Tough Interview Questions: How would you respond?

[sequoia]

I've been getting ready for interviews and though I want to keep it natural and spontaneous, I also want to have given some of the tough ones some thought. I've ran into some pretty hard questions to answer. Feel free to post more tough questions and/or repsonses.

How would you answer this one:

How would you tell the mother of a two year old boy that her son has only one week to live?

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[Pinkertinkle]

You sit em down and tell her. And I do doubt they ask that question in interviews.

 

[slackerjock]

i hate variations of "Why should we accept you?"

 

[sequoia]

You sit em down and tell her. And I do doubt they ask that question in interviews.

I've heard of applicants getting asked similar difficult questions. It never hurts to be prepared. Besides, you didn't answer the question, HOW would you tell her? I bet it is a lot harder than it sounds.

-J

 

[fun8stuff]

one I have been thinking about that I think is a tough question...

You have two patients who have been admitted after a serious accident. Both require immediate attention in order to survive. One patient is 20 years old; the other is 60 years old. Which life would you save?

 

[Uegis]

one I have been thinking about that I think is a tough question...

You have two patients who have been admitted after a serious accident. Both require immediate attention in order to survive. One patient is 20 years old; the other is 60 years old. Which life would you save?

This is similar question that a friend of mine got at UCSD.

Two men come in after an accident. One is Caucasian and the other is African American and both require attention to survive. Which one will you save first?

My friend told me he said grab the one closest to him or on the right side since he is right handed (didn't make much sense to me either) and save him. Its better that you act quickly and save one, then to hesitate and lose both. His whole question did not mention race or anything, even in his explanation, he never even said "race doesn't matter." He got into UCSD, but he's going to UCSF now, MS IV.

 

[Psycho Doctor]

How would you answer this one:

How would you tell the mother of a two year old boy that her son has only one week to live?

honestly that's like one of my worst nightmares.....to ever have to tell a parent that

i'd take her aside and sit her down, and take her hand. I'd then say something to the effect of: "there is no easy way to tell you this and i wish i could say something more positive. after doing extensive tests, your son has XXXX. we could try x, y or z but truthfully in the past we have found this does not significantly give him any time and it may make him unaware of his surroundings or cause him more discomfort in the little time he has left (**obviously this will vary depending on what he has been diagnosed with**). as hard as it is for me to tell you this, i can't offer much hope of any treatment prolonging his life." i'd pause for her to ask questions, or ask if it means he is going to die or how long he has. I'd then tell her the truth and say we'd do all we can to make his last days as lucid and pain-free as possible. I'd ask her if she has any questions and i'd tell her if she later thinks of any questions she can call me any time day or night. (and yea i really mean that too.)

**and then i'd probably cry with her but i wouldn't tell the interviewer that.

and tha twhole explanation probably was totally wrong but right now that's how i invision it.

 

[Psycho Doctor]

This is similar question that a friend of mine got at UCSD.

Two men come in after an accident. One is Caucasian and the other is African American and both require attention to survive. Which one will you save first?

My friend told me he said grab the one closest to him or on the right side since he is right handed (didn't make much sense to me either) and save him. Its better that you act quickly and save one, then to hesitate and lose both. His whole question did not mention race or anything, even in his explanation, he never even said "race doesn't matter." He got into UCSD, but he's going to UCSF now, MS IV.

excellent answer!!!

 

[Medikit]

You have two patients who have been admitted after a serious accident. Both require immediate attention in order to survive. One patient is 20 years old; the other is 60 years old. Which life would you save?

The 20 year old probably has a better chance of surviving after the treatment, so I'm gonna go with the 20 year old.

 

[RaistlinMajere]

Can someone explain to me what the point of the 20 vs. 60 year old question is?

 

[Psycho Doctor]

The 20 year old probably has a better chance of surviving after the treatment, so I'm gonna go with the 20 year old.

honestly i agree but i'm not sure they would consider that ethical or PC or whatever they want to call it. i really don't know and i hate questions like that.

 

[Psycho Doctor]

Can someone explain to me what the point of the 20 vs. 60 year old question is?

most people would go with the 20 year old; do you make decisions based on age? if so, why? aren't you supposed to treat all patients equally regardless of their demographics?

