RMS ViewPoint Panel Book—An Inside Look

RMS recently released the RMS ViewPoint Panel Book—a dynamic and graphic first edition detailing the demographics of our research panel. Check out some features of the new Panel Book below!

Demographics

Explore the data everyone wants to know about. We’ve created eye-catching graphics to showcase the demographics and workforce data of our entire panel. Consumer behaviors give you a detailed look into what our panel members plan to purchase, are interested in purchasing, their online shopping habits, media usage, and much more. More than half (55%) of the RMS ViewPoint panel members live in Central New York, with 74% residing in New York State and 26% living outside of New York State. Of those panelists 72% of them have children in their household under the age of 18.

Consumer Behaviors

The RMS ViewPoint Panel book gives you a detailed look into what our panel members plan to purchase, are interested in purchasing, their online shopping habits, media use and much more. For example, 46% of panel members watch more than 10 hours of television per week, while 21% watch 7-9 hours and 21% watch 4-6 hours per week. In terms of preferred news sources, 77% of panel members obtain their news from television, 73% visit websites, 56% review social media outlets, and 43% read printed sources. To dive deeper into our panel members’ behaviors, we asked them to identify their interests. We found that panel members are interested in a myriad of topics, including: health and wellness (70%), travel (58%), art and entertainment (58%), and beauty and style (46%).

Central NY Appeal

With Syracuse being a top rated test market, the panel book demonstrates how Onondaga County mirrors the U.S. population. Onondaga County has become the choice market to test and re­fine campaigns and products before a product launch due to its striking representation of the US population as a whole. RMS ViewPoint is a valuable yet cost-effective resource for organizations planning to conduct product testing, gauge advertising effectiveness, or determine the desires of their target market.

Click here to view a copy of the new RMS ViewPoint Panel Book!

RMS is a full-service market research firm located in Syracuse, NY. If you are interested in learning more about our research capabilities, please contact Sandy Baker, our Senior Director of Business Development & Corporate Strategy at SandyB@RMSresults.com or by calling 1-866-567-5422. Visit our website at www.RMSresults.com.

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HCAHPS Update: Using Patient Experience Information in Hospitals

The following post was written by Samadhi Moreno, Healthcare Research Associate at RMS.

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) recently announced a new exciting research project titled: “Using Patient Experience Information in Hospitals: A survey of Hospital Quality Leaders.” The project aims to answer the following questions:

• How do hospitals collect patient experience data?
• How do HCAHPS results influence a hospital’s efforts to improve patient experience?
• What types of QI activities do hospitals implement to impact their HCAHPS scores?
• Does hospital leadership see the value in HCAHPS scores?

AHRQ interviewed hospital quality leaders, hospital staff, hospital quality consultants, and HCAHPS vendors to determine potential survey topics. Using the results from these interviews, the AHRQ team developed potential questions to include in the survey. These questions were then used in the two additional rounds of cognitive interviews that were conducted with hospital quality leaders for feedback to then develop the survey instrument.

The survey instrument developed by AHRQ collects information about the hospital and the respondent on the following topics (2016):

• Collection of HCAHPS and supplemental data for assessing patient experience
• Activities to improve patient experience
• Reporting of HCAHPS and other patient experience
• Perspectives on HCAHPS
• Institutional priority given to patient experience
• Incentives, accountability, and compensation for patient experience scores

This survey will be administered to 500 hospitals of varying sizes and performance levels that publicly report HCAHPS scores and were part of the American Hospital Annual Survey.

Why is this important?

The results of this survey will provide information regarding the activities hospitals implement to improve HCAHPS scores. This can be useful for hospitals that are lagging in terms of patient experience and CAHPS scores. CAHPS surveys score aspects of care that can be helpful for health care executives to improve patient experience. The HCAHPS survey collects information on the patient experience regarding topics such as: the care from nurses, the patient experience in the hospital and after discharge, the overall hospital rating, and the understanding of his/her health once at home.

