Top 10 PSW Interview Questions and Answers

Updated on: March 28, 2023

A PSW interview’s success depends on what happens before the interview. If you have prepared well in advance, the chances of you messing up an interview are minimum to none. If not, you may reconsider your approach.

The interview process is the same for everyone – some people ace it because they have the confidence of knowledge. Others perform poorly because they don’t. Be the former – be prepared.

Take a look at the following possible questions and answers for a PSW interview:

10 Common PSW Interview Questions and Answers

1. How do you feel about working as a personal support worker at people’s homes?

I believe that the best environment to work as a personal support worker is at a patient’s home, as it is all about how comfortable the patient is, rather than the person providing the support. Depending on the specific requirements of a patient, working in a home environment suits me just fine.

2. What specific duties have you performed as a personal support worker in the past?

To provide you with an overview of my duties as a PSW, I have been responsible for providing level-one support to patients, including assistance with basic hygiene, including bathing, toileting, and grooming. Additionally, I have provided assistance with mobility and handled medication administration, along with providing ongoing emotional support to patients and their families.

3. How do you manage not to get too emotionally attached to the patients assigned to you?

I admit that keeping your distance emotionally is one of the most difficult parts of working as a personal support worker. No amount of training and experience can prepare you for the emotional attachment that you begin to feel. However, I do try my best to keep as detached as possible, without seeming cruel or uncompassionate.

4. Do you think that it is important to stay emotionally detached from patients? Why or why not?

Yes. I believe that staying emotionally detached from patients is important. This is because if one gets too emotionally attached, the fear of letting go, whether it is because you have been assigned another patient or the patient has taken a turn for the worst, keeps you from giving the work your best shot.

5. Had such an event ever happened in your life as a personal support worker? How did you handle it?

Unfortunately, my first commission as a PSW made me feel deeply for an eleven-year-old child who was at the end of his life, due to a heart problem. I became too attached to him and when he passed, I thought I was dying too. But I picked myself up and reminded myself that I was here to serve and there were other people who were looking up to me for support.

6. What specific skills do you have that help you be successful in your work as a PSW?

I am extremely compassionate and patient. These two are the prime virtues that anyone needs to work as a PSW. Furthermore, I possess an exceptional ability to effectively and safely provide personal care and support to the elderly, disabled, and special needs children. My communication skills are exemplary and I can effectively resolve problems before they become crises.

7. Tell us of a time when your good judgment saved the day.

I was once looking after an elderly gentleman who had recently suffered a stroke. He was otherwise well but needed someone to help him with his daily personal needs. One day, I noticed that his speech was blurred and notified his family, who did not pay much attention to it. After much insistence (and not without a small scene), his son agreed to take him to the hospital. The elderly gentleman had suffered another stroke and would have been in imminent danger if he hadn’t been taken to the hospital.

8. Family members can sometimes become more difficult to handle than patients. How do you cope?

I agree that family members can become quite difficult to handle at times. My training has taught me to be always respectful so I do a lot of listening, which helps me understand why they are behaving as they do. I am always polite but I do try to get my point across, and all are aimed at the betterment of the patient in question.

9. Why did you choose to work as a patient support worker?

Helping people comes naturally to me. It is something that I have always loved doing and it only made sense to train as a patient support worker. Making a difference in people’s lives while keeping their dignity intact gives me great satisfaction.

10. Apart from providing personal care such as toileting and grooming, what else are you experienced in?

I am experienced in providing patients with ambulatory care, assistance with therapeutic exercises, housekeeping support, and providing emotional support to patients and their family members. I am also experienced in administering CPR and first aid during emergency situations.

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