 

[pseudoknot]

If you're interviewing for anything, including med school, and they ask you something difficult and requiring training or knowledge you don't have, they're not going to care about what you answer. What will matter is how you answer. As long as you stay calm and talk your way through your answer you'll be fine.

 

[RaistlinMajere]

most people would go with the 20 year old; do you make decisions based on age? if so, why? aren't you supposed to treat all patients equally regardless of their demographics?

I guess that's my point. Either way your choosing to save one life over another. Maybe they just want to get our thought process, but it's sort of a no win situation, which is unlikely to occur in the real world.

 

[ifailedmcat]

Two men come in after an accident. One is Caucasian and the other is African American and both require attention to survive. Which one will you save first?

Wow, that is the hardest question I have ever seen. I would be caught completely offguard with that one.

 

[Ajay]

I think the question would be much harder if they state that the 20 and 60 year olds have equal chance of survival.

 

[IndyZX]

I think the question would be much harder if they state that the 20 and 60 year olds have equal chance of survival.

that doesnt really change my answer. to clarify my point: would you rather save a 3yr old or an 83yr old?

 

[rudi]

that doesnt really change my answer. to clarify my point: would you rather save a 3yr old or an 83yr old?

i think you save a 3 yo over a 83 yo solely because the 83 yo has had the opportunity to live a long life, whereas the 3 yo has not had nearly as many years of life. it would be more fair to save the 3 yo.

 

[fielight]

If you're interviewing for anything, including med school, and they ask you something difficult and requiring training or knowledge you don't have, they're not going to care about what you answer. What will matter is how you answer. As long as you stay calm and talk your way through your answer you'll be fine.

that is very true... the fact is, you'll get all of these "answers" once you come to med school (and they make you take Ethics). in instances where you just don't know how to respond, i don't think it's unreasonable to simply say "i don't know" or "i don't have enough knowledge to form an opinion at this time in my life." basically, just be honest and respond how you would, not what you think the interviewer wants to hear.

when i applied, one of the questions i got was: "you have a patient who needs a pacemaker, but cannot afford one. he will die without it. what do you do?" (honestly, i think the guy was picking on me... this is a pretty tough question for someone not even out of high school -- i had applied to one of those combined BS/MD programs.) as a med student now, i would probably respond: 1. see if he qualifies for medicare/medicaid or other gov't assistance, 2. state-funded hospitals tend to have resources for caring for poor people, 3. refer him to a social worker or someone else who could help (because i don't believe the doctor should be involved in the minute financial decisions, especially if he's part of a healthcare organization).

 

[Dr Turninkoff]

This is similar question that a friend of mine got at UCSD.

Two men come in after an accident. One is Caucasian and the other is African American and both require attention to survive. Which one will you save first?

My friend told me he said grab the one closest to him or on the right side since he is right handed (didn't make much sense to me either) and save him. Its better that you act quickly and save one, then to hesitate and lose both. His whole question did not mention race or anything, even in his explanation, he never even said "race doesn't matter." He got into UCSD, but he's going to UCSF now, MS IV.

Would they ask that question to an African American interviewee? I highly doubt it. I think that it is a subtle way of asking a white kid, "are you racist?" to see how he will react and squirm. Nobody in their right mind would answer one patient or the other.

 

[Uegis]

Would they ask that question to an African American interviewee? I highly doubt it. I think that it is a subtle way of asking a white kid, "are you racist?" to see how he will react and squirm. Nobody in their right mind would answer one patient or the other.

My friend was actually Chinese. I think its just another ethical question. So if you ask an African American, can't u also test if he harbors negative sentiments towards Caucasians? I doubt the interviewers were trying to test anything, but rather see how you would respond to the situation.

 

[adamj61]

I think his answer about grabbing the guy to his right because he is right handed is genius. Acting quickly is the point of this question...not thinking about age, race etc.

 

[sequoia]

one I have been thinking about that I think is a tough question...

You have two patients who have been admitted after a serious accident. Both require immediate attention in order to survive. One patient is 20 years old; the other is 60 years old. Which life would you save?

I'd do a turbo thought calculation of each of their qualities of life if they were to survive and treat the one who has the best chance of having a tolerable quality of life after recovery...I think. You're right. That's a tough one!

