Special CAHPS Expertise

CSS regularly acts in a consulting capacity for the organizations we serve. We provide information and recommendations based on our extensive experience in surveys and other types of research. According to the needs of our clients, we design surveys from scratch, modify and adapt existing surveys, or implement nationally standardized surveys in the most efficient way to produce the most useful possible results.

Among nationally standardized surveys, we have special expertise in CAHPS surveys.

• We have been certified by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) to perform the HEDIS/CAHPS surveys for health plans since the NCQA certification program began in 1999. CSS has submitted over 100 HEDIS/CAHPS survey samples per year to NCQA since 1999 and 250 samples per year since 2008.
• We have been a leader in fielding the Clinician/Group (Ambulatory) CAHPS surveys, administering the survey for large state-wide organizations, medical groups, and for CSS's own survey of patients about physicians
  (see www.checkbook.org/patientcentral).
• We are approved by CMS to conduct the Hospital CAHPS (HCAHPS) and Home Health CAHPS (HHCAHPS) surveys.

We advise the organizations we serve on ways to improve the efficiency of the survey process and to make surveys and other types of research results most useful. Our advice on materials and survey protocols is often based on rigorously done, controlled experiments in which we have assessed the effects of various protocol options on scores, response rates, and costs.

We work closely with each client to specify data analysis plans and reports, based on our extensive experience with other clients, our statistical expertise, and creative interaction between our staff and client staff.

Throughout every project, a senior CSS project director and other appropriate CSS staff members are in regular contact with the client.