" "

" .. "

Zaki short notes in :

)( Residency interviews preparation

:

.
Dr. Mohammad Zaki AL-Qaisi


, , ,
.
:
: , ,
, , , , , ,
, , , , , , :
.

, " :

" .

:

.

, .
" , ".






.



.
.
:

...

Contents

Residency interview experience (New)*

General advices
Tell us about yourself
Why did you choose our hospital
Why did you choose this specialty
What are your points of strength
What are your points of weakness
How do you see yourself in 5 years
What is the hardest thing that you will face in our
hospital
What will you do if your friend (doctor) did a
mistake ? will you inform him
What will you do if the patient asked you about
something or about his condition?
How would you tell the patient that he has a
serious condition.
Do you have any question for me.
Other questions that can be asked in foreign
hospitals ( New )*
References ( New )*

 .
**Residency interview experience
,
.
( )
71 .
..
.
,
, , , ,
, , ,
, , ,



!!
.. 02
3 . 02

. 71

.


.
72
. presentation
5
3
.

!! :
!!!!!

( )
.


.

1. General advices

A. Make a good first impression :

Choose clothing that is comfortable, flattering, and
professional.
(More
about
interview
dress
below.) Smile, both with your face and your voice.
Make good eye contact, and greet your interviewer by
name.

B. Play to your strengths :

If you have hobbies or accomplishments and the
interviewer seems interested, talk about them. This
is your chance to show off whatever it is that makes
you unique, so that youll stand out in his/her mind
after the interview.

C. Be prepared for tough questions.

D. Show interest and enthusiasm :
During the interview, never give the impression that
you are anything less than strongly interested in the
program at which you are applying. Theres nothing
to be gained by seeming bored or disinterested.
E. Dress to impress :
You have to look professional and conservative .
You want to be memorable for your personality, not
for your unusual appearance.

Dress advice

2. Tell us about yourself

This is the most frequently asked question.

Give a brief introduction about yourself :
For example : My name is Ahmad , im 27 years old , im
jordainian , I live in Amman , Marka , about 15 minutes
from the hospital . Im not smoker , and im single .
Give a brief informations about your history :
For example : I have graduated from high school in 2007
with a score of 98 % and I got a scholarship to study
medicine at Jordan university hospital , my study was 6
years and I graduated in 2013 with a score of 3.6 / 4 , and I
did my internship in AL- Basheer hospital and finished it in
2014. And now I work as a general practitioner in a private
clinic.

3. Why did you choose our hospital

The answer :
Sir , it is a pleasure and an honor for any doctor to work in
such a great hospital like king Hussein centre (for
example), this is the first thing.
The second thing , it is a joint commission international
( JCI ) accredited hospital , and this provides an excellent
practice in patient care , medical knowledge , practice
based learning and improvement , professionalism and
interpersonal skills and communications.
And I think this is very important for my medical career
goals.

4. Why did you choose this specialty

For example : Internal medicine

) (
The answer :
I believe internal medicine will allow me to experience
diverse variety of patients. It provides greater opportunity
to learn than other specialties. I am very analytical and
internal medicine provides an intellectual stimulation for
me while discussing and solving medical problems. I also
like the idea of building a long-term relationship with the
patients. And through this specialty I can help a large
number of people in the society , and deal with them face
to face , knowing what they are suffering from and do my
best to treat them.
So , I can not see myself in any specialty except for internal
medicine.

5. What are your points of strength

:

The answer :
I am a hard worker. I am very focused on my
goals. I can handle working under pressure. I am
also analytical, thinking about all aspects of a
given situation before making a decision. All
these strengths have helped me so far in life.
I am a good team worker and I respect my
colleagues and my seniors.
I am very patient with my patients and keep their
secrets.
And through my internship year , I was the first
person who reaches the hospital and the last one
who leaves it in comparison to my peers.
Also im addicted to learn , work and improve
myself.

6. What are your points of weakness

(
.... :
)...
The answer :
Ok , I have an issue , but i dont know if it is a
point of weakness or not , I cant say no when
someone asks for help , also I give most of my
time to my patients , especially while im taking
history , I let the patient talk freely without
interruption to gain his confidence , but I think
this can be easily modified especially when I have
heavy work.

