April 2021
Neighborhood annually administers a survey to assess and identify opportunities to improve a provider’s experience with health plan services and operations, with the goal of influencing members’ care experience. The most recent survey was conducted with 900 Neighborhood PCPs and specialists in Q4 2020. Neighborhood uses an external survey vendor, Symphony Performance Health Analytics, to ensure a confidential mechanism for providers to report their experiences with Neighborhood.
- A total of 108 surveys were completed (55 mail, 34 Internet, and 19 phone), yielding a response rate of 13.0%, significantly lower than the 2019 response rate of 23.4%.
Overall satisfaction with Neighborhood increased significantly by 40% or by 21 percentage points (from 52% in 2019 to 73% in 2020). Provider satisfaction levels improved across all Neighborhood-specific measures, with nearly half of the increases (47%) from 2019 to 2020 being statistically significant (p < 0.05). This finding differs greatly from 2019’s survey results in which all measures had declined from 2018.
Provider Satisfaction Levels:
| Composite/Attribute | Summary Rate Definition |
Neighborhood TOTAL | Provider Type Summary Rate (2020) | ||
| Summary Rate 2019 | Summary Rate 2020 | Primary Care | Specialist | ||
| Overall Satisfaction1 | % Well /Somewhat Above Average | 52% | 73% | 64% | 82% |
| Finance/Claims Issues | 19% | 32% | 19% | 41% | |
| Utilization & Quality Management | 25% | 38% | 36% | 38% | |
| Network/Coordination of Care | 21% | 28% | 20% | 36% | |
| Pharmacy | 11% | 24% | 24% | 22% | |
| Health Plan Call Center Staff2 | 35% | 51% | 44% | 53% | |
| Provider Relations | 16% | 24% | 16% | 35% | |
Underlining indicates statistically significant difference, (p < 0.05).
1Proportions represent percentage Completely or Somewhat Satisfied.
2Health Plan Call Center Staff represented Member Services in 2019 and Provider Services in 2020.
Ongoing process improvements related to updating payment policies, ensuring provider data integrity, processing claims adjustments, and improving provider onboarding and communication will support Neighborhood’s ongoing commitment to improving provider experience in 2021.
The Neighborhood Provider Experience Workgroup remains committed to achieving the set of incremental goals over the three-year period set forth upon receipt of the 2019 provider satisfaction survey results. The Workgroup is also committed to administering quarterly provider pulse surveys to measure intervention effectiveness.