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Recruitment form: Pre-interview questions to ask candidates about work ethic

Hospitalist Leadership Connection, November 2, 2009

Hospitalist programs in which physicians are mismatched in work ethic and workplace attitude are at the greatest risk of turmoil and turnover. For example, a hospitalist who enjoys serving others is often the one singled out as the “best hospitalist” by the rest of the medical staff.

Conversely, a candidate whose attitude is self-centered and who is unwilling to sacrifice anything for the greater good of the program can be like poison to the program.

Uncovering a poor attitude can be difficult. Hospitalist program directors can use the following questions to learn more about a hospitalist candidate’s work ethic and workplace attitude:

• What is it about your current position that made you consider a change?
• Please tell me the circumstances around each of your job changes.
• What attracts you to this position?
• Please tell me your likes and dislikes of each position.
• Have you ever been disciplined, had hospital privileges suspended, or been reported to the National Practitioner Data Bank? If so, please explain the circumstances surrounding that incident.
• Tell me about your current position. How many patients do you see? What is the scheduling model?
• How many patients do you feel can comfortably see in a day?
• Describe a situation where you felt overworked.
• How hard do you like to work?
• When do you typically like to start your workday?
• What personal gratification do you get from your work?
• Describe a time when you were asked to work overtime without compensation.
• Describe any volunteer work that you have performed.

The above excerpt is adapted from Practical Guide to Hospitalist Recruitment and Retention by Kirk Mathews, MBA, Foreword by John Nelson, MD, FACP, FHM, published by HCPro, Inc., Marblehead, MA.

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