Many organizations have implemented products and services to improve the CAHPS scores in their organizations. CMS HCAHPS scores can be compared across hospitals regardless of patient mix; therefore the results of this study can be helpful for hospitals to improve bottom box scores.

The full research summary can be accessed here.

Research & Marketing Strategies (RMS) is a full service marketing and market research and consulting firm located in Baldwinsville, NY. As an approved CAHPS Vendor RMS’ Healthcare Department is composed of two divisions:(1) Healthcare Analytics and Healthcare Practice Transformation. The Healthcare Analytics team is responsible for several aspects of the CAHPS Survey Administrations including the following product lines HCAHPS®, HH-CAHPS®, CG-CAHPS®, and ICH CAHPS® and (2) Practice Transformation which handles the coordination of quality initiatives to assist clients achieving Patient Centered Medical Home (PCMH) recognition. To learn more about our healthcare services, please contact Sandy Baker, Senior Director of Business Development & Corporate Strategy at SandyB@RMSresults.com or by calling 1-866-567-5422. Visit our website at www.RMSresults.com.

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Central New York is Buffalo Bills Nation

Twenty-one percent of Central New Yorkers rank the Buffalo Bills as their favorite National Football League (NFL) team, according to a new RMS ViewPoint poll of Central New York panel members. Close behind, 17 percent of Central New Yorkers favored the New York Giants, and the New York Jets came in third at six percent. When it came to Central New Yorkers least favorite teams, the New England Patriots came in as the most hated at 27 percent. Twenty-three percent disliked the Dallas Cowboys, tied with 23 percent responding as not disliking any specific team.

“Football is the most popular sport in America, but it also takes precedence in New York with three teams that call the state home. Central New York is unique because you see quite a mix of team favoritism,” said Zachary Shaw, RMS ViewPoint Panel spokesperson. “Football is not just about the game itself, but the many components or rituals that go into watching a game or games.” Respondents surveyed were asked about fantasy football leagues, favorite football snack foods, hours of football watched and other game time habits.

With the popularity of fantasy sports leagues growing, Central New Yorkers seem to be less intrigued with the trend. Only 27 percent are members of an online fantasy football league, and 53 percent of those invested in a fantasy football league watch football more often because of their league participation. Regarding daily fantasy leagues, 20 percent have participated in a DraftKings league, 16 percent were invested in a FanDuel league, while the largest group, 69 percent did not participate in either a FanDuel or DraftKings league. While 11 percent of those surveyed believed fantasy sports leagues that promote gambling should be banned, 60 percent opposed banning those online fantasy leagues and 29 percent were unsure.

When it comes to how many hours of football Central New Yorkers watch per week, 34 percent watch one to three hours, 31 percent watch four to six hours, 19 percent watch less than one hour, ten percent watch seven to nine hours, and seven percent watch ten or more hours per week. Perhaps contributing to those amounts of time: 91 percent watch the games at their own home, 27 percent watch at a bar or restaurant, 19 percent watch at a friend’s house and 16 percent watch at a family member’s house.

As far as Central New Yorkers’ favorite football foods, pizza was voted the number one snack at 69 percent. Close behind, 60 percent selected chips and dip as their favorite, and 59 percent voted for chicken wings—a fan favorite originating from Buffalo, New York. Thirty-five percent enjoy nachos as a game day snack, and 34 percent opted for the healthier vegetables and dip.

A detailed infographic depicting the full survey results is available below. If you would like to participate in upcoming RMS ViewPoint polls and surveys, please visit RMSresults.com/ViewPoint to sign up.