 

[drguy22]

i had a interesting ? when i was applyin to RWJMS BA/MD

You have a couple walk in, and the mother wants an abortion, and the father does not want the abortion and wants the baby to live. What do you do?

version A: you are against abortion

version B: You are for abortion

 

[Dr Turninkoff]

My friend was actually Chinese. I think its just another ethical question. So if you ask an African American, can't u also test if he harbors negative sentiments towards Caucasians? I doubt the interviewers were trying to test anything, but rather see how you would respond to the situation.

hmm, that is interesting. i stand corrected.

 

[Psycho Doctor]

i had a interesting ? when i was applyin to RWJMS BA/MD

You have a couple walk in, and the mother wants an abortion, and the father does not want the abortion and wants the baby to live. What do you do?

version A: you are against abortion

version B: You are for abortion

i'd send them to a marriage counselor

seriously i woud not grant any abortion without agreement from both; isn't that mandatory in a marriage? anyway i don't believe in abortions so maybe i'm biased.

 

[MadameLULU]

i'd send them to a marriage counselor

seriously i woud not grant any abortion without agreement from both; isn't that mandatory in a marriage? anyway i don't believe in abortions so maybe i'm biased.

its not legally mandatory to have the consent of the "potential" mother and father. just the consent of the mother.

 

[Psycho Doctor]

its not legally mandatory to have the consent of the "potential" mother and father. just the consent of the mother.

well then that sucks and should be changed; it's his baby too and why can't he petition for total custody?

 

[ShyRem]

There are some states that the father has done just that. Unfortunately, the baby is in the mother's body. If you've ever been pregnant, it does hellacious things to the female body, definitely not all of them pleasant even when you WANT to be pregnant. I'm not saying anyone is right here, but perhaps if he wants it he should become pregnant? Just a philosophical perspective.

(BTW, I have two kids and had infertility problems, so believe me, I TREASURE my children and am quite frankly jealous of those who have so little trouble getting pregnant that this would be an issue.)

 

[honsano]

These situations are always pretty fun to think about (well fun in a mentally stimulating way). Do you know a web-site where there are a whole list of these? Thanks in advance.

 

[drguy22]

well FYI i answered it in the following way.

Well, since this is a hospital setting, there is always a crisis intervention team at hand that can handle these sorts of problems. i would not get involved in the marriage dispute because I have no authority to do so. However, if the issue is not resolved, by current law, I will have to side with the mother because I am HER doctor, and my number one goal is the well being of my patient, whether it be physically or psychologically. therefore, i would perform the abortion. If I were against abortion, I would still perform the abortion for my patient because I feel that I am in no position to force my religious belief upon someone else.

the interviewer for RWJMS said that she liked my answer...but unfortunaltley in the end i ranked 13/50 and they only accepted 11 this year( which sux cuz they ususally accepted 15 for the past 10 years) but watever...NJMS was there for me

 

[sequoia]

well FYI i answered it in the following way.

Well, since this is a hospital setting, there is always a crisis intervention team at hand that can handle these sorts of problems. i would not get involved in the marriage dispute because I have no authority to do so. However, if the issue is not resolved, by current law, I will have to side with the mother because I am HER doctor, and my number one goal is the well being of my patient, whether it be physically or psychologically. therefore, i would perform the abortion. If I were against abortion, I would still perform the abortion for my patient because I feel that I am in no position to force my religious belief upon someone else.

the interviewer for RWJMS said that she liked my answer...but unfortunaltley in the end i ranked 13/50 and they only accepted 11 this year( which sux cuz they ususally accepted 15 for the past 10 years) but watever...NJMS was there for me

Excellent Answer! And a respectable way of speaking to patient care and not political hot buttons.

Speaking of which, what if you are asked which candidate you support for president in an interview? That is a really scary one!

 

[Mr. Seeds]

This whole thread is freaking me out.

Especially since there is no way in hell I would have said I'd grab the closest patient. I'd probably have sat there and blathered on about some stupid bullcrap about not giving preference to one race.

 

[Mr. Seeds]

Excellent Answer! And a respectable way of speaking to patient care and not political hot buttons.

Speaking of which, what if you are asked which candidate you support for president in an interview? That is a really scary one!

