Attachment_A_-_SOW_Answering_Service.pdf

Attachment A

STATEMENT OF WORK

Office of Health Services

Live 24/7 Telephone Answering Service Provider

1. BACKGROUND

1.A. The Agency The Peace Corps is an independent executive Agency of the federal government established in 1961 by President John F. Kennedy to promote world peace and friendship through the service of American Volunteers. The Volunteers’ service fulfills the three primary goals set out in the Peace Corps Act: 1) helping the people of interested countries in meeting their need for trained men and women; 2) helping promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the people served; and 3) helping promote a better understanding of other people on the part of Americans.

Peace Corps Volunteers (“Volunteers” or “PCVs”) represent the United States abroad as they work in a wide variety of positions. Assignments vary, however, nearly all Volunteers fall under one of the following general categories: Education, Youth Development, Health, Community Economic Development, Agriculture, and Environment. Volunteers typically serve a two-year term (24 months), after in-country training. The Peace Corps provides volunteers with housing and a living stipend for food and incidentals – at a rate allowing them to live at the local community level. The average age of Volunteers is 28 years old; Volunteers over the age of 50 make up 8%. Females represent 63% of Volunteers and males represent 37%; 93% of Volunteers are single and 7% are married.

1.B Technical Challenges Volunteers are typically placed in rural environments, often at a considerable distance from the Peace Corps main office in-country. In both the major cities and in rural areas, Volunteers often face varying and limiting bandwidths, connectivity, and electricity.

The Agency does not issue a mobile phone, laptop, or tablet to Volunteers. Typically, Volunteers bring a device (i.e. mobile phone, laptop, tablet) from the U.S. or purchase a device in-country. Technological limitations occur variably for each Volunteer at any one time. For example, each region, country, and PCV site may experience intermittent electricity, limited or nonexistent internet access, and/or lack of standardized mobile devices (or no device at all).

1.C. The Office of Health Services The Agency’s Office of Health Services (OHS) currently manages more than 7,000 Volunteers (includes Trainees) in approximately 65 international posts. The Peace Corps supports Volunteer health by maintaining an ambulatory/primary care clinic at each overseas post. Every post has at least one Peace Corps Medical Officer (PCMO). Regional Medical Officer (RMOs) and Headquarters (HQ) Medical Officers provide oversight and support to a geographic cluster of countries. Currently, Peace Corps maintains five RMO positions and three HQ Medical Officers.

The Office of Medical Services (OMS) in OHS is the unit at HQ responsible for oversight and coordination of care. OMS consists of several medical health professionals (registered nurses, nurse practitioners, physician assistants). The Counseling & Outreach Unit (COU) in OHS is responsible for providing oversight and coordination of care with mental health concerns of Volunteers. COU consists of several mental health clinicians who provide services to Volunteers or assist in coordinating their care.

In addition to providing medical and mental health care, COU in OHS coordinates the training and management of the Agency’s Duty Officer telephone line for non-medical emergencies related to a

Volunteer in service. The Agency Duty Officer line is answered by COU and limited OHS staff during business hours, and answered by an assigned and trained non-medical staff member of the Agency during non-business hours.

The Agency Duty Officer phone line is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. This line can be reached by three methods: 202-692-1470 (direct); 1-855-855-1961, option 2 (toll-free); 1-855-855- 1961, option 1, extension 1470 (toll-free). During business hours this line is accessible to designated and trained COU and OHS staff via their office phones. After hours and during federal closures this line is transferred to the answering service for call screening, dispatch and patching of emergency calls to designated on-call staff members. If a call is missed during business hours, the call will automatically forward to the answering service to ensure all calls are answered by a live person and handled as appropriate. Based on current averages of calls/month, the answering service receives an average of 15 calls/day.

For medical and mental health emergency calls, callers may reach out via the Agency Duty Officer phone line or dial the answering service’s dedicated Peace Corps number directly to be dispatched to the appropriate on-call staff member.

The OMS and the COU each consist of two types of on-call personnel:

Office of Medical Services (OMS)

• Medical Duty Officer: is the primary medical professional on call. S/he is an International Health

Coordinator who is a nurse-practitioner, registered nurse, or physician’s assistant.

• Doctor on call: is a back-up medical physician providing assistance to the Medical Duty Officer when requested.

Counseling & Outreach Unit (COU)

• Agency Duty Officer: is the primary Peace Corps staff member who has been trained to handle non-medical concerns of family and friends, or to aid in Emergency Leave requests regarding the medical emergency of a family member of a Volunteer. S/he is not a licensed mental health clinician or a medical professional. Most Agency Duty Officers work in another unit of the Agency outside of COU and OHS, but are trained by COU staff to answer the phone after hours.

• COU Clinician: is a licensed psychologist or social worker who o Acts as the primary metal health professional to answer calls regarding mental health emergencies of current Volunteers.

o Acts as a back-up when the Agency Duty Officer cannot be reached or requests additional assistance.

The OHS is seeking a live telephone answering service to provide main coverage outside of normal working hours and back-up coverage during business hours for on-call personnel, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. This service is required in ensuring all emergency calls are answered and responded to in a timely manner.

1.D. Emergencies vs. Non-Emergencies The dedicated Agency Duty Officer phone line receives a wide variety of calls. Emergency and non-emergency call types are outlined in TASK 2 and 3. The contractor shall determine which calls meet emergency criteria for dispatching/patching to the appropriate on-call staff member.

In general, emergency calls are considered anything that is directly related to:

• The well-being of a Peace Corps Volunteer or Trainee (here forth designated as “V/T”), in both health and security aspects

• Large-scale or individual events that can affect the well-being of a V/T and cause concern for family and friends of the V/T

• V/T with travel or transportation issues requiring immediate assistance

• Family or friends of a V/T reporting a family emergency that requires notification of the V/T or request for leave of the V/T from service

• V/T on leave who requires checking-in with on-call staff or have urgent medical or administrative issues related to that leave

• Peace Corps staff members requiring support of on-call staff related to the well-being of a V/T.

