36C26025Q0590.pdf

Sources Sought - Solicitation Number: 36C26025Q0590

SUBJECT* R&D Study of Rural healthcare access support

GENERAL INFORMATION

CONTRACTING OFFICE’S ZIP CODE* 98661

SOLICITATION NUMBER* 36C26025Q0590

RESPONSE DATE/TIME/ZONE 06-12-2025 5pm MOUNTAIN TIME, DENVER, USA

ARCHIVE 30 DAYS AFTER THE RESPONSE DATE

RECOVERY ACT FUNDS N

SET-ASIDE

PRODUCT SERVICE CODE* AJ12

NAICS CODE* 541715

CONTRACTING OFFICE ADDRESS NCO 20 Network Contracting Office

ATTN: V4CONT

1601 E. Fourth Plain Blvd Bldg.17, Suite B428 Vancouver WA 98661

POINT OF CONTACT*

Amy Kuczajda Amy.Kuczajda@va.gov 208-429-2018

PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

ADDRESS Department of Veterans Affairs VA Portland Health Care System Research and Development Department 3710 SW US Veterans Hospital Road Portland OR

POSTAL CODE 97239

COUNTRY

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

AGENCY’S URL

URL DESCRIPTION

AGENCY CONTACT’S EMAIL ADDRESS

EMAIL DESCRIPTION

This is a Sources Sought announcement only. This is not a request for proposals, quotations, or bids; nor a synopsis of a proposed contract action under FAR Subpart

5.2 and no contract shall be awarded from this notice. No reimbursement will be made for any costs associated with providing information in response to this Sources Sought or any follow up information requests. No solicitation is currently available.

This notice is for market research purposes to gain knowledge of interest, capabilities, and qualifications of interested Small Business firms. Responses to this Sources Sought may shape the acquisition strategy in developing a competitive requirement. Not responding to this notice does not preclude participation in any future or potential solicitation. It is the intent of the VA to use the information gathered for market research purposes only.

Veterans Health Administration, Regional Procurement Office West, Network Contracting Office 20, is conducting market research for a service contract to support the Veterans Rural Health Resource Center-Portland (VRHRC-P) under the direction of two Principal Investigators. The Contractor will be responsible for refining the toolkit and delivering technical assistance for identified boundary spanner roles, using an innovative combination of quantitative, qualitative, and systems science methods, which will enable the identification of priority innovations for improving rural Veterans’ access to quality care. Work is located at the VA Portland Health Care System, 3710 SW US Veterans Hospital Road, Portland, OR 97239.

For the principal components of work see the attached statement of work. Documents are currently in draft state and industry comment / suggestions are greatly encourage and welcomed.

Sources are being sought for firms with a North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code of 541715 - Medical research and development laboratories or services (except biotechnology and nanotechnology research and development), PSC AJ12- General Science and Technology R&D Services; General Science and Technology; Applied Research and a with a Small Business Size Standard of 1,000 Employees. Sources are highly encouraged to respond to this notice.

After review of the responses to this notice, and if the Government still plans to proceed with this project, a request for quotes (RDQ) will be published on www.SAM.gov. Responses to this announcement are not an adequate response to any future solicitation announcement.

Please provide the following information:

1. Contact information: Name, address, SAM.gov UEI number, and points of contact with telephone numbers and e-mail addresses.

2. Business Size/Classification (based on NAICS 541715):

Is your firm eligible for participation in one of the following small business programs?

If so, please indicate the program.

[ ] yes [ ] no Small Business (SB) [ ] yes [ ] no HUBZone [ ] yes [ ] no Small Business 8(a) [ ] yes [ ] no Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB) [ ] yes [ ] no Women-Owned (WO) Small Business [ ] yes [ ] no Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) [ ] yes [ ] no Veteran Owned Small Business (VOSB) [ ] yes [ ] no Other (please specify)

3. Capabilities Statement: Description of capabilities to perform described above and project experience demonstrating relevant experience similar to those described.

• SDVOSB or VOSB businesses please include statement on maintaining compliance with VAAR 852.219-75 VA Notice of Limitations on Subcontracting—Certificate of Compliance for Services and Construction, 852.219-76 VA Notice of Limitations on Subcontracting – Certificate of Compliance for Supplies and products.

