The Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) Hospice Survey was designed to measure and assess the experiences of patients who died while receiving hospice care, as well as the experiences of their informal primary caregivers. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) developed the CAHPS Hospice Survey with input from many stakeholders, including other government agencies, industry stakeholders, consumer groups, and other key individuals and organizations involved in hospice care.
Since the CAHPS Hospice Survey focuses on experiences of care, implementation of the survey supports the following national priorities for improving care: involving patients and families in care and promoting effective communication and coordination.
The standardized 47 question CAHPS Hospice Survey instrument is composed of the following measures: Communication with Family (formerly Hospice Team Communication), Getting Timely Help (formerly Getting Timely Care), Treating Patient with Respect (formerly Treating Family Member with Respect), Emotional and Spiritual Support (formerly Getting Emotional and Religious Support), Help for Pain and Symptoms (formerly Getting Help for Symptoms), Training Family to Care for Patient (formerly Getting Hospice Care Training), Rating of this Hospice, and Willingness to Recommend this Hospice.