What You Can Do To Help Improve CAPHS® Survey Results

February 2024

What You Can Do To Help Improve CAHPS^® Survey Results

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois conducts an annual Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems survey with its Blue Cross Community Health Plans^SM and Blue Cross Community MMAI (Medicare-Medicaid Plan)^SM members. The aim of the survey is to monitor the members’ experience and their satisfaction with BCBSIL and its contracted providers and medical groups. The results of the CAHPS survey are used as a quality improvement initiative to help identify opportunities for improving member satisfaction.

Each year, the survey is mailed in the month(s) of February/March to randomly selected members. It instructs the members to rate their experience with the care they received in the last six months. Examples of topics and questions addressed in the survey are listed below, with an emphasis on domains where providers have the most impact.

Survey Category/Topic	Sample Questions
Getting Needed Care	How often was it easy to get the care, tests or treatment you needed? How often did you get an appointment to see a specialist as soon as you needed to?
Getting Care Quickly	When you needed care right away, how often did you get care as soon as you needed it? When you made an appointment for a check-up or routine care visit at a doctor’s office or clinic, how often did you get an appointment as soon as you needed it?
How Well Doctor Communicates	How often did your personal doctor explain things in a way that was easy to understand? How often did your personal doctor listen carefully to you? How often did your personal doctor spend enough time with you?
Care Coordination	Did your personal doctor seem informed and up-to date about the care you got from other health providers?
Smoking Cessation	Did your provider ask if you smoke or use tobacco and if so, advise you to quit and discuss medications and strategies?

What You Can Do To Help Improve CAHPS Survey Results:
BCBSIL is currently in a “look-back period,” and we strongly encourage any efforts to improve results. Here are some recommendations that may help you and your staff with improving BCCHP^SM and MMAI member satisfaction:

Ensure availability of walk-in appointments in the morning/evening hours for urgent care.
Spend enough time with patients and explain things in a way they can understand easily.
Assist patients in scheduling appointments with specialists.
Follow up with members’ specialists to ensure continuity of care.
Provide patients with educational materials.
Discuss available treatment and medication options with patients.
Encouraging patients to get a flu shot this year.
At the end of each visit, review the treatment plan, discuss with your patient reasons why and why not to take medications, and list all available treatment options.
Consider performing a preventive health care visit during a sick visit if time and indications allow.
Educate patients about preventive illnesses.

Encourage Your Patients To Participate
During the months of February and March, if your patients receive a survey, please encourage them to complete it and return it using the enclosed pre-paid envelope.

For more information on CAHPS, please review the provider resources on our HEDIS^® Medicaid (BCCHP/MMAI) page. Also refer to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality website.

Physicians and other health care providers should use their own medical judgment based upon all available information and the condition of the patient in determining the appropriate course of treatment.

BLUE REVIEW^SM

for Providers

What You Can Do To Help Improve CAHPS^® Survey Results

BLUE REVIEWSM

for Providers

What You Can Do To Help Improve CAHPS® Survey Results

BLUE REVIEW^SM

What You Can Do To Help Improve CAHPS^® Survey Results