• All other socio-economic businesses please include statement on maintaining compliance with FAR 52.219-14 Limitations on Subcontracting.

4. Past Performance/experience: Provide information on contracts of similar scopes of work or construction contracts, briefly describe no more than three (3) contracts (or specific task orders) completed within the past five years of the issue date of this Sources Sought notice. The past performance information should include:

• Project Title/Contract Number

• Location: City, State

• General description of the construction to demonstrate relevance to the proposed project

• Dollar value of contract

• Name of the company, agency, or government entity for which the work was performed

Note: Do not include Proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information in responses.

NO RESPONSES WILL BE ACCEPTED BY FAX.

Responses will not be returned. Telephonic responses will not be honored. Please respond by email only. Send responses to the Contracting Officer, Amy Kuczajda at Amy.Kuczajda@va.gov

Responses will be accepted until COB on June 12, 2025.

STATEMENT OF WORK (SOW)

1. Contract Title.

Improving Care Coordination for Rural Veterans: Advancing Toolkits and Supporting VA Social Workers

2. Background.

Despite recent advances in access to VA and non-VA services (aka “community care”), many of the 4.7 million veterans that live in rural areas face challenges accessing primary and specialty care due to factors at the patient, clinician, clinic, and system-levels, including traveling long distances to health care facilities, staffing shortages, and lack of home internet and telehealth access, which exacerbate health disparities. Rural veterans are more reliant on community care mechanisms than their urban counterparts, and veterans that use both VA and community care (aka dual-users) are especially vulnerable to disjointed care, duplication of services, and bureaucratic frustration and fatigue. While comparison studies often focus on quality of care between VA and non-VA settings, few interventions focus on improving veteran and provider/clinical staff experiences with community care and reduction of duplication of services.

Recent research exploring these inter-organizational interactions found that community care providers and staff often face bureaucratic frustration, administrative delays, and difficulty obtaining VA system knowledge when caring for Veterans who are dual-users. A growing body of research highlights the challenges that both community care and VA providers/clinical staff members experience when providing care to rural dual-user veterans, as well as for the patients receiving care. One promising solution to this fragmentation may be through application of toolkits, technical assistance, community mapping and engagement.

The 2024 expansion of Veteran care eligibility under the VA PACT Act is expected to lead to “unprecedented growth” in the number of Veterans seeking healthcare, both inside the VA and through community care. Thus effective intervention to support inter-organization interaction, navigation and care coordination are needed. However, our prior work emphasized the need to shift navigation responsibility from community care staff to VA employees with appropriate knowledge of policies and processes. Our prior work explored geographic access to VA and non-VA primary care in Oregon and northwestern states, rural Veterans experiences accessing VA and non-VA primary care, facilitators and challenges rural primary care clinics experience when providing care, and the role Veteran Services Organizations (VSOs) play in supporting access to care. In this work, we identified intervention priorities to improve Veteran access to care using participatory group model building and adapted a novel cross-sector Relational Coordination model.

Based on our pilot of the Relational Coordination intervention, we created a Care Coordination Toolkit for VA social workers to facilitate system knowledge-sharing and coordination between the VA and community care. This Toolkit was further refined in FY24 utilizing user-centered design practices. Toolkits have been used to support clinical interventions. Further, VA social workers assist with access to care, referral and care coordination, and reduce hospital admissions and emergency department visits for Veteran patient panels. A growing body of literature also supports the use of practice facilitation (also called coaching or implementation facilitation) to provide technical assistance and support toolkit use.

Preliminary findings from prior work show more limited geographic access to primary care services for rural Veterans than their urban peers. To support these ends, the Veterans Rural

Health Resource Center-Portland (VRHRC-P) under the direction of two Principal Investigators seek to contract for support services. During the 12-month contract period, the Contractor will be responsible for refining the toolkit and delivering technical assistance for identified boundary spanner roles, using an innovative combination of quantitative, qualitative, and systems science methods, which will enable the identification of priority innovations for improving rural Veterans’ access to quality care.

The data collection required for this SOW is needed to more fully inform the investigative approach and spread of the study and to lead the VRHRC-P to more quickly and efficiently identify valuable rural health interventions for upcoming fiscal years.

