Top 7 Med-Surg Nurse Interview Questions to Ask

Medical-surgical nurses work in hospitals and provide care to a broad patient population. While the term “med-surg” was traditionally coined to reference the care a patient receives before or after surgery, it is now used as a catch-all to describe the care of a wide variety of patient conditions and acuities.

Med-surg is the most common nursing specialty, but hiring managers still find it difficult to staff these units. Asking the right med-surg nurse interview questions can help identify high-quality candidates and reveal key traits necessary for success. In this article, we’ll review seven key med surg interview questions — and answers job candidates may provide — to help healthcare leaders pick the right nurse for the job.

If you’d like more insight into the hiring market, like the salary ranges offered by other facilities, check out the latest med-surg positions on our job board. As you start the interview process, here’s a free evaluation form you can use to rate answers and compare candidates.

Medical-Surgical Nursing Interview Questions and Answers

Hiring managers often get just an hour or less with each candidate, which can make it challenging to ascertain a nurse’s abilities. Therefore, when planning interview questions for med-surg nurses, it’s important to ask about scenarios that reveal the clinician’s behaviors, skills, and clinical experience.

Start with a few introductory questions to set a casual tone, and then continue into more complex questions to validate their clinical competency and judgment. Here are some example med-surg nurse interview questions to help you get started. Use the following evaluation form to help you keep track of top candidates.

1. What excites you about being a med-surg nurse at our facility?

While this question may seem generic, answers can provide insight into a nurse’s interests and motivations. They can also reveal whether a candidate has done their research on your facility’s acuity and the patient population you serve.

What to listen for:

• Personal or professional experiences that motivated the candidate to pursue the role
• Alignment with your organization’s mission, vision, and values

Potential follow-up questions:

• What qualities do you think every med-surg nurse should have?
• What are your favorite and least favorite aspects of working in med-surg?

2. How has your previous nursing experience prepared you for this role?

Answers to this question can help you better understand a candidate’s clinical experience. While most nurses share this information in a resume or cover letter, hearing directly from them about how their experiences have shaped their career is more valuable and meaningful.

If the interviewee is a new graduate nurse, then they might not have much real-world nursing experience. They may, however, have volunteer or CNA experience in a similar unit that can assist them in serving their new role as an RN. When making a hiring decision, it’s important to consider these new nurses — they can contribute a great deal despite their lack of clinical experience.

What to listen for:

• Understanding of the position’s duties and responsibilities
• Ability to articulate how past experiences (training or professional) align with the role

Potential follow-up questions:

• What new skills are you interested in learning on the job?
• How do you stay informed of the latest evidence-based practices related to med-surg nursing care?

3. What kind of challenges did you encounter in your last job?

All healthcare providers struggle through difficult situations at work. Whether it’s a heavy patient assignment, outdated charting technology, or juggling duties with an inexperienced team, there are barriers to effective care in every organization. However, nurses who show their problem-solving and process improvement skills are the team players you’re looking for.

When managers are looking for high-quality nurses, they seek out clinicians who are hopeful and determined. Strategically structuring your med-surg nurse interview questions can help you discover these behavioral qualities.

What to listen for:

• Focus on navigating issues respectfully and professionally, rather than gossiping
• Examples of how candidates have stayed resilient and determined in difficult situations

Potential follow-up questions:

• How did overcoming this challenge help you grow as a nursing professional?
• Have you ever had a disagreement with another team member? How did you resolve it?

4. Have you ever made a mistake on the job? How did you get through it?

The hard truth is that every nurse makes mistakes. Employees who can admit to errors and prioritize correcting them demonstrate moral strength. Great nursing professionals will answer med-surg nurse interview questions like these honestly and may share a story about their mistake, who they notified, and how they worked to mitigate patient harm.

What to listen for:

• Willingness to own up to mistakes and take initiative in addressing them
• Practical and goal-oriented actions used to prevent similar mistakes from happening again (e.g., quality improvement projects)

Potential follow-up questions:

• What did you learn from that experience and how have you applied that lesson in your work since then?
• Have you ever helped another colleague work through their mistake?

5. Imagine you’re preparing a patient for a procedure you’ve never heard of before. How would you handle the situation?

Rapid scientific advancements frequently alter healthcare treatments and service offerings. It’s realistic, even for a highly experienced nurse, to come in contact with unfamiliar health conditions, medications, or surgeries.

Scenario-based med-surg nurse interview questions like this one can help hiring managers find nurses who aren’t afraid to admit that they don’t know something. Nurses with the strength to professionally handle these situations ensure patient safety and encourage healthy communication in the workplace.

What to listen for:

• Willingness to ask colleagues or leaders for help when necessary
• Confidence in taking the initiative to research information and learn new things

Potential follow-up questions:

• How would you ensure the patient feels well-informed and comfortable when you’re unfamiliar with a procedure?
• What types of evidence-based resources do you rely on to learn about new procedures?

6. How do you build rapport with your patients and colleagues?

Empathetic and compassionate communication is essential in nursing. It’s important that nurses feel comfortable and confident while talking to their coworkers, hospital leaders, patients, and their family members. Taking a genuine interest in what individuals have to say goes a long way toward developing trust and engagement. Hiring a care provider who can do this authentically can help your facility improve patient satisfaction and health outcomes.

What to listen for:

• Rapport-building techniques, such as face-to-face communication and active listening
• Understanding of how to authentically build relationships with diverse groups of individuals within a healthcare setting

Potential follow-up questions:

• How do you balance maintaining your own boundaries with providing compassionate, patient-centered care?
• Tell me about a time that you had to advocate for a patient’s needs to another coworker.

7. Nursing shifts can be grueling. How do you recover and find balance?

Working long, 12-hour shifts coupled with the physical and emotional demands of the job can be stressful and exhausting. Your team needs a nurse who is ready for the challenge and has a work-life balance that can make it all possible. Nurse retention is a major consideration when determining a facility budget — finding a nurse who is in it for the long haul can help save you time and money down the line.

After a candidate responds, take the opportunity to share a bit about any workplace wellness initiatives your facility has in place. Telling an interviewee about company perks like a free employee gym membership, discounted community cooking classes, and childcare benefits may help them choose your facility as their next place of employment.

What to listen for:

• Hobbies (e.g., sports, music, community clubs) that motivate nurses outside of work
• Healthy self-care activities (e.g., meditation, exercise, yoga)

Potential follow-up questions:

• What role do teamwork and peer support play in helping you manage work stress?
• Do you have any other questions for me?

Find the Qualified Nursing Candidates You Need

These med-surg nurse interview questions can get you the best hire, but first you need the right applicants. Don’t use generic job boards that can’t distinguish a CNA from a CPA. Our healthcare job board reaches over 1 million nursing professionals looking for jobs — connect with them today.