NHS INTERVIEW GUIDE

How to Answer Conflict With a Colleague Questions in an NHS Interview

How to answer conflict, disagreement, difficult colleague and raising concerns questions in NHS interviews, with STAR sample answers for several roles.

Last updated 24 October 2026 · Created by a practising NHS doctor · Independent of the NHS

Quick answer

How do you answer "tell me about a time you had a conflict with a colleague" in an NHS interview?

Pick a real, professional disagreement you helped resolve and explain it with the STAR method. Show that you stayed calm, spoke to the colleague privately, listened to their view and kept patients at the centre. Say when you involved a manager and why. End with a positive result and what you learned, without blaming anyone or naming people.

Key takeaways

Choose a real, low-drama disagreement about work.
Use STAR and spend most time on your actions.
Show listening, privacy and a focus on patients.
Escalate safety, bullying or misconduct concerns.
Keep examples anonymous and blame-free.

To answer "tell me about a time you had a conflict with a colleague" in an NHS interview, choose a real, low-drama disagreement about work, explain it with the STAR method, and show that you stayed calm, listened, spoke to the person privately and put patients first. Finish with a good outcome and what you learned. Panels want evidence of professional, respectful behaviour, not a story about who was right.

This guide explains what panels are looking for, how to pick a suitable example, how to handle related questions about difficult colleagues and raising concerns, and gives sample answers for a nurse, a healthcare assistant, an administrator and a junior doctor. The answers are illustrative examples written for this guide, so adapt them to your own experience.

In this guide

Why do NHS interviews ask about conflict with a colleague?
How do you answer a conflict question using the STAR method?
What is a good example of a conflict with a colleague?
Sample answer: registered nurse (Band 5)
Sample answers for other NHS roles
How do you answer "how would you deal with a difficult colleague?"
How do you answer questions about raising concerns or whistleblowing?
Practice questions on conflict and teamwork
Common mistakes when answering conflict questions
How to prepare for conflict and raising concerns questions

Why do NHS interviews ask about conflict with a colleague?

Panels ask because disagreement is normal in busy teams, and how you handle it affects patient safety, team morale and the working culture. They want to know you can resolve problems maturely and know when to escalate.

The question links directly to the NHS values, especially working together for patients, respect and dignity, and commitment to quality of care. Professional codes from regulators such as the NMC, HCPC and GMC also expect staff to work cooperatively and raise concerns where safety is at risk. A strong answer shows all of this without you having to name every value.

Self-awareness: can you see your own part in a disagreement?
Communication: do you listen, stay calm and speak to people privately?
Patient focus: do you keep the patient or service user at the centre?
Judgement: do you know when to resolve something yourself and when to escalate?

How do you answer a conflict question using the STAR method?

Use STAR: describe the Situation briefly, your Task, the Actions you personally took, and the Result. Spend most of your time on Actions and add a short reflection at the end.

Keep the situation to two or three sentences and avoid blaming language. In the action section, panels like to hear that you chose the right time and place, asked open questions, acknowledged the other person's view, focused on the shared goal and agreed a way forward. If it involved a manager, explain why you involved them.

Situation: where you were and what the disagreement was about.
Task: what you needed to achieve, such as safe care or a working rota.
Action: the specific steps you took, using "I" rather than "we".
Result: what changed, ideally for patients and the team.
Reflection: what you learned or would do differently.

What is a good example of a conflict with a colleague?

A good example is a genuine professional disagreement that you helped resolve respectfully, such as different views about a task, a handover, a workload split or a way of doing something. Avoid personal feuds, anything still unresolved or anything that could identify a patient or colleague.

If you are newly qualified or new to healthcare, examples from placements, university group work, previous jobs or volunteering are all acceptable. The setting matters less than your behaviour.

Sample answer: registered nurse (Band 5)

Example answer: disagreement over a handover (Band 5 nurse)

Situation: On a busy surgical ward, a colleague on the night shift often handed over quickly and missed details such as pending blood results. Twice I found things that needed chasing an hour into my shift.

Task: I wanted handovers to be safe and complete without damaging our working relationship.

Action: I asked if we could have a quick word at the end of a quieter shift. I explained what had happened using facts rather than criticism, and asked how her nights were going. She told me she was often rushing because she was the only registered nurse covering two bays. We agreed to use the ward's structured handover sheet consistently and to flag outstanding tasks first. I also mentioned the staffing pattern to the ward manager in general terms, as I thought it was a wider issue.

Result: Our handovers became clearer and the manager reviewed the night skill mix. We now get on well.

Reflection: I learned to ask about pressures before assuming someone is careless.

Sample answers for other NHS roles

The same structure works across roles. These short outlines show the kind of example that fits.