The RMS ViewPoint poll was conducted from January 8, 2016 to January 24, 2016. A total of 406 surveys were completed. Respondents consisted of RMS ViewPoint Research Panel members, as well as the general community.  Survey invitations were sent through e-mail and social media. All respondents resided within the 16-county CNY area (Broome, Cayuga, Chemung, Chenango, Cortland, Herkimer, Jefferson, Lewis, Madison, Oneida, Onondaga, Oswego, Seneca, St. Lawrence, Tioga, and Tompkins). For more information, contact Zachary Shaw, RMS ViewPoint Panel Associate at ZachS@RMSresults.com. For more information on RMS ViewPoint, visit RMSresults.com/ViewPoint.

About RMS

Research & Marketing Strategies (RMS) is a full service marketing and market research firm located in Baldwinsville, NY. RMS provides an array of research methodologies that result in actionable analytics and recommendations for the client to enhance decision making. RMS is also home to QualiSight, a premier focus group and interview research facility, and RMS ViewPoint, a leading consumer research panel in Central New York. Visit our website at RMSresults.com.

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American Board of Pediatrics Awards Credit to NCQA PCMH Recognized Pediatricians

Pediatricians associated with a practice that is a recognized Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH) by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) can now be awarded Maintenance of Certification (MOC) credit by the American Board of Pediatrics (ABP). MOC is designed by and for pediatricians to encourage lifelong learning, self-assessment, and a continuous commitment to quality. NCQA’s mission is to improve quality of health care through measurement, transparency, and accountability. Clearly, the organizations are aligned with their commitment to quality driven healthcare.

ABP announced that affiliated pediatricians will be awarded 40 points toward Performance in Practice certification requirements. This is in recognition of the quality improvement initiatives associated with PCMH practices, and designed to reduce the duplication of reporting requirements needed for both programs. It is estimated that 8,000 doctors can earn credit based on their PCMH recognition. NCQA has recognized over 10,000 practices as patient-centered medical homes, of which approximately one third are pediatric practices.

NCQA is in the process of redesigning the PCMH recognition program to better align reporting requirements with government regulators and other organizations, with the goal of streamlining practices’ reporting and giving providers more time for patient care. NCQA is also working with other certifying organizations to encourage them to award their members credit for PCMH recognition.

Are you a pediatrician thinking about becoming a Patient-Centered Medical Home? With key decisions to allow MOC credit for recognized pediatricians, this may be the time to move forward with your goals. If you are interested in pursuing PCMH recognition, RMS Healthcare can help you transform your practice, allowing you to take advantage of current and future incentives. We have successfully assisted pediatric practices in achieving recognition through NCQA, and are pleased to share this MOC update with you. If you are interested in learning more about how we can help your practice, please contact Susan Maxsween, Sr. Director of Healthcare Operations and Compliance at SusanM@RMSresults.com or at 1-866-567-5422.

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New Milestone – 500,000 Blog Views!

Each of us at RMS had a hand in achieving the recent milestone. To celebrate, we each contributed a hand print to the poster, which now decorates our office!

Big news! We’ve received a half million views on the RMS Bunker Blog! A big THANK YOU to our current subscribers and readers. Haven’t subscribed yet? Follow the RMS Bunker Blog and stay on top of the latest industry trends! As you may expect, we love data, so we couldn’t resist the opportunity to highlight some of our blog statistics. The infographic below shows how far we’ve come, and that’s pretty exciting. Here’s to the next milestone!

In the spirit of research, we have a couple questions for our readers. We look forward to your feedback!

1. What blog post is your favorite and why?
2. What topic would you like to see covered more on our blog?

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Selecting a CAHPS® for ACOs Vendor

RMS is pleased to announce that we have been approved for a second year as a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) vendor of the Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems^® (CAHPS^®) for Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) survey! RMS is in its ninth year of CAHPS^® survey administration, and is highly experienced in the collection of data and reporting.

