Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) is an Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) program that has conducted research and developed standardized surveys to gather information about patients’ experiences with health plans, providers, and facilities.^1,2 CAHPS surveys are designed with standardized questions to ensure valid comparison of data across health care settings.³ These surveys collect patients’ perceptions of various aspects of health care including, but not limited to, communication with doctors, ability to schedule appointments in a timely manner, level of coordinated care and ease of access to information, etc.¹

Patients are asked to complete the surveys either through mail or online, with additional follow-up by telephone for individuals who do not initially respond. On average, surveys take 15 minutes to complete.

“Incident to” services are defined as services that are furnished as an integral, although incidental, part of a physician’s professional services in the physician’s office (whether located in a separate office suite or within an institution) or in a patient’s home.^1,2 In the Medicare program administered by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), auxiliary personnel such as pharmacists; nurses; and nonphysician practitioners (NPPs) like physician assistants, nurse practitioners, or clinical nurse specialists can provide some services traditionally performed by physicians in certain practice settings under incident to services arrangements.^1,2 These services must be part of a patient’s normal course of treatment and are billed by the CMS-recognized provider under that provider’s National Provider Identifier (NPI).^1,2

A Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC) is a private health care insurer responsible for managing policies and processing Medicare Part A, Medicare Part B, and durable medical equipment (DME) claims for Medicare Fee-For-Service (FFS) beneficiaries.¹

The Pharmacy Quality Alliance (PQA) is an independent, nonprofit national organization dedicated to improving medication safety, adherence, and appropriate use. A measure developer, researcher, educator and convener, PQA’s quality initiatives support better medication use and high-quality care.

The Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycle is a continual, four-step model that is used in quality improvement efforts in order to test change.¹