cahps survey
cahps_scrDefinition
ISO-11179 Definition
The Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems survey administered to health plan members to measure patient experience with care access, communication with providers, care coordination, and overall health plan service quality, producing standardized scores used in CMS Star Ratings and NCQA accreditation. CAHPS surveys are fielded annually by approved vendors using standardized question batteries that enable national benchmarking across health plans. Key CAHPS composites include getting needed care measuring access, getting care quickly measuring timely access to appointments, how well doctors communicate measuring interpersonal quality, and rating of health care and health plan measuring overall satisfaction.
CMS weights CAHPS composite scores heavily in Medicare Advantage Star Ratings calculations. Healthcare data teams analyze cahps_scr results by demographic segment to identify member populations with systematically lower experience scores, correlate CAHPS responses with operational metrics like call center wait times and claims turnaround, track score trends over multiple survey years, and model the star ratings impact of CAHPS improvement initiatives.
Standard Abbreviation
cahps_scr
Category
Production DDL — FACT_QUALITY_MEASURE
CREATE OR REPLACE TABLE FACT_QUALITY_MEASURE (
qlty_key INTEGER NOT NULL -- surrogate key,
mbr_key INTEGER NOT NULL -- FK to DIM_MEMBER,
plan_key INTEGER NOT NULL -- FK to DIM_PLAN,
meas_yr SMALLINT -- measurement year,
hedis_meas_cd VARCHAR(20) -- HEDIS measure code,
denom_ind CHAR(1) -- denominator eligible,
numer_ind CHAR(1) -- numerator met,
excl_ind CHAR(1) -- exclusion indicator,
gap_open_ind CHAR(1) -- care gap open,
star_rtg_nbr DECIMAL(3,1) -- star rating,
qlty_scr DECIMAL(5,2) -- quality score,
perf_thrsh_pct DECIMAL(5,2) -- performance threshold,
raf_scr DECIMAL(10,3) -- risk adjustment factor,
outreach_cnt SMALLINT -- outreach attempts,
load_dt TIMESTAMP_NTZ NOT NULL -- load timestamp
);
Standard Snowflake DDL for the canonical quality table. Convert to BigQuery or Databricks →
Why This Term Matters
Quality measure data determines how payers and providers are rated and reimbursed under CMS Stars, HEDIS, and value-based care contracts. Data engineers who understand quality terminology build measure calculation pipelines that correctly attribute patients, apply denominator exclusions, and flag documentation gaps before submission deadlines. Incorrect quality data directly affects star ratings, pay-for-performance bonuses, and Medicare Advantage plan bids.
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