Here are important dates to keep in mind if you are looking for a CAHPS^® for ACOs vendor:

• September 22, 2015— Deadline to authorize approved survey vendor
• November 13-16, 2015 — Beginning of survey administration process
• February 3, 2016 — End of survey administration process
• February 12, 2016 — Submission of survey data to CMS by survey vendor

RMS has assisted hospitals, accountable care organizations, physician practices, home health and hospice agencies, and in-center hemodialysis facilities set a benchmark for current patient satisfaction in order to improve the overall patient experience. The following areas are covered in the CAHPS for ACOs survey:

• Getting timely care
• Between-visit communication
• Provider communication
• Health promotion and education
• Access to specialists
• Rating of provider
• Shared decision-making
• Patient resources
• Care coordination
• Courteous/helpful office staff
• Health/functional status
• Medication adherence

For more information about the CAHPS^® for ACOs survey process, qualifications, and quality measures, click here.

RMS Healthcare is an approved vendor for the CAHPS^® for ACOs surveying process, as well as five other CAHPS^® surveys! In addition to CAHPS surveying, RMS Healthcare has a full complement of consulting services available within the healthcare industry. For more information, please contact the Senior Director of Business Development & Corporate Strategy, Sandy Baker at SandyB@RMSresults.com or by calling 1-866-567-5422.

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RMS is CAHPS® For PQRS Certified!

RMS is pleased to announce that we are a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) approved vendor of the Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems^® (CAHPS^®) for Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS) survey! RMS is in its ninth year of CAHPS^® survey administration, and is highly experienced in the collection of data and reporting.

Here are important dates to keep in mind if you are looking for a CAHPS^® for PQRS vendor:

• September 22, 2015— Deadline to authorize approved survey vendor
• November 16, 2015 — Beginning of survey administration process
• February 3, 2016 — End of survey administration process
• February 12, 2016 — Submission of survey data to CMS by survey vendor

For more information about the CAHPS^® for PQRS survey process, qualifications, and quality measures, click here.

RMS has assisted hospitals, accountable care organizations, physician practices, home health and hospice agencies, and in-center hemodialisysis facilities set a benchmark for current patient satisfaction in order to improve overall patient satisfaction.

RMS Healthcare is an approved vendor for the CAHPS^® for PQRS surveying process. In fact, RMS is approved for six variations of CAHPS^® surveying! For more information or to request a proposal, please contact the Senior Director of Business Development & Corporate Strategy, Sandy Baker at SandyB@RMSresults.com or by calling 1-866-567-5422.

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Patient-Centered Connected Care™ Program Standards Now Available

The following blog post was written by Karen Joncas, a Healthcare Transformation Coordinator at RMS.

The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) Patient-Centered Connected Care™ (PCCC™) standards are now available for non-traditional practices wishing to seek recognition of their quality-driven patient care. NCQA is offering this program in response to the plethora of choices that patients have in seeking episodic care as well as the need to emphasize the importance of clinical integration and communication in the medical neighborhood. Being recognized affirms that the non-traditional practice is working within the framework of the medical neighborhood, effectively communicating and sharing patient information with primary care practices. Eligible practices include urgent care centers, onsite employee health clinics, and school-and-retail-based clinics.

Sites that wish to be recognized will need to meet a minimum score across five standards. Unlike Patient-Centered Medical Home™ (PCMH™) recognition, there are no levels of recognition status; either a practice is recognized or it is not. Practices will be evaluated on five program standards including:
1.    Connecting with Primary Care
2.    Identifying Patient Needs
3.    Patient Care and Support
4.    System Capabilities
5.    Measure and Improve Performance

RMS Healthcare can assist providers in non-traditional and traditional practices in their transformation journey and/or NCQA recognition. Practices or providers interested in PCCC can purchase the standards and obtain more information from NCQA’s website. If you are interested in learning more, please contact Susan Maxsween, Sr. Director of Healthcare Operations and Compliance at SusanM@RMSresults.com or at 1-866-567-5422.

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NCQA Announces Intention to Redesign PCMH™ Recognition Process

The following blog post was written by Karen Joncas, a Healthcare Transformation Coordinator at RMS.

The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) has announced that it is redesigning the Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH) recognition process to better engage practices in an ongoing assessment of compliance with PCMH standards.

