Why Should You Choose to Be a Surveyor at HMS?

Vulnerable people in long-term-care and other facilities around the U.S. need someone to look out for them. If you value the opportunity to do important work ensuring that nursing home residents and patients are being properly cared for, consider being a surveyor at Healthcare Management Solutions, LLC (HMS). Working as a surveyor is a wonderful way to make a difference and have a direct impact on nursing home residents’ and patients’ day-to-day life.

Surveying is a challenging but very rewarding career path. In this video, HMS Subject Matter Expert Kristen Paulsen-Aguirre shares what it’s like to be a surveyor on the front lines, helping to protect people who cannot protect themselves.

What Survey Work Does HMS Specialize in?

The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) requires nursing homes to be inspected every 15 months. CMS and state survey agencies across the U.S. and its territories turn to HMS to ensure that facilities are providing patients and residents the quality care they deserve, in accordance with federal and state laws and regulations.

HMS’ survey work is conducted by highly experienced subject matter leaders with a passion for protecting vulnerable populations. We perform 500+ surveys per year, serving as front-line safety inspectors to ensure that quality and safety standards are being met for patients and residents receiving care from CMS-certified facilities or those in Veterans Administration facilities. We conduct initial certifications, recertifications, revisits, complaints, Life Safety Code (LSC), and specialty surveys (such as infection control, dementia care, and schizophrenia care).

Why Should You Choose to Be a Surveyor at HMS?

To HMS, surveying is unlike any other work for federal and state agencies. We not only take pride in conducting outstanding surveys and upholding an extremely high standard of excellence in our work, we also put our heart into what we do. HMS doesn’t view survey work as just another contract, but rather as a sacred mission that supports seniors, veterans and other vulnerable populations. We look for surveyors who share those values, who want to help people while working in a supportive and collegial environment.

Specifically, HMS surveyors observe the quality of care and quality of life experienced by a facility’s residents or patients. Of course, surveyors also look for any signs of abuse or neglect, which affect residents and patients both physically and mentally. Does staff treat residents and patients with dignity and respect? Our surveyors pay great attention to detail, noting even the little things that make someone’s life fulfilling.

What Are the Most Rewarding Aspects of Choosing a Career as a Surveyor?

As HMS surveyors, we get to actually see the difference we are making every day. Finding problems or making adjustments in a facility directly impacts residents’ and patients’ day-to-day lives. In many cases, we’ve decreased the severity of an issue or prevented a problem entirely as a direct result of our survey findings. For example, HMS detected that a particular facility had an inadequate infection control system. Infection control is crucial for preventing COVID-19 cases in residents. We later received a hand-written thank-you note from the facility letting us know that because of our work with them, only one of its 3,500 residents had been infected with COVID-19. Our work impacted people, and in turn, this recognition touched us.

How Does HMS Excel in the Survey Space? 

We hire surveyors who are seasoned, experienced, and at the top of their game in the field. We aim to be the gold standard of surveying. We also do federal oversight surveys alongside federal surveyors. It’s an honor to be trusted by the federal government to do the work of federal surveyors as well as to evaluate other surveyors’ work.

What Makes Working at HMS Different?

HMS is led by a group of mission-driven women who have deep experience in healthcare and who understand the strong need for HMS’ services. HMS’ company culture is built around core values, which employees strive to demonstrate every day and in every interaction.

What Are the Most Important Qualities a Surveyor Should Have?

Above all else, a good surveyor must have a passion for people and caregiving. They also must be able to observe surroundings, interact with others, and decipher medical records. Surveyors need the mission-driven spirit of a Peace Corps volunteer, the eagle eye of a detective, and the good-humored resilience of a travel warrior.

HMS values survey applicants who have strong healthcare facility experience, and we offer a free, comprehensive training program. When we determine that an applicant has the right qualifications but would benefit from additional training, we:

• Assign the new recruit to an experienced mentor.
• Start them on a paid, 18-week interactive educational journey, which includes core knowledge modules from CMS customized into a comprehensive program designed to ensure all are doing the work ‘the HMS way’ and to maximize surveyor trainees’ chances for success.
• Take trainees on observation surveys to help them apply their classroom learning.
• Help them prepare for the Surveyor Minimum Qualifications Test (SMQT) test.

Here’s How You Can Apply

Learn more about careers at HMS, and search for available openings here.