The Emergency Department patient experience of care survey supports the six national priorities for improving care from the National Quality Strategy developed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that was called for under the Affordable Care Act to create national aims and priorities to guide local, state, and national efforts to improve the quality of health care. This strategy has established six priorities that support a three-part aim focusing on better care, better health, and lower costs through improvement. The six priorities include: making care safer by reducing harm caused by the delivery of care; ensuring that each person and family are engaged as partners in their care; promoting effective communication and coordination of care; promoting the most effective prevention and treatment practices for the leading causes of mortality, starting with cardiovascular disease; working with communities to promote wide use of best practices to enable healthy living; and making quality care more affordable for individuals, families, employers, and governments by developing and spreading new health care delivery models. This survey will provide patient experience of care data that enables making comparisons of emergency departments across the nation and promoting effective communication and coordination.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has already implemented patient experience surveys in a number of settings including traditional Medicare, Medicare Advantage, and Part D Prescription Drug Plans, hospitals, and home health agencies. While CMS and/or the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) have developed additional Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS?) surveys for in-center hemodialysis facilities, nursing homes and clinician and group practices, none of these surveys address patients' experiences with emergency department services.
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that the collection of information encompassed by this request complies with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR 1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding the proposed collection of information, that the certification covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.