Respiratory Therapist (RT) - Adults
Posted Sep 17, 2026 · We last checked this listing on Sep 20, 2026
Likely interview questions for this role
Written from this job description, not a generic list. Each one notes what the interviewer is really checking.
Behavioral
Tell me about a time you had to make a fast decision about a patient on mechanical ventilation before a physician was available. What did you do?
clinical judgment and comfort acting within scope under pressure, and whether they escalate appropriately
Tell me about a time you had to educate a patient or family member who was scared or resistant about a treatment, like a new inhaler routine or oxygen therapy at home.
patient education skill and patience with people who are anxious or skeptical
Describe a situation where you disagreed with a physician's order or a nurse's read on a patient. How did you handle it?
communication and conflict resolution skills without undermining the care team or the patient
Tell me about a near miss or safety issue you caught before it became a problem. What did you do about it?
proactive safety culture and willingness to report rather than bury mistakes
Have you precepted a new hire or student before? What did you focus on teaching them first?
willingness and ability to mentor, since the role explicitly includes teaching orientees and students
Tell me about a time you had to manage several patients with very different needs at the same time. How did you keep track of everything?
organizational skill and calm under a high-interruption environment
Technical
Walk me through how you'd assess a patient who was just intubated and put on a ventilator in the ICU. What are you looking at first?
whether the candidate has a systematic, safe approach to critical care assessment rather than a checklist recited from memory
How do you correlate a blood gas result with a patient's electrolytes and clinical picture when something doesn't add up?
depth of understanding beyond rote number-reading, ability to integrate multiple data sources
What's your process for a clean handoff to the next therapist, especially on a patient whose status changed during your shift?
attention to detail and communication discipline that prevents errors between shifts
How would you adjust your approach for an elderly patient with COPD versus a younger trauma patient needing respiratory support?
understanding of age-specific and diagnosis-specific care needs
Situational
Say you're troubleshooting a ventilator that keeps alarming high pressure on a patient who was previously stable. What's your process?
structured troubleshooting habit and whether they check the patient before the machine
You're covering multiple units on a 12-hour shift and get called to two urgent situations at once. How do you decide what to do?
prioritization and multitasking under real workload pressure typical of a large hospital
If a piece of equipment isn't working right in the middle of patient care, walk me through what you'd do in the moment and afterward.
practical equipment troubleshooting and follow-through on maintenance and reporting protocols
This unit runs 12-hour day shifts with a lot of physical demands, including transfers and lifting. What has your experience been with that kind of physical workload?
realistic self-assessment of physical readiness for the job's demands
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As published by Advocate Health.
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