PROMs vs. Patient Experience Surveys: Choose Your Vendor Wisely

PROMs measure results. Experience surveys measure perception. Hospitals need a partner who can manage both – with precision.

Not All Surveys Are Equal: Why the Future Belongs to Partners Who Can Manage Both Patient Outcome and Experience Data

With the Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) now linking reimbursement to both outcomes and experience, hospitals need a partner who can manage the full spectrum — from clinical results to perceptions of care.

PROMs partners, like CODE Technology, are built for this future. CODE combines the clinical rigor, validated instruments and longitudinal follow-up required for PROMs with the operational precision needed for experience surveys such as PIX. Together, they tell a complete story of quality and value.

PROMs vs. Patient Experience Surveys: Different Tools, Different Stakes

Patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) capture clinical results directly from patients such as their function, pain, quality of life and recovery after treatment. Patient experience surveys capture how patients felt about the care process, including communication, staff attentiveness, environment and respect.

Both PROMs and experience surveys are validated and valuable measures but they serve different purposes. PROMs determine patient-level outcomes that feed directly into reimbursement and value-based care models. Experience surveys like PIX assess patient perception of care and contribute to facility quality programs such as IPFQR.

PROMs require:

• Validated instruments like PROMIS, HOOS and KOOS
• Matched data pairs (baseline and one-year follow-up) for accurate measurement
• Clinical oversight to interpret whether or not the results of a care plan were successful

Experience surveys, including CMS’s upcoming PIX under the Inpatient Psychiatric Facility Quality Reporting (IPFQR) program, use validated instruments to measure patient perception of care such as communication, environment and respect.

CODE supports both.

Our managed service collects, manages and reports every type of patient survey through streamlined workflows. CODE also easily scales its PROMs as new surgeons come on board and as more measures and payment models are introduced.

The Limits of Patient Experience Survey Vendor Workflows for PROs

Patient experience survey vendors can help hospitals meet requirements like the new PIX measure under the IPFQR program, but their workflows stop there. These tools rely on one-time, anonymous outreach and no integration into clinical systems.

As CMS continues expanding PRO-PMs across service lines, hospitals relying on vendors that specialize in experience surveys will find those systems can’t scale to meet data integrity, governance and follow-up requirements. CODE’s platform already supports both experience and validated outcomes measures, helping hospitals stay ready for outcome-based reporting and future value programs. The result is complete confidence in your data, your reporting compliance and your ability to adapt as CMS raises the bar, positioning your organization to lead in the next era of outcomes-based care.

Discover How CODE Simplifies CMS Requirements.

1. Managing Longitudinal Follow-Up

PROMs such as THA/TKA PRO-PMs require baseline and one-year data — a complex timeframe to manage once patients have moved on. Experience survey vendors are built for snapshots, not longitudinal collection. Without sustained engagement, data completeness and reporting quickly fall apart.

2. Navigating Anonymity Rules in Measures, such as IPFQR

The new PIX Survey, required under the CMS IPFQR beginning in 2026, must be anonymous and offered to every eligible inpatient. Experience vendors can distribute the survey, but they can’t connect it to other outcome data for quality improvement.

CODE can. We administer surveys like PIX within full anonymity compliance while also integrating it alongside other PROMs for a complete, actionable quality picture.

3. Handling Sensitive Clinical Domains

PROMs include clinical questions, such as narcotics use, that require physician oversight and careful governance. Experience survey workflows weren’t built for this complexity.

CODE embeds clinical safeguards into every step of PROMs collection, ensuring data integrity and compliance without adding workload to staff.

4. Preventing Double Surveying and Reducing Survey Fatigue

Hospitals already administer HCAHPS and may add internal experience surveys. Layering PROMs on top through a patient experience vendor often leads to survey duplication, lower response rates and fragmented data.

CODE coordinates all survey activity across programs to reduce redundancy and maintain strong capture rates.

PROMs require the highest level of data governance, validation and clinical integration, so CODE Technology can scale down to handle experience surveys like PIX. But the same can’t be said about experience survey vendors.

Why CODE Is Different

CODE’s Managed PROMs Solution was built for PROMs.

• Industry-leading capture rates at baseline and one-year follow-up
• 100% of clients on track with CMS PRO-PM requirements
• Zero added FTEs — CODE manages patient outreach, reminders, and submissions
• Seamless integration with all major EHRs
• 30-day go-live and white-glove onboarding
• Support for PIX and other experience measures within a single workflow

Unlike experience survey vendors, CODE doesn’t just collect surveys. We deliver complete and validated data you can use to protect reimbursement and drive quality improvements.

Find Out Why Hospitals Trust CODE For PROMs Success.

The Path Forward: Bringing Outcomes and Experience Together

Patient experience surveys and outcome measures each have their place, but they are not interchangeable.

If your vendor can only handle patient experience surveys, they likely won’t be ready for the data, governance and compliance demands of CMS PRO-PMs.

CODE Technology can do both. From PROMs to experience surveys like PIX, CODE provides one integrated service – so hospitals can collect every required measure, avoid redundancy and protect millions in reimbursement.