Consumers can now compare results from home health agencies (HHA) patient surveys on the Quality Care Finder website. These results are designed to create incentives for HHAs to improve quality of care, as well as to give patients additional information as to the type of care they will receive from a particular agency. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) also states one of the goals of such public reporting is to enhance accountability by increasing transparency.
The Home Health Care Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HHCAHPS) Survey, which will be updated every four months with new survey data, will complement the clinical measures already available on the agency’s Home Health Compare website.
The HHCAHPS is a survey that collects feedback on topics that patients have identified as important to them in determining which home health agencies provide high-quality care. For example, the survey asks patients about the care they received from their home health agency, including such topics as overall care; provider communication skills; whether care was provided in a courteous and respectful way; and whether the agency discussed medicines, pain, and home safety.
A prospective patient or caregiver will be able to review and compare feedback from other patients about Medicare-certified home health agencies’ care of patients, communication between providers and patients, as well as the specific care issues identified on the survey. Ratings include an overall rating of home health care and a patient’s willingness to recommend the agency to someone else.
Should you have any questions, please contact:
Todd Selby at 317.977.1440 or tselby@wp.hallrender.com;
Brian Jent at 317.977.1402 or bjent@wp.hallrender.com; or
David Bufford at 502.568.9368 or dbufford@wp.hallrender.com,
or your regular Hall Render attorney.
