DMAA Begins Field Testing of Participant Satisfaction Survey

WASHINGTON, DC—As part of its overarching efforts to promote quality and common approaches to clinical and financial measures, the Disease Management Association of America (DMAA), with the assistance of J.D. Power and Associates and DMAA members Alere Medical Inc. and Healthways Inc., has begun field testing a standardized participant satisfaction survey—the first of its kind in disease management.

"Field validation of the survey instrument is a significant step forward in this project, and the assistance of industry leaders is invaluable to that effort," says Graham Cherrington, co-chair of the DMAA Patient Satisfaction Subcommittee, which is overseeing the survey project. Subcommittee Co-Chair Neal Friedman, MD, agrees. "The involvement of some of our largest member organizations really speaks to the importance of ensuring satisfied patients, as well as positive clinical and financial outcomes."

DMAA has identified the survey as a key organizational goal to promote high-quality standards for disease management and care coordination, and program evaluation. It was first announced last year, as part of a collaborative effort with J.D. Power and Associates, a global marketing information firm well-known for its independent and unbiased surveys of customer satisfaction, product quality and buyer behavior. A 2004 literature review and survey by DMAA and J.D. Power and Associates found that, except for diabetes management programs, no standard approach for measuring participant satisfaction was in common use across the industry.

For the field testing, Alere and Healthways are working with DMAA and J.D. Power and Associates to identify survey recipients for the validation phase of the satisfaction survey project. The survey will ask program participants to rate a wide variety of program elements, including access; quality of communication and program materials; staff interactions; and patient involvement. The validation process will involve both qualitative, in-depth interviews and larger scale mailings to verify that the survey generates useful responses.

Further underscoring the importance of the project is the Medicare Health Support pilot's requirement to measure and improve beneficiary satisfaction. DMAA plans to release the final survey instrument at its annual Disease Management Leadership Forum, Dec. 3 to 5, in Denver.

"This is the kind of robust research and field testing necessary to meaningfully establish these kinds of industry standards," says James E. Pope, MD, a DMAA Board of Directors member and executive vice president and chief operating officer of Healthways.

DMAA Board Member Gordon Norman, MD, executive vice president and chief medical officer of Alere, says patient satisfaction is a sometimes overlooked but critical element of the care continuum. "If participants aren't happy with their disease management program, compliance can suffer, which undermines the goal of improving health," he says. "Because many patients are unfamiliar with disease management, they can be resistant to it. So much of what we do depends on overcoming that initial resistance and making sure program participants see our services in a positive light. To the extent that we can measure our success doing that, we can build stronger, more effective programs."

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About DMAA
The DMAA is a nonprofit, voluntary membership association representing all stakeholders in disease management and care coordination. Through advocacy targeting the health care industry, government agencies, employers and the general public, the DMAA promotes the important role disease management and care coordination play in improving care quality and outcomes for people with chronic conditions. Visit the DMAA online at www.dmaa.org.