SOW - 75H70420Q00006.pdf

Office of Quality – Statement of Work:

Quality Improvement Online Training Courses and Technical Assistance

Background Information

The Indian Health Service (IHS), an agency within the Department of Health and Human Services, is responsible for providing federal health services to American Indians and Alaska Natives. The mission of IHS is to raise the physical, mental, social, and spiritual health of American Indians and Alaska Natives to the highest level and assure that comprehensive, culturally acceptable personal and public health services are available and accessible to members of the 567 federally recognized Tribes across the United States. The Indian Health Service has released the Strategic Plan for Fiscal Year 2019-2023. The Strategic Plan will help guide ongoing efforts in providing health care for American Indians and Alaska Natives across the United States. The plan addresses access to quality health care services, strengthening organizational capacity, and improving operations and communications across the system.

The Office of Quality was authorized in December, 2018 with four (4) Divisions including:

Enterprise Risk Management, Quality Assurance, Innovation and Improvement and Patient Safety. The purpose of the Office of Quality is to strengthen the agency’s ongoing efforts to ensure the delivery of quality health care at federally operated facilities serving American Indian and Alaska Native people and is aligned with the Quality Framework and IHS Strategic Plan 2019-2023. The IHS Office of Quality seeks to design, develop, and implement strategies to support the strengthening and development of a quality improvement program for IHS that aligns with the agency and HHS-wide overarching quality improvement goals. One of the identified needs is to train existing and future staff across IHS to develop their knowledge, skills and abilities to implement Quality Improvement activities at the National and local level.

Training must be grounded in evidence-based quality improvement science as a framework for learning, planning and execution of quality improvement strategies that support changes and continuous improvements in the way health care is delivered.

Purpose of Objectives of the Acquisition

The purpose of the acquisition is for the Office of Quality to provide technical assistance and quality improvement training through an online course “learning community” in educational modules designed for busy learners and educators. Access to online training courses in an online community supports quality improvement efforts for facility staff and teams to learn new approaches and strategies in quality improvement and to build core skills in quality improvement, patient safety and leadership. Access to an online learning mechanism and community/platform will assist the Office of Quality in the goal of developing high-performing, innovative health care teams to improve the quality of, and access to, effective care across the

IHS.

Need:

Essential training and tools in an online educational community/platform is needed to help teams deliver excellent, safe healthcare and to build core skills in quality improvement, patient safety, and leadership. Online courses in quality improvement, patient safety, leadership, and patient-centered care should be offered through narrative, video, and interactive discussion to provide a dynamic learning environment to assist learners and health professionals at all levels. The courses should be offered in educational modules designed for busy learners and educators. The modules should be offered in 15 to 40 minute lessons with activities that teach essential concepts, experiential learning, and offer basic certificates in Quality, Safety and other quality improvement training. The online learning community/platform should provide a network of learners and educators where they can connect with like-minded individuals from other professions and health systems. Courses should include short videos, case studies, games and other tools to ensure learning outcomes and objectives are met, and project-based learning opportunities. Continuing Education Units (CEUs) are needed to ensure that clinical staff, specifically nurses, physicians and pharmacists can obtain training and can obtain CEUs in an online mechanism. Continuing Education Units (CEUs) enable clinical staff to obtain credit in an accredited program designed for professionals with certificates or licenses to practice various professions.

Contractor Requirements: Quality Improvement Online Training Course Subscriptions

- The contractor shall:

o Provide the functions of online training and quality improvement courses in an online educational community/platform to teach and build core skills in quality improvement, patient safety, and leadership.

o Provide the technical functions of online courses in a self-paced format in 15 to 40 minute lessons. Online courses shall cover the teaching of essential quality improvement concepts.

o Providing a subscription format for online courses for learners to register and enroll in courses at various professional levels. A self-paced format is essential.

o Provide the technical functions of online courses including: log on, passcode and registration functions for participants to enroll in courses on demand.

o Provide solutions to technical or enrollment issues through responsive, timely, and professional customer service and support/technical assistance. Customer services personnel shall effectively communicate general information, instructions, analyses, and solutions in written and oral communication.

o Provide training courses that use short videos, case studies, games, and project-based learning opportunities.

o Provide basic certificates in: Quality, Safety, and related quality improvement training.

o Provide CEUs from nationally recognized accreditation health organizations in an online mechanism for: clinical staff, nurses, physicians and pharmacists to obtain credit in an accredited program designed for professionals with certificates or licenses to practice various medical and related professions.

o Provide and engage enrollees with a community learning environment that establishes a network of learners and educators to individuals from other professions and health systems.

o Provide quarterly reports that track usage of the courses participants have enrolled in.

o Provide a detailed report to enrollees about their activity: courses completed, assessment scores, continuing education credits earned. Enrollees/attendees should be able to query this information through the online educational community/platform.

o Provide capability to ensure that available workshop training formats meet Section

508 standards.

o Provide a minimum of at least ten (10) modules/courses upon initiation of the Period of Performance. The module/course offerings shall include at least three

(3) for Quality Improvement, and at least three (3) for Patient Safety. The above is a minimum. Additional modules/courses are encouraged.