HCAHPS Quality/Performance Measures

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has partnered with the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), another agency in the Department of Health and Human Services, to develop HCAHPS—the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems Survey. CMS is using the 27-question HCAHPS survey (a standardized survey instrument and data collection methodology) to help healthcare consumers make “apples to apples” comparisons of hospital care from the patient perspective. Results from this survey were first published on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) website on March 28, 2008, with data from more than 2,500 hospitals around the country now available as part of this first release.

Griffin's HCAHPS results appear below, along with the average scores from Connecticut hospitals and hospitals across the country for each of the 10 composite HCAHPS categories. The data represent the first full-year of HCAHPS reporting, from April 2007 - March 2008. (Roll your mouse over the text for explanations of the questions that were combined to create each of the composite categories.)

	Griffin	CT Avg	US Avg
Effective Nurse Communications	81%	74%	74%
Effective Doctor Communications	83%	79%	80%
Effective Communication about Medication	64%	57%	59%
Responsiveness of Nursing Services	66%	60%	62%
Discharge Information Provided	83%	80%	80%
Effectiveness of Pain Management	76%	68%	68%
Cleanliness of Room and Bathroom	82%	69%	69%
Quiet at Night	59%	48%	56%
Willingness to Recommend Hospital	80%	70%	68%
Hospital Rating - Percent 9 or 10	74%	63%	64%

 

Griffin originally adopted the HCAHPS patient experience survey instrument as its sole patient satisfaction survey in 2005, and its scores have continued to compare favorably to both Connecticut hospitals and other hospitals participating in the various state and national pilots of the HCAHPS survey tool (see table above). Griffin's historical and fiscal year 2009 year-to-date (FY2009 YTD) HCAHPS scores appear below (Griffin's fiscal year runs from October 1 - September 30). Please note: the scores below are unadjusted; CMS adjusts each hospital's raw HCAHPS scores based on the mode of survey used by the hospital. Griffin uses telephone surveys, which receive the greatest mode adjustment.

	FY09 YTD	FY08	FY07	FY06
Effective Nurse Communications	83.1%	81.4%	87.6%	88.0%
Effective Doctor Communications	81.3%	78.7%	87.3%	90.5%
Effective Communication about Medication	68.4%	63.0%	73.4%	82.1%
Responsiveness of Nursing Services	65.1%	64.9%	73.0%	77.4%
Discharge Information Provided	81.5%	83.1%	83.8%	87.5%
Effectiveness of Pain Management	75.1%	75.9%	81.6%	85.2%
Cleanliness of Room and Bathroom	84.7%	82.3%	86.0%	87.6%
Quiet at Night	61.3%	61.4%	68.5%	64.4%
Willingness to Recommend Hospital	83.9%	80.9%	86.9%	85.7%
Hospital Rating - Percent 9 or 10	75.4%	73.4%	77.1%	74.0%

 

The Importance of Patient Centered Care

A fundamental belief at Griffin is that to provide an exceptional patient experience every employee is considered a caregiver. The hospital also believes that a patient’s HCAHPS overall rating is based on the total hospital experience and includes the many unique aspects of the Planetree patient-centered care model.  This unique Planetree experience includes amenity services such as: volunteers baking muffins and cookies in residential kitchens on patient units; gentle had rubs provided to patients; live entertainment, including musicians and artists on nursing units; and the hospital’s therapy dog visitation program.

Griffin continues to dedicate its efforts at the department level and through interdisciplinary groups to create an exceptional patient experience. The hospital appreciates the feedback it receives from its patients and visitors, which it uses to further improve its care processes. If you would like to provide feedback on your Griffin Hospital experience please email us.