3. Scope.

The project scope of work is envisioned as containing responsibilities for the next 12 months.

The Contractor’s scope of work includes the following:

Conducting user-centered design activities and data collection. Developing, evaluating, and piloting a Community Engagement Toolkit for boundary spanners.

Conducting technical assistance and academic detailing on Community Engagement activities for individuals in boundary spanner roles.

Planning and facilitating learning collaboratives for toolkit dissemination and trainings.

Including content planning, recruitment and collaboration with experts and faculty, marketing and recruitment, technical support, and evaluation.

Performing high level qualitative interviews with non-VA clinic staff, community organization staff, VSOs and VA clinical staff.

Conducting an environmental scan across two VRHRC regions to inform adaptations needed to scale-up the Care Coordination Toolkit nationally.

Producing high level plan for national application and scalability of Toolkit based on user experience.

Cultivating and maintaining key stakeholder engagement through advisory board meetings, end-user design activities, and other outreach.

The Contractor will need to have an established primary care database, demonstrate robust experience in qualitative interviewing and analysis, have extensive skills and expertise in non- VA healthcare community outreach and engagement to develop toolkits and provide technical assistance, have established relationships with participants and/or relevant communities in order to ensure timely recruitment and demonstrated experience in successful stakeholder engagement, and have systems science expertise for evaluating, iterating and scaling activities.

In addition, the Contractor will need to have a deep knowledge and experience with rural communities, VA CBOCs, VSOs, and historical activities supporting cross-sector collaboration in rural communities.

4. Specific Tasks.

Task 1: Hosting 4 Rural Veteran Advisory Board Meetings.

This includes:

Identification and recruitment of advisory board members Preparation of meeting agendas Digital hosting of advisory board meetings Meeting facilitation, field note preparation and follow up communication Integration of advisory board feedback into research protocols After meeting summary report

Purpose: This data will be used by leadership to inform of disparities and gaps surrounding the healthcare needs of rural Veterans and supportive services provided to rural Veterans. This data and its analysis are expected to lead to the development and implementation of future innovations in care for rural Veterans.

Task 2: Identify and recruit additional VISN 20 community partners for learning collaboratives and toolkit pilot activities.

This Includes:

Identification of inclusion criteria Outreach to community care partners and community organizations Recruitment of participants Follow up communication After activity summary report and communications

Purpose: Non-VA community partners will participate in research to inform leadership of feasibility of proposed innovations. In addition, recruitment of partners is integral to success of boundary spanner training and toolkit. Participants will provide leadership with valuable insights into successful opportunities to improve care for dual-user Veterans.

Task 3: Adapt Community Outreach and Engagement toolkit for CBOC and VAMC employees.

This Includes:

Data collection and analysis of end-user experience with Community Outreach

Toolkit Generation of additional materials and resources on community engagement, facilitation, and local context where gaps are identified Toolkit refinement based on user-centered design activities.

Environmental scan of available resources, materials, and partner departments and/or organizations Document compilation and formatting for ease of access

Purpose: This toolkit development will serve to identify available materials as well as gaps in resources for individuals who support dual-user Veterans and care coordination across the VA-community care boundary. The completed toolkit will serve to support training and professional development for VA Social Workers and other Veteran support roles. The toolkit will provide resources tailored to local context with an emphasis on rural and highly rural regions with limited access to VAMCs. The toolkit will be used by leadership to integrate qualitative findings, identify staff development opportunities, and disseminate best practices. In addition, this toolkit serves as the foundation for task 4 and potential future promising practices.

Task 4: Conduct tailored facilitation activities for CBOC, VAMC, and boundary spanner employees

This includes:

Advertising study opportunity

Contact and recruitment of interview participants Screening and scheduling of interview participants Travel for interviews or conduct by video or phone Gathering informed consent of interview participants Conducting expert interviews of interview participant Delivering incentives to interview participants in person or via mail Transcription and validation of interviews Thematic coding and analysis of interviews Toolkit iteration from interviews and themes

Purpose: This data will be used by leadership to inform of challenges and possible solutions to challenges associated with dual-user Veterans and the healthcare needs of rural Veterans who receive community care. This data and its analysis are expected to inform toolkit revision prior to national spread and dissemination.