Four key goals of the newly redesigned PCMH program will be to:

1. Strengthen the link between recognition and practice performance;
2. Align PCMH recognition activities with other reporting requirements;
3. Leverage the practices’ investment in health information technology; and
4. Increase practice engagement while reducing non-value added work.

Under consideration for the redesign are:

1. Engaging practices in an annual “check-in,” rather than submitting documentation every three years, including a demonstration of how the standards are integrated into every day practice culture and how they continue to enhance their patient-centered approach to care;
2. Reducing the documentation burden by introducing opportunities for virtual demonstration of processes and using information generated in the course of patient care to support alignment with the standards; and
3. Offering education and guidance to practices undergoing the transformation process including live support, enhanced on-line resources, and improved customer service

Organizations which have pursued PCMH Recognition understand first-hand how this recognition has directly contributed to improved patient care. Practices that have experience with the PCMH Recognition process and have worked directly with NCQA are encouraged to reach out to NCQA to provide thoughts, ideas, and pertinent questions that will facilitate a successful launch of the new review platform. If you are engaged currently or have been involved in the recognition journey, visit the NCQA website and/or email NCQA at ideas4pcmh@ncqa.org. If you would like to be regularly informed of upcoming changes, you should consider enrolling in NCQA’s subscription center here.

RMS Healthcare, a division of Research and Marketing Strategies, Inc. (RMS) has over 50 years of collective and proven experience in providing consulting services to meet the specific needs of our clients. Regardless of your healthcare research or practice transformation needs, RMS Healthcare can help.  If you are interested in learning more, please contact Susan Maxsween, Senior Director, Healthcare Operations and Compliance SusanM@rmsresults.com or at 1-866-567-5422.

Source: NCQA Blog

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CAHPS® for PQRS Timeline Taking Shape for 2015

This blog post was written by our guest blogger Megan O’Donnell, Manager at Research & Marketing Strategies, Inc. (RMS) Healthcare Division.

The Affordable Care Act mandates that all eligible professionals in practices of two or more physicians, who are receiving payment for Medicare Part B fee-for-service under the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS), participate in public reporting of patient experience with Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS). The goal is to have clinical and patient experience data publicly available to Medicare beneficiaries, allowing for comparison between health care providers based on clinical and patient experience quality outcomes.

As part of the requirements for PQRS, practices with 100 or more physicians have included patient experience measures for calendar year 2013 and 2014. As of 2015, these practices will be required to contract with a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) approved survey vendor to administer the CAHPS for PQRS survey. Practices with two to 99 providers have the option of administering the CAHPS for PQRS survey, using an approved vendor, but are not required to do so at this time. Any practice that is required to, or chooses to administer the CAHPS for PQRS survey, must use one of the CMS-approved survey vendors.

CMS has currently provided conditional approval to survey vendors to conduct the CAHPS for PQRS survey on behalf of medical practices, including RMS – Research and Marketing Strategies, Inc. The following timeline of activities are anticipated for the CAHPS for PQRS survey administration for 2015:

JULY – survey vendor training (the final approval step for all survey vendors)

AUGUST – CMS posting of all survey vendors receiving final approval to administer the CAHPS for PQRS survey for 2015

SEPTEMBER – deadline for each group practice to authorize its CMS-approved survey vendor to administer the survey on behalf of its organization

NOVEMBER – beginning of survey administration process

FEBRUARY 2016 – end of survey administration process and submission of survey data to CMS by survey vendor

All dates are subject to change by CMS. Interested stakeholders can watch for additional details and information as it becomes available on our RMS blog or the official CAHPS for PQRS website.

RMS Healthcare is an approved vendor for the CAHPS^® for PQRS surveying process. If you are interested in learning more about our survey services, please contact the Senior Director of Business Development & Corporate Strategy, Sandy Baker at SandyB@RMSresults.com or by calling 1-866-567-5422.

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