The CAHPS Survey

The CAHPS Survey is a tool for collecting standardized information on members' experiences with their health plan and services. Since its launch in 1997, this survey has become the national standard for measuring and reporting on the experiences of consumers with their health plans. A version of this survey is conducted in almost every state in the U.S. CAHPS measures health care consumers' satisfaction with the quality of care and customer service provided by their health plan.


Experience is Not the Same as Satisfaction

Patient experience surveys sometimes are mistaken for customer satisfaction surveys. Patient experience surveys focus on how patients experienced or perceived key aspects of their care, not how satisfied they were with their care. Patient experience surveys focus on asking patients whether or how often they experienced critical aspects of health care, including communication with their doctors, understanding their medication instructions, and the coordination of their healthcare needs. They do not focus on amenities.

Denver Health Medical Plan (DHMP) CAHPS

DHMP utilizes the mixed web-mail-telephone protocol. This includes mailing a questionnaire with a cover letter, mailing a web invitation for those with an email address. For those selected members who did not respond to the first questionnaire, a second questionnaire with a cover letter encouraging participation is sent and/or a second web invitation is emailed. If a selected member still does not respond to the questionnaire, at least three telephone calls are made to complete the survey using trained telephone interviewers.