Senior Laboratory Assistant, Float

Tell me about a difficult draw, like a patient with poor veins or a scared child. How did you handle it?

What they are checking: Phlebotomy skill and patient comfort under pressure.

As a senior assistant you train new employees. How do you teach someone a skill so they do it right every time?

What they are checking: Teaching ability, which the posting lists as an expectation.

You float between Marshfield, Colby-Abbotsford, Greenwood, Neillsville, Stratford and Wisconsin Rapids. How do you handle working at a site you rarely see?

What they are checking: Flexibility and a routine for learning each site's setup and people quickly.

A specimen arrives hemolyzed or with the wrong tube. What do you do?

What they are checking: Knowing when to reject a sample and how to arrange a redraw rather than processing it anyway.

A patient faints during a draw. Walk me through what you do.

What they are checking: Calm, safe response to a common phlebotomy emergency.

Walk me through how you identify a patient and label tubes during a blood draw.

What they are checking: Strict patient identification habits, since a mislabeled specimen can lead to the wrong treatment.

What is the order of draw, and why does it matter?

What they are checking: Basic phlebotomy knowledge that prevents additive contamination and bad results.

How do you process and prepare specimens so they stay stable until testing?

What they are checking: Knowledge of centrifuging, storage and timing that keeps results accurate.

How do you enter lab orders and make sure they match what the provider wanted?

What they are checking: Accuracy in order entry, which affects which tests are actually run.

What certification do you hold, and how do you keep your skills up?

What they are checking: Commitment to the national phlebotomy certification the role requires.