Hcahps: Public Hospitals Only?

The HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems) survey is the first national, standardized, publicly reported survey of patients' perspectives of hospital care. Hospitals must survey patients throughout each month of the year, and the survey can be administered in four ways: mail-only, telephone-only, mail with telephone follow-up, and interactive voice response (IVR). The survey is designed to produce data about patients' perspectives of care that allow objective and meaningful comparisons of hospitals on topics that are important to consumers. HCAHPS surveys are believed to accurately assess the primary drivers of adult inpatient satisfaction and provide a standard and objective comparison of a hospital's performance relative to other hospitals.

HCAHPS surveys are available in multiple languages and can be administered in four ways

The HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems) survey is the first national, standardized, publicly reported survey of patients' perspectives on hospital care. It is a survey instrument and data collection methodology for measuring patients' perceptions of their hospital experience. HCAHPS surveys are available in official English, Spanish, Chinese, Russian, Vietnamese, Portuguese and German versions.

HCAHPS surveys can be administered in four ways:

• Mail-only
• Telephone-only
• Mail with telephone follow-up
• Interactive voice response (IVR), an automated phone system that communicates with respondents through voice and dial pad

Hospitals may either use an approved survey vendor or collect their own HCAHPS data (if approved by CMS to do so). HCAHPS surveys are administered on an ongoing basis and are triggered by a patient’s discharge after an inpatient hospital stay. Hospitals implement HCAHPS under the auspices of the Hospital Quality Alliance (HQA), a private/public partnership that includes major hospital and medical associations, consumer groups, measurement and accrediting bodies, government, and other groups that share an interest in improving hospital quality.

HCAHPS surveys offer patients the opportunity to provide input on the care they experienced during an inpatient stay, from the bedside to discharge. These insights can help hospital leaders better understand patient needs and address areas for improvement. As these survey results are publicly available on Care Compare, they can help patients make more informed decisions when choosing a hospital.

HCAHPS survey results are publicly available and help patients make informed decisions

HCAHPS, or Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems, is the first national, standardized, publicly reported survey of patients' perspectives on hospital care. It is a survey instrument and data collection methodology for measuring patients' perceptions of their hospital experience. The survey is designed to produce data about patients' perspectives of care that allow objective and meaningful comparisons of hospitals on topics that are important to consumers.

The HCAHPS survey was endorsed by the National Quality Forum in May 2005. In December 2005, the federal Office of Management and Budget gave its final approval for the national implementation of HCAHPS for public reporting purposes. CMS implemented the survey in October 2006, and the first public reporting of HCAHPS results occurred in March 2008. The survey, its methodology, and the results it produces are in the public domain.

HCAHPS surveys offer patients the opportunity to provide input on the care they experienced during an inpatient stay, from the bedside to discharge. These insights can help hospital leaders better understand patient needs and address areas for improvement. As these survey results are publicly available on Care Compare, they can help patients make more informed decisions when choosing a hospital.

The HCAHPS survey asks discharged patients 29 questions about their recent hospital stay. The survey contains 19 core questions about critical aspects of patients' hospital experiences, including communication with nurses and doctors, the responsiveness of hospital staff, the cleanliness and quietness of the hospital environment, communication about medicines, discharge information, overall rating of the hospital, and whether they would recommend the hospital.

To ensure that publicly reported HCAHPS scores allow fair and accurate comparisons across hospitals, it is necessary to adjust for factors that are not directly related to hospital performance but which affect how patients answer survey items. These adjustments eliminate any advantage or disadvantage in scores that might result from the survey mode employed or from characteristics of patients that are beyond a hospital's control.

Hospitals implement HCAHPS under the Hospital Quality Alliance, a private/public partnership

The HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems) survey is the first national, standardized, publicly reported survey of patients' perspectives on hospital care. It is a survey instrument and data collection methodology for measuring patients' perceptions of their hospital experience. HCAHPS surveys offer patients the opportunity to provide input on the care they experienced during an inpatient stay, from the bedside to discharge.

Hospitals implement HCAHPS under the Hospital Quality Alliance (HQA), a private/public partnership that includes major hospital and medical associations, consumer groups, measurement and accrediting bodies, government, and other groups that share an interest in improving hospital quality. The HQA is a national public-private collaboration that is committed to making meaningful, relevant, and easily understood information about hospital performance accessible to the public and to informing and encouraging efforts to improve quality.

The three broad goals that have shaped HCAHPS are:

• The survey is designed to produce data about patients' perspectives of care that allow objective and meaningful comparisons of hospitals on topics that are important to consumers.
• Public reporting of the survey results creates new incentives for hospitals to improve the quality of care.
• Public reporting serves to enhance accountability in health care by increasing transparency about the quality of hospital care provided in return for the public investment.

HCAHPS surveys can be administered in four ways: mail-only, telephone-only, mail with telephone follow-up, and interactive voice response (IVR), an automated phone system that communicates with respondents through voice and dial pad. Hospitals must survey patients throughout each month of the year. The survey is available in official English, Spanish, Chinese, Russian, Vietnamese, Portuguese and German versions.

HCAHPS survey results affect CMS reimbursement to hospitals

The Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey is a tool used by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to assess inpatient satisfaction and the quality of care provided by hospitals. The survey, which was first implemented in 2006, asks discharged patients 29 questions about their recent hospital stay, including communication with staff, the responsiveness of staff, the cleanliness and quietness of the environment, and discharge information.

HCAHPS is the first national, standardized, publicly reported survey of patients' perspectives on hospital care. The survey is designed to produce data that allows for objective and meaningful comparisons of hospitals on topics that are important to consumers. The public reporting of survey results creates new incentives for hospitals to improve the quality of care and enhances accountability in healthcare by increasing transparency.

The HCAHPS survey is administered in four ways: mail-only, telephone-only, mail with telephone follow-up, and interactive voice response (IVR). Hospitals must survey patients throughout each month of the year, and the survey is available in multiple languages, including English, Spanish, Chinese, Russian, Vietnamese, Portuguese, and German. The survey is implemented under the Hospital Quality Alliance (HQA), a private-public partnership that includes major hospital and medical associations, consumer groups, measurement and accrediting bodies, and government groups, all working together to improve hospital quality.

HCAHPS survey questions cover topics such as communication, responsiveness, cleanliness, and pain management

The HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems) survey is the first national, standardized, publicly reported survey of patients' perspectives on hospital care. It is a survey instrument and data collection methodology for measuring patients' perceptions of their hospital experience. HCAHPS is implemented under the Hospital Quality Alliance (HQA), a private/public partnership that includes major hospital and medical associations, consumer groups, measurement and accrediting bodies, government, and other groups that aim to improve hospital quality.

• Communication with nurses and doctors
• Responsiveness of hospital staff
• Cleanliness and quietness of the hospital environment
• Communication about medicines
• Discharge information
• Overall rating of the hospital
• Whether they would recommend the hospital

The survey also includes items to direct patients to relevant questions, adjust for the mix of patients across hospitals, and support Congressionally-mandated reports. HCAHPS can be administered in four different modes: mail, telephone, mail with telephone follow-up, or active interactive voice recognition (IVR). It is available in English, Spanish, Chinese, Russian, Vietnamese, Portuguese, and German.

Frequently asked questions