7. How do you see yourself in 5 years

Or (What are your plans after your residency? )
The answer :
I see myself as an internal medicine specialist (for
example) , certified by the Arab and Jordainian
boards , and I will be a member in Royal college
of physicians.
Also I intend to do my fellowship after my
residency. I have interests in infectious diseases
and endocrinology. But I would make the
decision after my first year of residency. I love
teaching and also I have interest in research. If I
see my future in broad terms, I would be
certainly in academics as a physician-scientist
and a teacher for medical students .

8. What is the hardest thing that you will face in

our hospital
If you are an intern in the hospital or you did
your internship in it , then answer like this :
Actually , I am an intern in this hospital , I know
the medical staff and also the nursing staff , and I
am familiar with paper works here , and I helped
the juniors in dealing with patients and in
stations . So , I dont think there is anything hard
to me here in this hospital.
If you arent an intern in the hospital , then you
can answer like this :
I am a very friendly and easy going person , and
also I am hard worker , self motivated and a good
team worker . I am a fast learner and eager to
improve myself and give the best treatment to all
my patients . So , I dont think there is anything
hard to me here in this hospital or even in other
hospitals.

9. What will you do if your friend (doctor) did a

mistake ? will you inform him

The answer :
Honestly , once I enter the hospital , my first
priority is my patient , and I will not accept any
mistake that will deteriorate my patient's health
condition . So , in this situation I have to be
professional , and I will not cover on any mistake
that may affect my patient's safety.
So , yes I will inform , but at the same time , I will
tell my friend about his mistake and how to deal
with this condition in the future , and I will
encourage him to improve himself to be a better
medical resident.

10. What will you do if the patient asked you

about something or about his condition?
Or ( if he asked you if he is dying)
The answer :
What I know is that , the policy of this hospital
and also other hospitals is that the first year
resident ( junior ) is not authorized to tell the
patient anything about his condition , and this is
the responsibility of the senior doctor and the
attending.
So , I will tell the patient that we are doing some
investigations , and we are doing our best to
treat him and keep him in good health.

11. How would you tell the patient that he has a

serious condition (such as : cancer )
Ethical condition.
The answer :
Ok , this is a very sensitive situation for me as a
physician , and for the patient , so I have to carry
it out as smoothly as possible.
First , I have to make sure that the patient is in
quite , private and comfortable environment ,
then I will ask him how much he knows about his
condition , and then I will ask him how much he
wants to know , then I will give a warning shot ,
such as : " unfortunately , the situation is more
serious than what I earlier thought " .
And if he wants me to break the bad news for
him then I will tell him that the results show an
advanced canceretc.
But I have to give him the prognosis ,and keep
him aware of all options available to make his life
as comfortable as possible.

12. Do you have any question for me

.
Example :

I went through the program website and

also had discussion with the residents
here. I was able to get all the info that I
needed. I do have one question. Could you
describe how the residents are evaluated
during the residency training? Is there a
periodic evaluation of the performance?
Will I be having a mentor to advise me
during my training?

*Commonly asked questions by foreign hospitals *

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
40.
41.
42.
43.
44.
45.
46.
47.
48.
49.
50.
51.
52.
53.

Tell me about yourself !!!

