Or, more precisely, is your hospital ready for your patients to answer these 22 questions about your hospital and for the world to know the results? (the last 5 out of the 27 are patient demographic questions, leaving 22). As I mentioned in last week's Weekly News Scoop, the HCAHPS Survey is out (Thanks to Laurie for providing the link). You can read the 50-page report on how they came up with the questions, how to measure, when to measure, their research recommendations, etc in this PDF.

But, at last, here are the 27 questions that we will all become much more familiar with very quickly:

1. During this hospital stay, how often did nurses treat you with courtesy and respect?
2. During this hospital stay, how often did nurses listen carefully to you?
3. During this hospital stay, how often did nurses explain things in a way you could understand?
4. During this hospital stay, after you pressed the call button, how often did you get help as soon as you wanted it?
5. During this hospital stay, how often did doctors treat you with courtesy and respect?
6. During this hospital stay, how often did doctors listen carefully to you?
7. During this hospital stay, how often did doctors explain things in a way you could understand?
8. During this hospital stay, how often were your room and bathroom kept clean?
9. During this hospital stay, how often was the area around your room quiet at night?
10. During this hospital stay, did you need help from nurses or other hospital staff in getting to the bathroom or in using a bedpan? (if no, go to 12)
11. How often did you get help in getting to the bathroom or in using a bedpan as soon as you wanted?
12. During this hospital stay, did you need medicine for pain? (if no, go to 15)
13. During this hospital stay, how often was your pain well controlled?
14. During this hospital stay, how often did the hospital staff do everything they could to help you with your pain?
15. During this hospital stay, were you given any medicine that you ahd not taken before? (if no, go to 18)
16. Before giving you any new medicine, how often did hospital staff tell you waht the medicine was for?
17. Before giving you any new medicine, how often did hospital staff describe possible side effects in a way you could understand?
18. After you left the hospital, did you go directly to your home, to someone else's home, or to another health facility? (if other health facility, go to 21)
19. During this hospital stay, did doctors, nurses, or other hospital staff talk with you about whether you would have the help you needed when you left the hospital?
20. During this hospital stay, did you get information in writing about what symptoms or health problems to look out for after you left the hospital?
21. Using any number from 0 to 10, where 0 is the worst hospital possible and 10 is the best hospital possible, what number would you use to rate this hospital?
22. Would you recommend this hospital to your friends and family?
23. In general, how would you rate your overall health?
24. What is the highest grade or level of shool that you have completed?
25. Are you of Spanish, Hispanic, or Latino origin or descent?
26. What is your race? Please choose one or more.
27. What language do you mainly speak at home?

so, what do you think? Is this scary or what?