CMS approves RMS to administer patient-satisfaction surveys

BALDWINSVILLE, N.Y. — The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has approved Research & Marketing Strategies Inc. (RMS) to administer a patient-satisfaction survey between November and February.

Its RMS Healthcare division will handle the administration of the surveys.

RMS, based in Baldwinsville, will administer the consumer assessment for health-care providers (CAHPS) for group practices participating in the physician quality reporting system (PQRS).

The CAHPS program is a registered trademark of the Agency for Healthcare Quality Research (AHRQ), RMS said in a news release.

AHRQ is part of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.

Physician groups participating in CMS’ physician quality-reporting system initiative are required to select a CMS-authorized survey vendor to administer a patient-experience survey by Sept. 22, RMS said in the release.

CMS devised the CAHPS for PQRS survey to “capture patient-experience feedback about the care they received from group practices,” RMS said.

The yearly CAHPS for PQRS survey collects data through a series of survey mailings and follow-up phone calls to measure patient experience.

Approved survey vendors must “adhere to strict protocols and processes” in the survey administration to ensure that “all patients are receiving the survey in a consistent manner so that accurate comparisons can be made,” according to the RMS news release.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com