Survey Says: How CAHPS Can Help Improve the Patient Experience

The Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) is an annual survey that asks a random sample of Medicare Advantage members about their experiences with their health plan and providers in the past six months.

• CAHPS questions are based on members’ experience and perception — meaning that any patient interaction can impact CAHPS scores.
• The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) considers CAHPS and the member experience to be so important that approximately 25% of a health plan’s Medicare Star Rating is based on the survey scores.

The Medicare CAHPS Survey typically starts in late February and goes until the beginning of June.

CAHPS Measures

There are nine CAHPS measures that are incorporated into a plan’s Star Rating, with four presenting a strong opportunity for providers to positively impact the patient experience:

• Getting Appointments and Care Quickly
• Getting Needed Care
• Care Coordination
• Rating of Health Care Quality

Collaboration Is Key

Collaboration between health plans and providers is key to ensuring that members/patients have positive health care experiences. Providers and practices that have seen high patient satisfaction results generally do the following:

• Follow up with patients after they have seen another provider or specialist.
• Ask about prescription drugs patients may now be taking.
• Share pertinent clinical information with your patient’s other providers through a HIPAA-compliant health information exchange, such as Availity Essentials.
• Assist patients with scheduling tests and referral appointments.
• Let patients know when to expect test results, and how they can access them.

For more information about the Medicare CAHPS Survey, CLICK HERE.