The spring issue of National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians News just published THE BENEFITS OF BEING NICE: Exploring the role of the patient experience in the EMS transformation. In this article, Bobby J. Hopewell (President and CEO of Mobile Health Resources and EMS Survey Team) and Matt Zavadsky (Public Affairs Director for MedStar Mobile Healthcare and a Director-at-Large on NAEMT Board of Directors) explore how CMS and payers are driving changes that will soon impact the EMS industry.
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has recently implemented performance bonuses and penalties based on patient experience scores for physicians, skilled nursing facilities and home health agencies. With non-hospital reimbursement now tied to patient experience scores, it’s logical to presume that CMS will soon be looking at us.
-Spring 2016 NAEMT News, Pg. 6
When CMS begins to look at the EMS industry the need for standardized measures will come to the forefront.
If we want to be viewed as valued healthcare providers and partners, and continue to further the status of our profession, it’s imperative that we find effective, transparent ways to measure and improve the patient’s experience of our care.
– Spring 2016 NAEMT News, Pg. 7
That’s why the EMSST survey distributes a comprehensive, consistent set of questions to assess patient experience that is consistent with the HCAHPS hospital surveys.