Task 5: Conduct environmental scan across 2 or more VRHRC service areas This includes Collection of data sets for contacting clinics and community partners Recruiting participants in ~8 communities Scheduling, consenting, and conducting brief interview activities with clinics and community partners Analyzing and generation of data visualizations based on interview results Comparative analysis of data Manuscript and report generation from the maps and analyses

Purpose: This data will be used by leadership to inform regional disparities and differences surrounding the healthcare options for rural Veterans. This data and its analysis are expected to lead to the development and implementation of future innovations in care for rural Veterans.

5. Performance Monitoring

The contractor will provide quarterly progress reports to the VRHRC-P leadership to review progress towards completed deliverables. Supplemental meetings between the Contractor and VRHRC-P will be utilized in the event of delays and to solicit feedback and guidance. The Contractor will also interact periodically with VRHRC-P Operations Director for review and approval of qualitative data collection and analysis. VRHRC-P members will be invited to participate in group model building sessions hosted by the Contractor.

6. Security Requirements.

Two members of the study have acquired WOC status. They have completed all security requirements for their VA Access. The contractor employees shall not have access to VA sensitive or computer information that is outside of their prescribed VA access and authorization. he contractor employees shall require intermittent access only and will be escorted by VA employees while at VA Facilities. No background investigation is required. The C&A requirements do not apply, and that a Security Accreditation Package is not required.

7. Government-Furnished Equipment (GFE)/Government -Furnished Information (GFI).

Not applicable.

8. Other Pertinent Information or Special Considerations.

a. Identification of Possible Follow-on Work

b. Identification of Potential Conflicts of Interest (COI)

No COIs exist.

9. Risk Control

This study will present minimal risk to the involved participants. All Contractor staff will be trained in appropriate and up-to-date HIPAA and PHI data management

10. Place of Performance.

Place of performance will include the Contractor’s office (OHSU office at the Oregon Rural Practice-based Research Network and the Portland VA Medical Center). Principal performance will occur at the Contractor’s offices.

11. Period of Performance.

To be determined

12. Delivery Schedule

Activity/Deliverable Delivery Schedule

1. Hosting 4 Rural Veteran Advisory Board Meetings with Summation Reporting

Quarterly meetings;

Summation Reporting

2. Identify and recruit additional VISN 20 community partners for toolkit pilot activities.

3. Adapt and finalize Community Outreach and Engagement toolkit for CBOC and VAMC employees.

4. Conduct tailored facilitation activities for CBOC, VAMC, and boundary spanner employees. Complete summary report

5. Conduct environmental scan across 2 or more VRHRC service areas and deliver summary report

13. Records Management Language for Contracts

When Federal agencies acquire goods or services, they need to determine what Federal records management requirements should be included in the contract. Federal contractors often create, send, or receive Federal records. Federal contracts should provide clear legal obligations describing how the contract employees must handle Federal records.

Agency records officers, procurement counsel, and acquisitions officers must discuss how to integrate records management obligations into their existing procurement processes. NARA has developed the following language to be included as an agency-specific term and condition in Federal contracts for a variety of services and products.

The majority of contracts should include language on records management obligations, but each contract should be evaluated individually. For example, the data-rights paragraph (Paragraph 10 below) may not be appropriate for all contracts. Instead, agencies may be better served by one of the established data-rights clauses in the Federal Acquisition Regulations.

This language should not replace specific records management requirements included within Federal information system contracts.

RECORDS MANAGEMENT OBLIGATIONS

A. Applicability

This clause applies to all Contractors whose employees create, work with, or otherwise handle Federal records, as defined in Section B, regardless of the medium in which the record exists.

B. Definitions

“Federal record” as defined in 44 U.S.C. § 3301, includes all recorded information, regardless of form or characteristics, made or received by a Federal agency under Federal law or in connection with the transaction of public business and preserved or appropriate for preservation by that agency or its legitimate successor as evidence of the organization, functions, policies, decisions, procedures, operations, or other activities of the United States Government or because of the informational value of data in them.

The term Federal record:

1. includes [Agency] records.

2. does not include personal materials.