List some accomplishments of which you are most proud of and what each accomplishment
indicates about you?
Describe 2 abilities you have that will make you valuable as a resident in this specialty?
What previous clinical experience have you had in this specialty?
Do you have any questions to us ?
What three adjectives best describe you?
What might give me a better picture of you than I can get from your resume?
Tell me a story about yourself that best describes you?
If you were going to die in 5 minutes, what would you tell someone about yourself?
Which accomplishments are you most proud of?
Are there any hidden achievements or qualities that you are secretly proud of?
How have you changed since high school?
Tell me about your strengths and weaknesses?
Tell me about your "secret identity" : The part of your personality that you don't share with
strangers?
Any skeletons in your closet you want to tell me about?
How well do you take criticism?
What's your pet peeve?
If you could change one thing about your personality what would it be?
If you could be any cell in the human body, which would you be and why?
Do you see yourself as more relaxed/casual/informal or more serious/dedicated/committed?
Which is more important, the ability to organize, structure, and prioritize or to be flexible,
modify, change and make do as needed?
Which is more important, knowledge or imagination?
Strangest Halloween costume you ever wore?
What do you value in your own life?
If you had unlimited money and (x amount of time) what would you do with it ?
3 wishes, what would they be?
What kinds of people are your friends?
Describe your best friend?
How are you similar and dissimilar to your best friend?
How would your friends or co-workers describe you?
Who are your heroes?
What is your favorite movie, book?
What is the last book you read?
What do success and failure mean to you?
What do you do in your spare time?
Favorite games/sports? Why?
Have you done any volunteer work?
How did you choose these outside activities?
If you had a completely free day, what would you do?
Describe for me your typical day?
What is the most bizarre thing you have ever done (in college, high school, etc)?
What is the most unusual occurrence in your life in the past (x amount of time)?
Which organizations do you belong to?
What are your plans for a family?
If could not be a physician, what career would you choose?
Why choose to be a doctor?
How do you make important decisions?
Are you a risk taker or safety minded?
What made you choose your undergraduate major?
How did you select undergraduate college and medical school?
What were the major deficiencies in your medical school training? How would you plan to
remedy this?
If you could begin your schooling again, what would you change?
Have you ever dropped a class, why?

54. Have you ever quit or been fired from a job?

55. Biggest failures in life and what have you done to ensure that they won't happen again?
56. Have you always done the best work of which you are capable?
57. Which types of people do you have problems working with?
58. What qualities drive you crazy in colleagues?
59. Describe the best/worst attending with whom you have ever worked?
60. Do you prefer to work under supervision or on your own?
61. With which patients do you have trouble dealing?
62. How do you normally handle conflict?
63. How do you respond when you have problems with someone?
64. What do you do if someone senior tells you to do something you know is wrong?
65. With what subject/rotation did you have the most difficulty?
66. Why do you want to go into EM?
67. What would you be willing to sacrifice to become an emergency physician?
68. What is the greatest sacrifice you have already made to get to where you are?
69. If EM did not exist, what would you do?
70. How much did lifestyle considerations fit into your choice of specialty?
71. Why did you apply to this program?
72. What qualities are you looking for in a program?
73. What interests you most about this program?
74. What have you heard about our program that you don't like?
75. Are you applying here because it is a familiar environment?
76. What will be the toughest aspect of this specialty for you?
77. How will you handle the least interesting or least pleasant parts of this specialty's practice?
78. What qualities are most important in this specialty?
79. What kind of qualities does a person need to be an effective emergency physician?
80. Why should we take you over other applicants?
81. What can you add to our program?
82. How good is your computer experience ?
83. What is your ideal residency program?
84. What is your energy level like?
85. How many hours of sleep do you require each night?
86. How well do you function under pressure?
87. Tell me How do you handle stress?
88. Can you handle stress without the resources you are accustomed to relying on?
89. Tell me about the patient from who you learned the most?
90. Most memorable experience in medical school/college?
91. What errors have you made in patient care?
92. Greatest fear about practicing medicine?
93. Where do you see yourself in 5-10 years?
94. How do you see the delivery of health care evolving in the 21st century?
95. Is health care a right or a privilege?
96. What problems will our specialty face in the next 5-10 years?
97. What would you do if the house staff had a strike?
98. What do you think of what's happening in US these days? Congress? Economy?
99. Teach me something non-medical in 5 minutes?
100. Where else have you have been interviewed?
101. What if you don't match?
102. Could you think of anything else you would like to add?
103. How do you cope with failure, give example?
104. What was your favorite course in medical school?
105. Describe a conflict you had with someone and how it resolved it ?
106. Describe something that was difficult in your life and how you dealt with it, and what you
have learned from it?
107. Tell me your opinion about What needs to be changed in health care system in us ?
108. How can you do your job more effectively?
109. What is the most pressing problem in medicine today?
110. What is the most rewarding thing you have ever done?

References
1. http://exams.emedicinelive.net/index.php/us
mle/2/52-residency-interviews--realinterview-questions-with-answers
2. http://usmles.com/?page_id=126

:
(



... ) .

:
...

:
...
...
...

...
......

:
.