Tell me about a really busy shift with a long line and phones ringing. How did you keep your accuracy up?

What the interviewer is looking for

• This question tests working under pressure. Keeps accuracy high during rushes, prioritises sensibly, and doesn't skip safety steps.
• What to bring out: Prioritises waiting patients and urgent medicines, focuses on one task at a time, never skips verification, and communicates with the team.
• Expect a follow-up like: What do you do when you feel yourself starting to rush?

Another way it may be asked: It's the Monday after a holiday and everyone needs refills. How do you stay accurate while moving fast?

A structure to follow: STAR, with the weight on Action and Result

1. Step 1

   Situation

   One or two sentences: where, when and what was at stake. Pick a real example you were close to.

2. Step 2

   Task

   What you personally were responsible for. Say "I", not only "we", so the working under pressure you showed is visible.

3. Step 3

   Action

   The two or three things you did and why you chose them over the alternatives. This should be about half your answer.

4. Step 4

   Result

   What changed, in your own measure of it, and what you would do differently. Only use numbers you can stand behind.

This is guidance on shape, not a script. Use your own real experience and facts; never invent details to fill a gap. See the STAR guide and answer frameworks.

Common slips

• Describing what the team did without saying what you did.
• Choosing an example with no clear outcome, or one you cannot answer detailed questions about.
• Ending on the action and skipping the result and what you learned.

How to practise it

Write two bullet points for each STAR letter, then say the answer aloud in about two minutes.

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