I thought they were not supposed to ask questions on emotionally charged topics such as abortion. Correct me if I'm wrong

 

[Psycho Doctor]

I thought they were not supposed to ask questions on emotionally charged topics such as abortion. Correct me if I'm wrong

are there rules of what they can and can not ask? i didn't think so. Abortions are a real life scenario tha tinvolve patient care and medical decisions. This is freaking me out b/c my values and beliefs are strong and therefore emotionally charged regarding this and i'm afraid i will come across as too strong and defensive. ugh

 

[Psycho Doctor]

This whole thread is freaking me out.

Especially since there is no way in hell I would have said I'd grab the closest patient. I'd probably have sat there and blathered on about some stupid bullcrap about not giving preference to one race.

this is why this thread is great; now you'll think to grab the closest patient

 

[neuropower]

let's get some more questions going...this thread is great.

how about:
what are some of the problems with the health care system in america and do you think we should switch to national/socialized health care?


personally, i don't have a really strong opinion on the matter, but i hear that this question gets asked a lot. should i read up on it beforehand or is it ok not to have an opinion? i mean, obviously its an important question, but i find these issues exhausting, which is why i didn't go into a field like public policy...i know there are pros and cons, but i feel like its such a complicated matter that you really have to do a lot of research/reading to sound intelligent answering a question like this.

 

[neuropower]

and here's another one:

would you prefer to provide less effective medicine to more people or more effective medicine to fewer people?

(taken from a website that claims that this is a popular question at harvard, see http://www.human.cornell.edu/careerservices/medicalschoolinterviewquestions.pdf)

 

[Caesarsgrl]

Most of the actual laws concerning most of these issues can be googled. I've found that I have been able to at least find some particular reasoning. Fore example on the common transplant question....

You have one heart and 2 patients, one is a 65 yo man who is the 'pillar of his community" and the other is a 15 yo gang member whose a known drug user who gets the heart?

Ultimately It comes down to the first on the list, but with all transplants except kidney transplants people can jump ahead on the list based on need. So you need to consider 1) who has the greatest need? or morbidly who will die first if they don't recieve the heart. and 2) who will have the most chnace of having the transplant be successful and not have the body totally reject it.

As doctors we are not responsible for judging the quality or merit of someone elses life based on age or known habits etc. Your job is to help whoever walks thru the door even if you think they have made all the wrong choices and wasted their life with alcohol or drugs etc.

On the age question the best answer is whoever is closest, who ever came thru the door first, and or whichever one has the greatest need. These are ER decisions and although even at night a lot of the ER staff has gone home theres still ussually more than 1 dr there, and more are on call,

Just my 2 cents. Personally I defer everything to what the law might be in that area. Ultimately even though we might want to do things for people, ie giving a 12 yo birthcontrol so she doesn't end up pregnant and wanting an abortion later, state law mandates that her parents have to know. It sucks and you might feel like you couldn't give her the help you might have wanted, but if your sued and charged by the state for breaking the law, you'll miss out on helping a lot more people.

oh and btw with the kid, I'd offer to tell her parents for her since that type of news brinngs about yelling and such at first because of shock and perhaps she'd be more willing to let them know if she didn't have to take the initial anger. If she would not consent to let her parents know, I'd scare show her how to use a condom and spermacide, and hope that you could scare some sense into her that she'll be too afraid to have sex without the protections you've described and she can legally obtain.

 

[jazzmin]

What would you do if you had a 3 year old child who needed a blood transfusion to save his/her life, but the parents did not want to proceed with the transfusion because of their strict religious beliefs?

 

[medicomel]

honestly that's like one of my worst nightmares.....to ever have to tell a parent that

i'd take her aside and sit her down, and take her hand. I'd then say something to the effect of: "there is no easy way to tell you this and i wish i could say something more positive. after doing extensive tests, your son has XXXX. we could try x, y or z but truthfully in the past we have found this does not significantly give him any time and it may make him unaware of his surroundings or cause him more discomfort in the little time he has left (**obviously this will vary depending on what he has been diagnosed with**). as hard as it is for me to tell you this, i can't offer much hope of any treatment prolonging his life." i'd pause for her to ask questions, or ask if it means he is going to die or how long he has. I'd then tell her the truth and say we'd do all we can to make his last days as lucid and pain-free as possible. I'd ask her if she has any questions and i'd tell her if she later thinks of any questions she can call me any time day or night. (and yea i really mean that too.)

