RFI_Mental Health Mobile Applications_Final.pdf

RFI: Mental Health Mobile Applications Clinical Testing and Content Writing Support

I. Introduction. This is a Request for Information (RFI) only. Do not submit a Proposal. This notice is not to be construed as a commitment on the part of the Government to award a contract, nor does the Government intend to pay for any information submitted as a result of this request.

The Government does not reimburse respondents for any costs associated with submission of the information being requested or reimburse expenses incurred for responses to this RFI. The information provided may be used by the VA in developing its acquisition strategy and Performance Work Statement (PWS). Interested parties are responsible for adequately marking proprietary, restricted or competition sensitive information contained in their response. This is a request for information and does not obligate the Government in any way, nor does it commit the Government to any specific course of action.

II. Background/Scope: The PWS identifies the need for immediate and ongoing user experience input from Veterans with PTSD and the ability to support multiple concurrent UX studies and to manage safety and risk of Veterans with PTSD. Given the unique needs and experiences of those living with PTSD, the offeror must have Clinical psychology experience or PTSD-specific experience and user experience testing in clinical psychology or PTSD with Veterans. Additionally, the offeror must have experience in content writing for PTSD health education as demonstrated by developing and leading trauma-informed user experience studies and integrating findings into clinically appropriate, safe, and effective public education materials that can be delivered via mobile app.

See attached DRAFT PWS for specific requirements.

III. SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS.

Please provide the following information by 2PM Eastern Time on June 23, 2026 via email to Contract Specialist (CS) Jamilah.Green@va.gov and Contracting Officer (CO) John Fields, at john.fields3@va.gov. VA reserves the right to respond to any, all, or no respondents. All VA current requirements identified herein are subject to change at any time. If you have any questions concerning this announcement, please contact the CS and CO. VA appreciates your time and anticipated response.

Information Needed to Identify Offeror Capabilities. Please provide responses to the questions below and any additional comments or information to clearly identify the capabilities.

Partial responses are not acceptable. The Government is seeking as much information as possible and a complete response to this RFI during this market research activity.

THERE IS A PAGE LIMIT OF 10 PAGES.

NO MARKETING MATERIALS ARE ALLOWED AS PART OF THIS RFI.

COMPANY/VENDOR INFORMATION

1. Include the following identification information:

a. Company/Vendor Name:

b. CAGE/UEI Number under which the company is registered in SAM/VetBiz.gov:

c. Company Address:

d. Point of contact name:

e. Telephone number:

f. Email address(s)

g. List any federal contracts in which you are a prime contract holder, for example: GSA, NASA SEWP, T4NG, etc.

RFI QUESTIONS.

2. Are you a small or large business under NAICS 541512? If you believe there is a more appropriate NAICS code, please provide that to the Government with your rationale.

3. If a small business, what type of small business are you? Are you able to comply with FAR 52.219-6 and 52.219-14 in completion of this effort?

4. Are you a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB)? If so, are you capable of performing at least 51 percent of the cost of personnel for contract performance/cost of manufacturing, excluding the cost of materials for this requirement? Are you able to comply with VAAR 852.219-10/11 in completion of this effort?

5. Has the draft PWS provided sufficient detail to describe the technical and functional requirements that encompass the requirement?

______ YES _______ NO

If “NO”, please provide your technical and functional comments/recommendations/questions on elements of the draft PWS that may contribute to a more accurate proposal submission and efficient, cost effective effort.

6. STANDING UX PANEL FOR VETERANS WITH PTSD.

The PWS requires trauma-informed user experience testing and input.

a. How will the offeror immediately provide (from day 1 of the performance period) immediate user input from Veterans with PTSD who meet the inclusion criteria described in the PWS (please explain)?

b. How will the offeror meet requirements to run multiple user experience projects simultaneously that support different clinical needs of Veterans with PTSD (i.e., insomnia, anger, relationship difficulties, previous experience with mindfulness or specific mobile applications (please explain)?

7. PRIVACY.

How would you maintain Veteran privacy through each phase of recruitment, informed consent, engagement, scheduling, reimbursement, tracking, and documentation (please explain)?

