Pre-reg @ Hospital

Hi.
As I'm going to apply for a hospital pre-reg placement :eek:

, I'm hoping people have been successful in their applications can help out with the following:

a) How can I prepare for the interview? Is there any background reading etc.?
b) What sort of questions did they ask you at the interview AND how did you answer (or how do you wish you answered!)?
c) Did the interview involve making a presentation of some sort?

Thanking you in advance for your help and time.

hannah

Reply 1

Jimmocrates

a) Same as for any interview really: read up on that hospital, also make sure you're aware of whats going on in pharmacy through PJ and stuff, out of the two interviews I had, they were asking quite a bit about what I had learnt/skills I had developed at uni and how would I use them in hospital.

b) I got asked all sorts of questions, some about when i worked in a restaurant and how skills i got from that transferred into healthcare (ie. patient/customer is no.1 and they are always your priority, you have to work in a team to make what you're doing a success etc...).

Then i got asked other questions about moral dilemas - a doctor on a ward is going to carry out an action which you know is wrong - what do you do? For that i just said about the patient has to be your main concern, so if the doctor is going to take action whihc you know could harm the patient, then do what you have to to make sure that no harm comes to the patient.

I also got asked about the agenda for change, which i messed up a bit and went on about utilising pharmacists skills more and then added as a footnote at the end that it also involves changing pay banding.

Finally I got asked "how to make a cup of tea". the woman asked everyone she interviewed that, and that was her only question, whihc was a bit weird, and seeing as she was the woman from my first choice hospital, i was a bit annoyed that i didn't get the chance to show other stuff that i know.

c) No presentation was required. the interviews i had lasted between 20-25mins.

Reply 2

Xenon

How to make a cup of tea? That's weird. How much experience did you have in a hospital beforehand jimmocrates?

Reply 3

Jimmocrates

Yeah, i know its a strange question. Everyone going in was expecting it though cos people coming out kept saying how stupid it was that they were asking that. Its probably cos of some psychological crap, especially when I said you have to take into account who you're making it for and ask them how they like it - i thought they'd draw parallels with that and involving the patient in making their treatment choices, but apparantly not.

I had a weeks work experience/shadowing in hospital organised by me in the sumer, and then in manchester we do an afternoon every other week in hospital, where we go through clinical cases and look into certain conditions further, then go up on to the wards and look through the patients notes and ask the patients questions about their medicines and stuff.

Its by no means vast experience, but if you can talk well about what you've learnt and show that you're enthusiastic and understand what hospital pharmacy is all about, then i guess thats half the battle won.

Reply 4

Xenon

Jimmocrates

I haven't done any proper experience in a hospital, but I am doing a pharmacy practice project at UCL hospital, and I guess that's something. I know more about hospital pharmacy than I did before...

Reply 5

HannahD

Hey thanks for that Jimmocrates.

What other moral dilemmas did they ask about? And what's all that stuff on agenda for change? Does it mean the new pharmacy contract etc. - isn't that community pharmacy mainly?

Frankly, though I'm more worried (haha) about the making tea question(!). We're students - we live on junk food (well, I do anyway!).

How many people interviewed you?

Reply 6

Jimmocrates

HannahD

You won't be wanting to know more about the agenda for change after prof noyce's lectures next year :wink:

It's basically the whole restructuring of the pay system - pay is now decided based on the job the person will do, not the actual person. It takes into account such things as knowledge, experience and training; skills; responsibility;flexibility; moral/emotional duties and a few others.

For my interviews, the first panel had 3 people, they each took it in turn to ask a few questions. The panel for the second interview had 4 people. The questions weren't split as easy from them, the last person only asked the tea question. I don't think that was a very typical question though.

Reply 7

Random.Girl

I was wondering how important it was to already have experience within the hospital/trust to which you were applying? Like already having a foot in the door ...

I was going to split my 4 choices into 2 near home then 2 near uni but apart from 2 and a half days I haven't got any experience in any hopsital near uni.

Reply 8

Kingspharm

Looks like I've come in here a bit late. I had an interview for hospital pre-reg but it was a few months ago now so can't remember all the questions I was asked!

Didn't do any preparation before hand, just went in relaxed and confident.

Was interviewed by three people from three seperate hospitals (one of whom was from the hospital I had applied to) and each asked three questions.

Questions were typically:
* Why hospital pharmacy rather than community or something else?
* Why should hospitals offer pre-reg placements?
* Are you a leader or a follower?
* Give an example of a teamwork experience/when you were a leader, etc.
* What three words would you're friends use to describe you?

Simple interview type questions like that. AFAIR there weren't any clinical type questions (I've heard of some people being asked about drugs, contraindications, etc.) and I can't honestly remember whether I had any policy type questions (like agenda for change, knowledge & skills framework, etc.).

Reply 9

Kingspharm

Just to add - I wasn't asked about previous pharmacy experience (hospital, community or otherwise) - which is lucky really since I've never worked in a pharmacy since before I came to university. :laugh: