Patient survey rating for dialysis facilities

The dialysis facility patient survey star rating uses a 5-star scale to make it easier for you to compare hemodialysis facilities. More stars mean better quality care. The star ratings come from the patient experience of care survey, also called the In-Center Hemodialysis Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (ICH CAHPS) Survey or the Medicare In-Center Hemodialysis Survey. The survey:

• Asks dialysis patients about their experiences while getting hemodialysis in their dialysis facility.
• Focuses on patients who have gotten hemodialysis in their current facility for 3 months or longer.
• Focuses on topics that are important to patients, like how well their kidney doctors and dialysis facility staff communicate with them.
• Is conducted twice a year in the spring and fall.

• Learn more about the ICH CAHPS Survey.
• Get detailed information on what these measures show you, and why they're important.

Use the patient survey star rating along with other quality information when making decisions about choosing a hemodialysis facility. A 1-star rating doesn't mean that you'll get poor care from a facility. It means that facilities that got 2 or more stars performed better on that measure of patient experience of care.