Update:  CMS tells HHL "there was an issue the first day in how the data were loaded.  It was fixed on Friday.  The data are correct as posted now."

 

Update:  Two of the publicly reported measures appear to have been changed. When the scores were first reported on Home Health Compare, a composite that measures how well providers and patients communicated had the highest score, at 87%. The second-highest score of 86% was assigned to a composite based on questions about the overall care of patients. Those scores have since been switched. HHL is seeking a response from CMS about why the change was made and which combination of scores is correct.

CMS has released the formula it used to adjust the publicly reported patient satisfaction data on Home Health Compare.

The document shows CMS considered factors such as patients' average age, education and diagnoses.

CMS used data from experiments in 2009 and 2010 to assess how patient characteristics influenced patients' responses to survey questions, and adjusted the scores to account for individual patients with those characteristics.

For example, CMS found that patients with a diagnosis of schizophrenia were 5.4% less likely to give a positive response on the question that asked whether patients would recommend the agency. As a result, CMS applied an adjustment factor of +5.4% to each patient with that diagnosis on that question.

The federal Medicare agency also adjusted the scores to take into consideration each agency's patient mix. For example, scores would have been adjusted based on each agency's population of schizophrenic patients when compared to the national average.

Find the risk adjustment formula here.

CMS reports first set of patient satisfaction scores

The Home Health Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HH-CAHPS) data show that the weakest measure for agencies is the so-called “likelihood to recommend” question, with a national average score of 80%. That question measures what percentage of patients surveyed responded “yes” to a question about whether they would recommend the agency to friends and family.

The most successful measure for agencies, at 87%, is one which combines responses to several questions on how well the agency communciated with the patient.

This first set of publicly reported data reflects survey results from October 2010 through September 2011. The data will be refreshed quarterly.

In addition to the satisfaction scores, CMS also updated OASIS-based outcomes and process measure data.

To view your scores, go here. For ongoing updates on this issue, stay tuned to this page.