Patients can now share and rate their experiences with home health care facilities and providers through the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' (CMS) new rating system, called the Home Health Care Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HHCAHPS) Survey.
On the web-based survey, patients are asked to rate several facets of home health care with one to five stars.
“Having the HHCAHPS Survey star ratings on Home Health Compare helps patients and their families make more informed health care decisions and encourages home health agencies to strive for higher levels of quality and patient experience,” Dr. Patrick Conway, CMS deputy administrator and chief medical officer, said. “We hope patients and their families find this information helpful and visit our other provider-comparison websites.”
More than 11,000 home health care agencies are participating in the rating program. There are currently ratings listed for about 6,000 of them.
Patients can rank home health providers in nine quality measure areas, including care of patients, communication between providers and patients, specific care issues and overall rating of care provided by agency. Patients are also encouraged to write summaries of the care received.
To access the ratings or the survey, visit Medicare's home page.
