As our healthcare system continues its move toward an outcome/ value-based environment, patient feedback regarding their personal experience will undoubtedly become increasingly important. A critical indicator of patient satisfaction is HCAHPS, or Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems.
This national standardized survey measures patient perceptions of the quality of care they receive at acute-care hospitals. Every day, more than 7,900 patients complete the HCAHPS survey. Recently, these scores have begun to be used to calculate incentive payments for hospital reimbursement.
Under the value-based purchasing program, hospitals could be financially penalized for low HCAHPS scores. Historically, healthcare hasn’t been held to the same standards as the hospitality industry. However, as this new trend continues, patient satisfaction will be an increasingly important parameter that will affect who will be rewarded or penalized. This growing financial impact of HCAHPS is pressing healthcare leaders to explore ways to improve their scores.
Communication can be one of the biggest areas for improvement in HCAHPS scores. Constant and effective communication is crucial between both patients and providers and also between providers themselves.
Improved communication channels can prevent the disconnect that often leads to lower patient satisfaction rates and HCAHPS scores.
Giving patients and families a way to communicate and receive updates from their provider’s increases HCAHPS scores. As the modern and innovative way to communicate and truly connect families, physicians, and health care workers, Care Link Health model positively contributes to workflow efficiencies, increasing patient and family satisfaction.
We create a more efficient workflow among providers and a more satisfactory experience for patients and families, leading to higher HCAHPS scores.
