions.

What to listen for:

• Shows an ability to think and make decisions independently
• Demonstrates a willingness to ask clarifying questions if unsure how to proceed

Potential follow-up questions:

• What would you do to support a coworker who was struggling through a busy shift?
• How would you teach a patient to care for a new wound graft?

6. What would you do in a situation where you had two critically ill patients who needed immediate attention at the same time?

Critical care nurses often face situations where more than one patient needs attention at once. This is where having a foundation of time management and patient prioritization is crucial. This question allows the nurse to discuss how they organize their thoughts and responsibilities on a shift.

Feel free to swap out realistic, unit-specific examples in this scenario-based interview question. Consider asking ICU scenario interview questions to prompt nurses to recall how they’d prioritize patients with conditions commonly seen in your unit.

What to listen for:

• Knows how to prioritize patient care according to acuity and risk
• Isn’t afraid to ask for help or call the rapid response team to ensure a patient’s needs are met

Potential follow-up questions:

• How would you minimize fall risk for a patient recovering from hip surgery?
• Why is it important to involve family members in a patient’s plan of care?

7. How have you demonstrated leadership in previous nursing roles?

Whether a nurse is just beginning their professional career or has years of experience, they’ve likely had the opportunity to demonstrate leadership in the past. This tells hiring managers they can take initiative and participate in quality improvement on the unit. For new graduates, encourage the candidate to answer ICU nurse interview questions like this one by giving examples from internship or nursing school experience.

What to listen for:

• Lists previous experiences working as a charge nurse, team captain, or code leader
• Shows a willingness to step in and take on additional responsibilities when necessary

Potential follow-up questions:

• Do you have any experience precepting new graduates?
• What makes you most excited to join our ICU nursing team?

Find Compassionate Clinicians for Every Hiring Need

Asking well-written ICU nurse interview questions is crucial to hiring a great candidate, but encouraging the right clinicians to apply for your vacant position can be the biggest challenge. By posting your job openings to the nation’s leading healthcare hiring board, you can match with over 1 million skilled and qualified professionals actively looking for work.