3. applies to records created, received, or maintained by Contractors pursuant to their [Agency] contract.

4. may include deliverables and documentation associated with deliverables.

C. Requirements

1. Contractor shall comply with all applicable records management laws and regulations, as well as National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) records policies, including but not limited to the Federal Records Act (44 U.S.C.

chs. 21, 29, 31, 33), NARA regulations at 36 CFR Chapter XII Subchapter B, and those policies associated with the safeguarding of records covered by the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a). These policies include the preservation of all records, regardless of form or characteristics, mode of transmission, or state of completion.

2. In accordance with 36 CFR 1222.32, all data created for Government use and delivered to, or falling under the legal control of, the Government are Federal records subject to the provisions of 44 U.S.C. chapters 21, 29, 31, and 33, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (5 U.S.C. 552), as amended, and the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a), as amended and must be managed and scheduled for disposition only as permitted by statute or regulation.

3. In accordance with 36 CFR 1222.32, Contractor shall maintain all records created for Government use or created in the course of performing the contract and/or delivered to, or under the legal control of the Government and must be managed in accordance with Federal law. Electronic records and associated metadata must be accompanied by sufficient technical documentation to permit understanding and use of the records and data.

4. [Agency] and its contractors are responsible for preventing the alienation or unauthorized destruction of records, including all forms of mutilation. Records may not be removed from the legal custody of [Agency] or destroyed except for in accordance with the provisions of the agency records schedules and with the written concurrence of the Head of the Contracting Activity. Willful and unlawful destruction, damage or alienation of Federal records is subject to the fines and penalties imposed by 18 U.S.C. 2701. In the event of any unlawful or accidental removal, defacing, alteration, or destruction of records, Contractor must report to [Agency]. The agency must report promptly to NARA in accordance with 36 CFR 1230.

5. The Contractor shall immediately notify the appropriate Contracting Officer upon discovery of any inadvertent or unauthorized disclosures of information, data, documentary materials, records or equipment. Disclosure of non-public information is limited to authorized personnel with a need-to-know as described in the [contract vehicle]. The Contractor shall ensure that the appropriate personnel, administrative, technical, and physical safeguards are established to ensure the security and confidentiality of this information, data, documentary material, records and/or equipment is properly protected. The Contractor shall not remove material from Government facilities or systems, or facilities or systems operated or maintained on the Government’s behalf, without the express written permission of the Head of the Contracting Activity. When information, data, documentary material, records and/or equipment is no longer required, it shall be returned to [Agency] control or the Contractor must hold it until otherwise directed. Items returned to the Government shall be hand carried, mailed, emailed, or securely electronically transmitted to the Contracting Officer or address prescribed in the [contract vehicle]. Destruction of records is EXPRESSLY PROHIBITED unless in accordance with Paragraph (4).

6. The Contractor is required to obtain the Contracting Officer's approval prior to engaging in any contractual relationship (sub-contractor) in support of this contract requiring the disclosure of information, documentary material and/or records generated under, or relating to, contracts. The Contractor (and any sub-contractor) is required to abide by Government and [Agency] guidance for protecting sensitive, proprietary information, classified, and controlled unclassified information.

7. The Contractor shall only use Government IT equipment for purposes specifically tied to or authorized by the contract and in accordance with [Agency] policy.

8. The Contractor shall not create or maintain any records containing any non-public [Agency] information that are not specifically tied to or authorized by the contract.

9. The Contractor shall not retain, use, sell, or disseminate copies of any deliverable that contains information covered by the Privacy Act of 1974 or that which is generally protected from public disclosure by an exemption to the Freedom of Information Act.

10. The [Agency] owns the rights to all data and records produced as part of this contract. All deliverables under the contract are the property of the U.S.

Government for which [Agency] shall have unlimited rights to use, dispose of, or disclose such data contained therein as it determines to be in the public interest.

Any Contractor rights in the data or deliverables must be identified as required by FAR 52.227-11 through FAR 52.227-20.

11. Training. All Contractor employees assigned to this contract who create, work with, or otherwise handle records are required to take [Agency]-provided records management training. The Contractor is responsible for confirming training has been completed according to agency policies, including initial training and any annual or refresher training.