Every year patients of American hospitals are given the opportunity to rate the care they receive by participating in the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Health Plans Survey (HCAHPS®).

According to the HCAHPS survey Web site: “The HCAHPS survey contains 18 patient perspectives on care and patient rating items that encompass eight key topics: communication with doctors, communication with nurses, responsiveness of hospital staff, pain management, communication about medicines, discharge information, cleanliness of the hospital environment, and quietness of the hospital environment.”

Ranking each state based on the results to the following questions we can compare, on average, what grade of care each state provides:

• How often did doctors communicate well with patients?
• How often did nurses communicate well with patients?
• How often did patients receive help quickly from hospital staff?
• How often did staff explain about medicines before giving them to patients?
• How often was patients’ pain well controlled?
• How often was the area around patients’ rooms kept quiet at night?
• How often were the patients’ rooms and bathrooms kept clean?
• Were patients given information about what to do during their recovery at home?
• Would patients recommend the hospital to friends and family?
• How do patients rate the hospital overall?

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