**and then i'd probably cry with her but i wouldn't tell the interviewer that.

and tha twhole explanation probably was totally wrong but right now that's how i invision it.

that's a great answer! very eloquently stated.

 

[47534]

What would you do if you had a 3 year old child who needed a blood transfusion to save his/her life, but the parents did not want to proceed with the transfusion because of their strict religious beliefs?

There have already been similar cases of this. If time allows, I'd go get court authority first, but if a delay can endanger the child I'd proceed with a blood transfusion immediately based on legal precedents allowing treatment in these cases. In one Supreme Court case decision about the authority of a Jehovah's Witness parent, it was declared that parents may make martyrs of themslves but that doesn't mean they can make martyrs of their children. If you give me some time, I can look up what case that was for you.

 

[fun8stuff]

What would you do if you had a 3 year old child who needed a blood transfusion to save his/her life, but the parents did not want to proceed with the transfusion because of their strict religious beliefs?

i believe the law says you must go through with the transfusion...

 

[Psycho Doctor]

i believe the law says you must go through with the transfusion...

yea i'm almost sure it does also; there were court cases dealing with these issues and i'm pretty sure it ultimately becamse law

 

[sequoia]

What would you do if you had a 3 year old child who needed a blood transfusion to save his/her life, but the parents did not want to proceed with the transfusion because of their strict religious beliefs?

This isn't cut and dry but it seems to me that it is your responsibility to do what is in the best interest of the patient, the child.

Sure parents are legally responsible for the child but at what point do they have a right to choose life or death? It isn't like the child would have to live indefinately on life support. We are talking simple blood transfusion. I don't think the parents even have a right to withhold that type of treatment, do they?

 

[bridge01]

this is from a website: "A pregnant 15-year-old unmarried teenager comes into your office asking for an abortion. What would you do? Would you inform her parents?"

 

[Psycho Doctor]

Laws in 46 states and the District of Columbia allow mothers who are under 18 to place their children for adoption without involving their parents, but many of those same states require parental notification or consent before these young women can obtain abortions. Many seek a judicial waiver and go to states wher eit is less strict to obtain one. It is obvious tha tparental notification causes delays which often results in more problematic results, teen sleaving home or attempting to perform the abortion themselves or just a later abortion. This is really tough for me since i do not agree with abortion to begin with.

Can a doctor refuse to do an abortion?

 

[ShyRem]

This isn't cut and dry but it seems to me that it is your responsibility to do what is in the best interest of the patient, the child.

Sure parents are legally responsible for the child but at what point do they have a right to choose life or death? It isn't like the child would have to live indefinately on life support. We are talking simple blood transfusion. I don't think the parents even have a right to withhold that type of treatment, do they?

Be careful with this one. Not all states have the same laws. However, almost all hospitals have a legal department, and social services can take custody of the child. Colorado, for example, had a case a couple of years ago where a girl had diabetes and the parents refused insulin for her based on religious conviction. The girl died. The parents were not charged in the incident because the decision for medical care involved their religious beliefs. The safe thing is to have social services and hospital legal involved. If nothing else, legal can have a judge woken up in the middle of the night to sign temporary guardianship.

 

[ifailedmcat]

I got worked over real well at my last interview, it was pretty stressful

He would say things like...

"That's the same answer I get from the rest of the 1200 applicants, what makes you so special?"

"That's what I would expect to hear. How do I know you are telling the truth?"

"So if you were the interviewer, and I was you, what would you say to me?"

"Are you surprised that I've read your book? How do you feel about that?"

"That's ridiculous, I don't see how you could believe that."

And so on....

This was at my first choice school....I'm still traumatized

 

[IndyZX]

I got worked over real well at my last interview, it was pretty stressful

He would say things like...

"That's the same answer I get from the rest of the 1200 applicants, what makes you so special?"

"That's what I would expect to hear. How do I know you are telling the truth?"

"So if you were the interviewer, and I was you, what would you say to me?"

"Are you surprised that I've read your book? How do you feel about that?"

"That's ridiculous, I don't see how you could believe that."

And so on....

This was at my first choice school....I'm still traumatized

thats rough, dude. did you think your answers were ok and he was just being rude, or do you think you were nervous and performed poorly?