Profitability is becoming inseparable from quality in today’s health care marketplace. Consequently, strong performance on publicly reported quality and caregiver satisfaction data is becoming increasingly crucial to hospice business performance.
Among the most important sources of data is the Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) survey. Patients and families in increasing numbers are using this information when choosing a hospice. Likewise, referral organizations such as hospitals, primary care physicians, and nursing homes are using the data to guide referral and contracting decisions.
“Referral sources are looking at these numbers, and patients and families are looking at them as well,” said Shelly Cartwright, administrator for Apex Hospice and Palliative Care in Chicago. “They are using the CAHPS scores to choose the provider that is going to have the highest quality of care.”
Read the full story here.