Evaluating health plan quality 3: survey measurement properties.

Objective: To assess the measurement and scaling properties of survey items designed to measure health plan quality from a physician's perspective.

Study Design: Prospective survey design with multivariate regression analysis.

Methods: Data were from 3798 physicians representing 23 health plans in 5 regions: Florida, New York, Colorado, Pennsylvania, and Washington. Scale reliability was assessed by using the Cronbach alpha. Generalist and specialist scales were compared with structural equation modeling. Multivariate analysis was used to examine internal validity by testing theoretically based hypotheses.

Results: Scales constructed from the data were reliable, were stable across both generalist and specialist physicians, and demonstrated construct validity. Hypotheses about the relationship between physician experiences with a health plan and physician recommendations of the plan were confirmed, supporting construct validity.

Conclusion: The items on the survey instrument can be used with confidence to measure health plan quality from a physician perspective.