OAS CAHPS Preview Reports Available for Quarter 4, 2017 – Quarter 3, 2018
folder_openPublic Reportingcalendar_todayPosted April 15, 2019

The purpose of this announcement is to alert hospital outpatient departments (HOPDs) and ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) that Preview Reports reflecting results from the Outpatient and Ambulatory Surgery CAHPS (OAS CAHPS) Survey from October 2017 through September 2018 (2017, Q4 - 2018, Q3) are now available on the OAS CAHPS website (https://oascahps.org/).

The following are some questions and answers about the Preview Reports. More information about the OAS CAHPS Survey Preview Reports, can be found in the Understanding the Preview Reports link under the "For Facilities" menu.

1. Who has access to a facility's Preview Report?
   Hospitals and ASCs participating in the OAS CAHPS Survey have access to their own reports. The Preview Report is not available to the OAS CAHPS Survey vendor or to anyone other than the facility staff registered through the https://oascahps.org website. If facility staff want to share the Preview Report with their OAS CAHPS Survey vendor or with anyone else, they can export the results to a Microsoft Excel File and distribute it.
2. How does a facility user access its Preview Report?
   The Preview Reports are posted on the secured (private) link on https://oascahps.org/. To access a facility's report, an authorized user must first log into the OAS CAHPS website with the registered username and password. Then, select the "Survey Preview Report" link under the "For Facilities" menu. All of the user's registered CMS Certification Numbers (CCNs) are displayed on the Preview Report webpage for review.
3. What results are shown in the Preview Reports?
   For each CCN, the Preview Report shows the results for each variable and measure shown below:
   1. The number of patients who were sampled; the number of completed surveys; and the response rate percentage during the reporting period;
   2. The percentage of patients who rated the overall care they received at the HOPD or ASC a "9" or "10" on a scale of 0 (worst care possible) to 10 (best care possible);
   3. The percentage of patients who reported YES, they would definitely recommend the HOPD or ASC to friends and family;
   4. The percentage of patients who reported that the HOPD or ASC staff gave care in a professional way and the facility was clean;
   5. The percentage of patients who reported that the HOPD or ASC staff definitely communicated with them about what to expect during and after the procedure; and
   6. The percentage of patients who reported that the HOPD or ASC staff definitely gave them information about what to do if they had pain, nausea or vomiting, bleeding, or possible signs of infection as a result of the procedure or the anesthesia, if any of these outcomes were experienced. NOTE: While CMS reviews the data, Composite 3 will not be publicly reported on data.medicare.gov. At this time, this composite score is only available directly to each facility through the Preview Report.

   More information about the OAS CAHPS Survey measures in the Preview Reports can be found in Chapter XIV of the OAS CAHPS Survey Protocols and Guidelines Manual available under the Survey Materials menu.

4. Which sample months are included in the Preview Report results?
   The results included in the current Preview Report are based on OAS CAHPS Survey response data from patients who had an outpatient surgery or procedure between October 2017 and September 2018. The future anticipated public reporting periods are provided in Table 14.2 of the OAS CAHPS Survey Protocols and Guidelines Manual.
5. My facility participated in the OAS CAHPS Survey, but there are no results shown. Why?
   OAS CAHPS Survey results are publicly reported when an HOPD or ASC has 4 quarters of OAS CAHPS Survey data. An HOPD or ASC must have had survey response data (patients who responded to the survey) in all 4 quarters included in the public reporting period for results to be publicly reported.
6. Where are OAS CAHPS Survey results publicly posted?
   The OAS CAHPS Survey data are publicly available in three locations:
   • on data.medicare.gov (by clicking on "Hospital Compare data" box [under "Explore & download data" header] and then searching the term "OAS CAHPS");
   • through Hospital Compare (direct link to OAS CAHPS data: https://www.medicare.gov/hospitalcompare/OASCAHPS-measures.html ); and
   • via downloadable databases on data.medicare.gov.

   You can access OAS CAHPS Survey results at the facility, state and national levels on any of the locations provided above.

7. Will these results be published on a CMS website?
   Yes. The next public reporting period for the OAS CAHPS Survey will include the data currently available in the Preview Report (2017, Q4 - 2018, Q3). An announcement will be posted on this website when data have been posted to the data.medicare.gov website.
   

   Please note that the Preview Report is a subset of the data that will be posted on data.medicare.gov. The data that will be publicly reported on data.medicare.gov will include top-, middle-, and bottom-box scores and linearized scores. The format of the data provided on the Preview Report matches what will be posted on the Compare site (on Medicare.gov) in the future.

8. When is the "preview" period?
   HOPD and ASCs that are participating in the OAS CAHPS Survey are able to preview their survey results each reporting period on the OAS CAHPS website at least two weeks prior to when the OAS CAHPS Survey results are publicly reported on the CMS website. An announcement is posted each quarter when the data on the Preview Report have been refreshed and are ready for review.

Please contact the Coordination Team via e-mail at oascahps@rti.org or call toll-free (866) 590-7468, if you have any questions.