HHCAHPS 101

There are millions of patients receiving care in the home every year across the country; this care ranges from skilled nursing to specialized nursing, therapy services etc. With so many patients receiving care, one begins to wonder if the quality of care and patient satisfaction is measured, and how it occurs.  The Home Health (HH) Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS®) Survey is designed to do just this for Home Health agencies – “measure the experiences of people receiving home health care from Medicare-certified home health agencies.” ¹

What is HHCAHPS?

“The Home Health Care (HH) Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) Survey is the first national standardized and publicly reported survey of home health care patients’ perspectives of their skilled home care.” ² Prior to the national implementation of the HHCAPS survey in 2009, the Quality Initiative was launched for nursing homes in November 2002 and was expanded to hospitals and home health agencies nationally in 2003. The Quality Initiative sought “to ensure quality health care for all Americans through accountability and public disclosure.” ³ The HHCAHPS survey was endorsed by the National Quality Forum in March 2009, and begun reporting results publicly in 2012 on the Home Health Compare site. The survey is required of all Medicare licensed agencies that serve 60 or more patients over the previous 12 months. However, patients who serve fewer than 60 patients and other agencies providing care in the home are encouraged to participate in the survey helping the agency focus on delivering patient outcomes and satisfaction, ultimately improving quality of patient care and the agency’s bottom line.

The HHCAHPS Survey has 3 fundamental goals:

1. Attain comparable data from the patient’s perspective that allows consumers compare home health agencies.
2. Increase incentive for agencies to improve quality of care.
3. Improve accountability and foster transparency.

The HHCAHPS survey is a “34-item questionnaire and data collection methodology to measure patients’ perceptions of their skilled home care” ⁴, and is carried out by a CMS approved HHCAHPS vendor. The 34 questions in the HHCAHPS survey cover topics such as “communication about care, pain… global ratings” ⁵ etc .The survey is carried out via mail only, telephone only and mixed mode (mail and telephone); and can be completed by the patient or the patient’s proxy.

Why HHCAHPS is important

Participation in HHCAHPS survey is paramount to home health agency’s success as the results of the survey help home health agencies:

• Ensure compliance with existing CAHPS requirements and best practice standards.
• Improve patient outcomes by learning what patients really think of the care provided.
• Identify areas for improvement and gain competitive advantage.
• Increase revenues by getting referrals from satisfied patients.
• Benchmark and compare patient’s experience performance to your peers.

Overall, the HHCHAPS survey benefits agencies and the public alike. The survey promotes transparency in patient care and helps the public make informed decision on selecting a home health agency based on quality. Health agencies providing care in the home can benefit from the survey as the results help elevate and focus their attention on delivering quality patient care, and improving care for millions across the country.

Links

1. https://homehealthcahps.org/Default.aspx?tabid=88
2. http://cms.gov/Research-Statistics-Data-and-Systems/Research/CAHPS/hhcahps.html
3. https://homehealthcahps.org/Default.aspx?tabid=88
4. http://cms.gov/Research-Statistics-Data-and-Systems/Research/CAHPS/hhcahps.html
5. http://cms.gov/Research-Statistics-Data-and-Systems/Research/CAHPS/hhcahps.html