8. UX STUDY DESIGN AND OUTCOMES.

The PWS requires the offeror to synthesize findings from UX studies into actionable, evidence-informed insights, and translate those insights into design recommendations, including user interface (UI) elements, navigation structures, interaction flows, onboarding approaches, and friction points specific to Veterans with PTSD.

Do you have product design experience specific to mental health (please explain)?

9. ABILITY TO PRESENT FINDINGS.

Trauma-informed UX studies will require findings to be presented and shared to a diverse group of government stakeholders, including program directors, psychiatrists, psychologist, social workers, chaplains, developers, and researchers.

Have you successfully delivered trauma-informed UX findings to a diverse group of stakeholders (please explain).

10. EXPERIENCE WITH TRAUMA-INFORMED METHODOLOGY AND CARE

FOR PTSD.

UX input from Veterans with PTSD must be reliable, rapid, actionable, and above-all safe and appropriate to those involved, and is a major element of the PWS. Given VA’s emphasis on trauma-informed care for Veterans with PTSD, and based on the VA/DoD Clinical Practice Guidelines and other professionally-accepted standards (e.g., https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2017-14409-025).

Do you have experience in developing and applying trauma-informed methodology to UX studies, mobile app design, and mobile application testing for users with PTSD (please explain)?

11. CLINICAL UX LEAD.

The PWS requires a clinical lead who is able to clinically evaluate and implement a trauma-informed approach to each phase of UX evaluation, UX recommendations, testing, content writing, and other key tasks. The Clinical UX Lead shall hold (a) a doctoral degree in clinical psychology, counseling psychology, or clinical social work from a regionally-accredited U.S.

https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2017-14409-025 institution; (b) active, unrestricted licensure to practice independently in a U.S. state or territory;

(c) at least 3 years of post-licensure clinical experience that includes direct treatment of adults with PTSD using at least two VA/DoD Clinical Practice Guideline first-line treatments; (d) experience delivering evidence-based treatments to Veterans with PTSD; (e) documented experience conducting or supervising user research, usability testing, and formative research with participants who have a primary diagnosis of PTSD; (f) documented experience working with mobile application developers and designers; (g) experience working with prototyping software for mobile application design; and (h) experience using issue management/tracking systems for mobile application testing and quality assurance. The offeror shall identify the proposed Clinical UX Lead by initials and credentials, attach a CV, and confirm availability for at least 50% level of effort across the period of performance.

Can you provide a clinical UX lead with the necessary qualifications (please explain).

12. CLINICAL INTEGRATION.

The PWS requires the offeror to apply clinical judgment and trauma-informed practices across each phase of UX research; to synthesize findings and outcomes from UX studies into actionable designs and clinical education materials suitable for the general public; to generate public-facing trauma education and self-management materials; and to evaluate mobile application designs, builds, and research products- please document how the designated Clinical UX Lead has experience integrating trauma-informed principles of care into participant management, UX study design, product design, clinical education materials, and testing.

Do you have experience in providing integration of UX findings, design recommendations, testing, and clinical materials development and managing multiple projects simultaneously (please explain).

13. CLINICAL WRITING AND PUBLIC EDUCATION MATERIALS.

Does the Offeror have previous experience (within last 5 years) in writing patient-facing, trauma-informed clinical education materials about PTSD and PTSD treatment for delivery within a consumer mobile or web product (please explain)?

14. TESTING AND QUALITY ASSURANCE OF MOBILE APPLICATION DESIGNS.

The PWS requires detailed, specialized, and trauma-informed mobile application testing of mental health or trauma across a range of physical devices and device sizes in accordance with 508 accessibility standards.

Does the offeror have experience in mobile application testing of mental health or trauma across a range of physical devices (please explain)?

15. MANAGING ACUTE DISTRESS IN THOSE WITH PTSD.

Does the Offeror have experience managing acute distress in those with PTSD related to conducting trauma-informed user-experience research with adult participants who have a primary diagnosis of PTSD (please explain).