How to prepare for an aged care interview (plus common questions and answers)

5 common interview questions for aged care roles (and how to answer them)

To help you prepare for your interview, here are some commonly asked questions for aged care roles, plus some brief pointers on how to answer them well. These are particularly common care worker interview questions, but you can expect to be asked some of these for most roles.

1.       Can you tell us a bit about yourself and why you have chosen to work in aged care?

The key with answering this is not to tell your life story, but rather to briefly explain what’s brought you to this point in your career and why you’re passionate about working in aged care. It’s a good opportunity to call out a few key roles and experiences and weave in your personal history as it pertains to the role.

Many people fail to make the most of this question, so definitely prepare for it so you can take advantage of the opportunity to show why you’re well suited to working in aged care and have the personality and skillset to match. Preparation for this question will also help you to avoid rambling!

2.       What characteristics do you think are needed for those who work in aged care?

This is an opportunity for you to demonstrate that you have the personal traits that are suitable for working in aged care: warmth, compassion, empathy, a caring nature, patience, flexibility, communication skills and team work. You could give examples of how you provided personal care in a considerate way or helped comfort a distressed resident or client.

Here you could give an example of how your calm and patient demeanour helped a client or resident who was having difficulty accepting help with personal tasks.

3.       Can you tell us about a stressful situation or emergency that you’ve faced and how you handled it?

When answering this, you could talk about a time you were under-staffed, a resident was badly injured or there was a disaster that involved emergency services at your aged care facility. Or, it might involve a really serious complaint from a family member. The most important thing is to show what you did (for example, using basic first aid training to ensure a resident was breathing) and how you managed to remain calm and turn the situation around and end it on a positive note.

4.       What would you do if you were with a resident and they had a fall?

Falls are common and significant hazards for older people and it’s important to know how to manage them safely – both in terms of the resident’s physical and mental health. Here you could say that you would call for help immediately and then reassure the resident and try to keep them calm while you wait. This is a good opportunity to demonstrate your ability to handle a crisis, plus showcase your empathetic nature.

5.       What’s person-centred care?

In 2020 the Australian aged care sector adopted a new set of quality and safety standards that were developed around the concept of ‘person-centred care’ so it’s quite likely you’ll be asked about this. Explain that person-centred care is an approach that treats each person as an individual human being with unique needs. It’s respectful and considerate of the individual preferences, needs and values of the person you are caring for and means working together to share decisions and plan appropriate care.

It’s also a good idea to give an example to show that you truly understand the concept in practice. For example, for a lifestyle officer role, it might involve providing lifestyle activities that are culturally appropriate or based on someone’s personal hobbies and interests, rather than taking a homogenous approach.