Healthcare assistant: a colleague wanted to rush a patient's wash before a ward round. You suggested a quick plan for who would cover what so the patient was not hurried, and agreed to raise workload with the nurse in charge.
Admin or receptionist: a colleague kept changing a shared booking process. You suggested a short meeting with the team leader to agree one process and wrote a simple guide everyone could follow.
Junior doctor: you disagreed with a senior colleague about a discharge plan. You presented your concerns respectfully with the clinical facts, accepted the final decision once they were addressed, and documented the discussion.
Allied health professional: a nurse and you had different views on when a patient could mobilise. You discussed it at the bedside huddle, agreed a shared plan and updated the patient together.

How do you answer "how would you deal with a difficult colleague?"

Say that you would first try to understand what is behind the behaviour, then speak to the person privately and calmly, focusing on the impact on patients and the team. If things did not improve, or if the behaviour was bullying, unsafe or discriminatory, you would escalate to your line manager and follow local policy.

This is a hypothetical question, so you can answer with a clear approach, then briefly add a real example if you have one.

How do you answer questions about raising concerns or whistleblowing?

Explain that patient safety comes first, so you would raise a genuine concern promptly, starting with the person in charge or your line manager, recording what you saw factually and following the trust's raising concerns policy. If that did not work, you would use other routes the organisation provides.

Many NHS organisations have Freedom to Speak Up Guardians or similar roles, and arrangements differ across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, so describe the principle and say you would check local policy. Unions and professional bodies such as the RCN, Unison and the BMA can also advise staff. Avoid suggesting you would go straight to social media or the press.

Practice questions on conflict and teamwork

Tell me about a time you had a conflict or disagreement with a colleague.
Describe a time you disagreed with a decision made by a senior colleague.
How would you deal with a difficult colleague?
What would you do if a colleague was rude to a patient?
Tell me about a time you received criticism. How did you respond?
How would you handle a colleague who was not pulling their weight?
What would you do if you were worried about a colleague's practice?
Describe a time you had to raise a concern at work.
How do you build good working relationships in a new team?
Tell me about a time you worked with someone whose style was very different from yours.

Common mistakes when answering conflict questions

Saying you have never had a conflict. It sounds unrealistic and avoids the question.
Criticising the colleague. Keep the tone neutral and factual, even if they were in the wrong.
Making yourself the hero. Show listening and compromise, not just winning the argument.
Arguing in front of patients. Panels want to hear that you moved the conversation somewhere private.
Escalating too fast, or never. Try to resolve minor issues directly, but always escalate safety, bullying or misconduct.
Leaving out the result. Always say how it ended and what you learned.

How to prepare for conflict and raising concerns questions

Prepare two or three real examples: one disagreement you resolved directly, one where you escalated, and one about receiving feedback. Write each in STAR notes, check they contain no identifiable details, then practise saying them out loud with a timer, aiming for around two minutes.

Read the trust's values and its raising concerns policy if it is public. Useful support includes NHS Jobs interview advice, careers services, practice educators, line managers, mentors and your union or professional body. Healthcare Interview Prep is a self-study option with original practice questions and written model answers for 471 NHS roles, with the first 8 questions free per role. It does not offer coaching or mock interviews, so practise aloud with a friend or colleague too.

Frequently asked questions

What should I say if I have never had a conflict at work?

Most people have had at least a small disagreement, such as different views on how to do a task, share workload or plan a rota. Use one of those, or an example from placement, study, volunteering or a previous job. If you genuinely cannot think of one, explain how you would handle it and describe a time you helped resolve a disagreement between others.

Is it okay to talk about a conflict with my manager in an NHS interview?

Yes, as long as you keep it professional and constructive. Explain how you raised your view respectfully, listened to their reasoning and reached a decision or compromise. Avoid examples that suggest an ongoing grievance or that you refuse to accept decisions. Panels want to see that you can challenge appropriately and then work together once concerns have been addressed.

How long should my answer to a conflict question be?

Around two minutes is usually about right when spoken at a calm pace. Keep the situation short, spend most of your time on the actions you took, and finish with the result and a one sentence reflection. If the panel wants more detail they will ask follow-up questions, so you do not need to cover everything at once.

What is the difference between a conflict question and a raising concerns question?

A conflict question is usually about a disagreement between colleagues that you can often resolve by talking. A raising concerns question is about something that may put patients or staff at risk, such as unsafe practice or poor behaviour, which you must report through proper channels. In both, panels want calm communication, honesty and patient safety at the centre.

Should I name the colleague or ward in my conflict example?

No. Keep examples anonymous and avoid details that could identify colleagues, patients or a specific incident. Saying "a colleague on a surgical ward" or "a senior colleague in my previous role" is enough. This shows the panel that you respect confidentiality, which is an important professional standard in every NHS role.

Practice question banks for related NHS roles

Practise with NHS interview questions for your role

Each NHS role on this site has 40 original practice questions with full model answers. The first 8 are free to read, and the rest of a role's bank costs £4.99 with 12 months' access and no subscription.

More NHS interview guides

Healthcare Interview Prep is an independent NHS interview preparation website. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to the NHS. Example questions and answers are original practice material, not official or leaked interview questions.

Healthcare Interview Prep: practice questions and model answers for 471 NHS roles across 11 sectors, created by a practising NHS doctor.