Caregiver interview guide: structured questions and notes
By Scott McKenzie, founder of Home Care Agency Blueprint · Updated
Ask every candidate for the same job the same sixteen questions, and note how clearly each one is answered. Structured questions make interviews easier to compare and keep them focused on the job. The guide records notes only; it does not score candidates or tell you whom to hire.
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Mark each answer Clear answer, Partial answer, Follow up or Skipped. Questions you leave blank stay Not asked.
Reliability and availability
1. This job includes the shifts we need covered [name them]. Which of these can you reliably work?
Your own planning
2. Tell me about a time you were going to be late or miss a shift. What did you do?
Your own planning
3. This job requires getting to clients’ homes across the area we serve. Can you meet that requirement?
Your own planning
Care experience
4. Describe the care tasks you have done in past jobs, or for someone you cared for.
Your own planning
5. Tell me about a person you cared for who was hard to work with. How did you handle it?
Your own planning
6. What would you do if a client refused help with a task in their care plan?
Your own planning
Judgment and safety
7. You arrive and find the client on the floor. Walk me through what you would do.
Your own planning
8. A family member asks you to do something that is not in the care plan. What do you do?
Your own planning
9. What would you do if you saw signs that a client might be neglected, mistreated or exploited?
Your own planning
10. How do you protect a client’s privacy and personal information?
Your own planning
Communication and boundaries
11. How would you tell the office about a change in a client’s condition or mood?
Your own planning
12. A client offers you a gift or money. How do you respond?
Your own planning
13. How do you handle a disagreement with a coworker or supervisor?
Your own planning
Role fit
14. Why do you want to work in home care?
Your own planning
15. Can you perform the essential functions of this job, as described in the job description, with or without reasonable accommodation?
Source: EEOC, Job applicants and the ADA
16. What questions do you have about the job, the schedule or how we support caregivers?
Your own planning
How to use the interview guide
- Print a blank copy, or open the guide on a tablet, before the interview.
- Ask every candidate for the same job the same questions, in the same order.
- Mark each answer Clear answer, Partial answer or Follow up, and write short, job-related notes.
- Print or download the notes, then press Reset before the next candidate.
- Compare candidates using your notes, references and background checks together, not the counts alone.
Questions to avoid
Health, disability and medications
Before a conditional job offer, do not ask about disabilities, medical conditions, prescription drugs, past injuries or workers’ compensation claims. You can describe the job and ask whether the candidate can perform its essential functions, with or without reasonable accommodation.
Source: EEOC, Job applicants and the ADA; EEOC, Pre-employment medical questions
Marriage, children and childcare
Do not ask about marital status, children or childcare to find out whether someone can work a schedule. Describe the shifts the job requires and ask whether the candidate can work them.
Source: EEOC, Pre-employment inquiries (marital status, children)
Protected traits
Do not ask about race, color, religion, national origin, age or genetic information, including family medical history. None of these tells you whether someone is qualified.
After the interview
Check references with the same questions for each finalist, then move to background checks. Make any offer in writing and conditional on the checks that are still pending. If you ask medical questions or require a medical exam after an offer, the EEOC says you must ask the same of everyone offered the same type of job.
Where your notes are stored
Your notes are saved only in this browser on this device. They are never sent to us. Keep notes short and job-related, print or download them for your hiring records, and press Reset before the next candidate.
Your state sets the details. Federal rules set a floor for recruiting, background checks and hiring paperwork. States and cities can add their own rules, such as caregiver background checks, registry listings, training before client contact, limits on how criminal history is used, and wage rules. Check with your state licensing agency and state labor agency. For licensing items, homecarelicenseguide.com, also published by Home Care Agency Blueprint, collects each state’s sources.
Frequently asked questions
Can I ask whether a candidate can work weekends or overnights?
Yes, if the job requires it. Describe the schedule and ask whether the candidate can work it. Ask every candidate the same way, and do not ask about marriage, children or childcare to get at the same answer.
Should I write down answers word for word?
Short, job-related notes are enough. Keep them with your hiring records. EEOC rules require covered employers to keep hiring records, including for people not hired, for one year.
Want to talk through your options?
A free 15-minute clarity call with Home Care Agency Blueprint. It helps people start home care agencies, so expect that perspective. You do not need a hiring plan first.
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