Made in the USA: the import of American Consumer Assessment of Health Plan Surveys (CAHPS) into the Dutch social insurance system.

BACKGROUND: In the Netherlands, managed competition between health plans has been introduced. For Dutch health plans this implies that they need to collect data about their own performance and that of the care providers they contract. To that end, Consumer Assessment of Health Plan Surveys (CAHPS) instruments have recently been adopted by a large Dutch health plan.

OBJECTIVES: This paper presents the results of a validation study of the Dutch version of the CAHPS Adult Commercial questionnaire. The questions addressed are as follows: Can this questionnaire be adapted for use in the context of the Dutch insurance system? and Can it generate valid information about the quality of health care and the performance of Dutch health plans?

METHODS: The translated questionnaire has been mailed to a sample of 977 enrollees. The psychometric properties of the translated instrument have been studied, and the results have been compared with those of other Dutch and American studies.

RESULTS: The net response rate was 51% (n = 500). In general, the questionnaires were filled out completely and consistently. Principal component analyses revealed a factor that can be labelled as patient-centredness in the primary process. It contains the domains that in the CAHPS literature are described as 'courteous/helpful staff' and 'doctors communicating well'.

CONCLUSIONS: The translated version of the CAHPS Adult Commercial questionnaire is a promising tool for Dutch health plans. More research is needed on the external and the content validity of these questionnaires in the Dutch context.