Jobs › Northwestern Medicine

Staff Nurse Inpatient-PACU Part-time Days

Northwestern Medicine · McHenry, IL · Part time · Health Care Provider

Posted Sep 22, 2026 · We last checked this listing on Oct 6, 2026

Apply at Northwestern Medicine

Likely interview questions for this role

Written from this job description, not a generic list. Each one notes what the interviewer is really checking.

About your past

Tell me about a time a post-op patient got worse quickly. What did you notice first?

What they are checking: Whether they pick up early warning signs and escalate clearly, which is the core skill in recovery nursing.

The posting mentions shared governance and unit projects. Tell me about a time you helped improve how your unit worked.

What they are checking: Whether they contribute beyond their own assignment and care about how the whole unit performs.

What would you do

Your patient's oxygen saturation drops into the 80s and they're hard to arouse. What are you thinking and what do you do?

What they are checking: Whether they can spot airway compromise or oversedation quickly and act before it becomes a code.

This is a part-time role. How do you stay current on procedures and protocols when you're not on the unit every day?

What they are checking: Whether they take responsibility for keeping skills sharp in a high-acuity area despite fewer shifts.

A patient wakes up confused and agitated and starts pulling at their lines. How do you handle it?

What they are checking: Whether they can keep an emergence-delirium patient safe while ruling out medical causes like low oxygen.

A family member is anxious and keeps calling for updates while the patient is still recovering. How do you handle that?

What they are checking: Whether they can communicate kindly with families while protecting time for direct patient care.

About the work

Walk me through what you do in the first few minutes when a patient rolls into PACU from the OR.

What they are checking: Whether they have a fast, ordered assessment routine covering airway, vitals, pain and the anesthesia handoff.

How do you decide a patient is ready to leave PACU for the floor?

What they are checking: Whether they know discharge criteria and scoring well enough to avoid sending an unstable patient out too early.

How do you manage a patient's pain right after surgery when they're also at risk for respiratory depression?

What they are checking: Whether they can balance comfort and safety with opioids and use reassessment rather than guessing.

How do you give a handoff report to the floor nurse so nothing important gets lost?

What they are checking: Whether they deliver structured, complete reports that protect patients during one of the riskiest transitions in the hospital.

Practice this interview out loud.

Offer builds a real interview for this exact role at Northwestern Medicine from your resume and this job description, asks the questions one at a time, and tells you what landed. The first one is free.

Practice this out loud

The full job description

As published by Northwestern Medicine.

The Staff Nurse Inpatient reflects the mission, vision, and values of NM, adheres to the organization’s Code of Ethics and Corporate Compliance Program, and complies with all relevant policies, procedures, guidelines and all other regulatory and accreditation standards. A clinically competent, registered, professional nurse who prescribes, delegates and coordinates nursing care to the acutely ill patient through the nursing process of assessment, planning, intervention, implementation and evaluation. Effectively interacts with patient, significant others, and other health team members, while maintaining ANA standards of professional nursing practice. Responsibilities: • Collects and analyzes data, identifies expected outcomes, develops and implements an individualized plan, coordinates care delivery and evaluates progress toward attainment of outcomes. • Directs care and determines the appropriate utilization of any assistant involved in providing direct patient care. • Collaborates with patient, family, physicians and ancillary staff. Creates a documented plan, focused on outcomes and decisions related to the care and delivery of services that indicates communications with patients, families, and others. • Participates in shared governance, committee work, and unit projects. • Evaluates and documents the patient’s responses to nursing interventions in the health record and properly individualizes the plan of care based on the evaluation of findings. • Utilizes the best available evidence, including research findings to guide practice decisions. Required : • Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) • Current State of Illinois Registered Professional Nurse • American Heart Association Basic Life Support (BLS) • Strong interpersonal skills • Ability to collaborate with others • Strong analytic abilities *Associate Degree Nursing (ADN) acceptable with commitment to obtain a BSN from an accredited program within three years of first day of employment in clinical nurse role. Preferred: • Experience in specific clinical area • Additional Preferences for the Emergency Room and the Pediatric Emergency Room • Trauma Nurse Specialist (TNS) • Emergency Communications Registered Nurse • Certified Pediatric Nurse • Certified Emergency Nurse Northwestern Medicine is an equal opportunity employer (disability, VETS) and does not discriminate in hiring or employment on the basis of age, sex, race, color, religion, national origin, gender identity, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation or any other protected status. Background Check Northwestern Medicine conducts a background check that includes criminal history on newly hired team members and, at times, internal transfers. If you are offered a position with us, you will be required to complete an authorization and disclosure form that gives Northwestern Medicine permission to run the background check. Results are evaluated on a case-by-case basis, and we follow all local, state, and federal laws, including the Illinois Health Care Worker Background Check Act. Artificial Intelligence Disclosure Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools may be used in some portions of the candidate review process for this position, however, all employment decisions will be made by a person. Benefits We offer a wide range of benefits that provide employees with tools and resources to improve their physical, emotional, and financial well-being while providing protection for unexpected life events. Click on or copy and paste URL to your browser to view detailed benefits information NorthwesternMedicine Career Page https://jobs.nm.org/benefits Please refer to the Benefits Eligibility by Employment Classification to determine benefits eligibility for job postings. If sign-on bonus is included in a job posting eligibility is as followed: Internal employees and rehires who left Northwestern Medicine within 1 year are not eligible for the sign-on bonus. Exception : New graduate internal employees seeking their first licensed clinical position as a Registered Nurse at NM may be eligible.

Apply at Northwestern Medicine