• V/T’s medical or mental health emergencies

• Other logistical calls related to a V/T’s medical health or medical evacuation

In general, non-emergency calls are considered anything not directly related to a V/T in service or not regarding an emergency issue (as listed above) for a V/T. These include, but are not limited to:

• General inquiries about Peace Corps service

• Administrative questions about a V/T that do not concern their health or safety (e.g., requesting documents for proof of service, loan deferment, proof for medical insurance, mailing and care packages, etc.)

• Any call concerning an Applicant or Invitee to Peace Corps’ program, as neither are covered by Peace Corps until they officially become Trainees. These calls include concerns about applications to Peace Corps, application deadlines, and technical issues with the application portal or medical portal for Applicants or Invitees.

• Medical billing issues

• General services for Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCVs)

2. PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES

Due to the nature of the work of the Office of Health Services (OHS), primarily its Office of Medical Services (OMS) and the Counseling & Outreach Unit (COU), it is critical that emergency calls are able to reach essential personnel regardless of the day or time. Medical and other emergency situations often arise overnight, on weekends and on holidays when Peace Corps personnel are not in their offices, and therefore the assistance provided by a live telephone answering service is required.

The services of a professional answering service are necessary to help screen the calls made to the COU and the OMS staff outside of Peace Corps’ normal hours of operation. The answering service will screen calls made to Peace Corps after hours. The operator will dispatch and patch emergency calls to the appropriate on-call staff, and direct non-emergency callers to dial Peace Corps’ general line during normal business hours.

While the majority of call volume directed to the answering service will be during non-business hours, the services of its operators will still be required during business hours as a back-up to the Agency Duty Officer line and for emergency medical calls.

The operators at the answering service are required to determine whether a call falls under the emergency or non-emergency criteria and report the information that has been conveyed to him/her when dispatching emergency calls to the designated Peace Corps staff on-call. Beyond this, no additional interpretation of the call is required. Updates to Peace Corps’ dispatch protocol and the on-call staff schedule will be provided to the answering service on a regular basis.

The answering service must be able to provide telephone answering services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, and provide Peace Corps and callers with excellent customer service and rapid response times. As these situations are often critical, with calls coming in from around the globe from medical officers, Peace Corps officials, Volunteers/Trainees, and concerned and distraught families, the answering service must have adequate staffing and procedures in place to ensure that Peace Corps’ protocol is followed consistent with our requirements, and that calls are dispatched in a timely manner.

3. SCOPE OF WORK

The scope of this contract is to provide telephone answering services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and 365 days a year for the Office of Health Services (OHS), and provide Peace Corps and callers with excellent customer service and rapid response times. The answering service will provide a unique US phone number for the Peace Corps’ calls with a dedicated account and specific script to greet callers.

Operators will screen calls made to Peace Corps and dispatch and patch emergency calls to the appropriate Peace Corps on-call staff member. The contractor will be responsible for ensuring back-up systems and protocols for their system should the provided phone line or access to answering services cease to work for any reason. Changes to message and dispatch protocol will be communicated by the designated Peace Corps staff member on a regular basis, and by the Peace Corps’ on-call staff members as required for specific instances. Daily reports will be sent to the designated Peace Corps staff member and invoicing from the service will occur on a monthly basis.

4. TASKS

TASK 1: Required Personnel and Equipment

TASK 1.1 Account & Accessibility. The contractor will provide a unique US phone number and a dedicated account for Peace Corps’ calls. A specific script will be provided for operators when answering calls to this dedicated number. The answering service and the provided phone number will be accessible to incoming domestic and international calls, both landline, mobile, and from other digital sources (e.g., Skype and Google calls). The contractor provides ability to patch Peace Corps staff to domestic phone lines, both mobile and landlines.

TASK 1.2 Staffing. Operators staffed by the contractor will be trained in and abide by privacy regulations, including the Privacy Act and HIPAA. The contractor and its staff will maintain privacy of all callers and their information, only to be disclosed to designated on-call staff and OHS personnel as required to provide emergency services and follow-up to ensure best practices. The contractor shall release no information related to this service without written permission from the Contracting Officer.

The contractor will also train operators on Peace Corps’ call procedures.

The contractor shall provide sufficient staffing of operators to answer calls directed to the Peace Corps’ phone line to meet an average call waiting time of 30 seconds or less, with 15 or seconds or less being the preferred waiting time. The operator will only place a call on hold while a call is being dispatched or patched. The Peace Corps’ COU and OHS staff will notify the answering service if a call surge is expected to occur, but this is not always possible due to the unexpected nature of the events. The contractor is required to meet the expected average waiting times during events that may cause a sudden increase in call volume. The contractor is also required to ensure quality is maintained at all times, including during call surges. Estimated call volumes and examples of events causing sudden call volume surges are provided in Attachment B – Call Volumes.

The operators shall determine which calls are emergencies as detailed in TASK 2 that should be dispatched and patched to the Peace Corps’ on-call staff immediately, vs. non-emergency calls detailed in TASK 3. If an operator is unsure about the emergency nature, s/he will forward the call to the appropriate Peace Corps on-call staff member.

The contractor will provide points of contact at the answering service for immediate and non-urgent assistance if Peace Corps’ on-call staff experience issues with operators or services rendered.

Immediate contacts will include a phone number to reach staff if the answering service’s phone line becomes unavailable. Non-urgent will include contacts for a manager or other designated point of contact for Peace Corps staff to report caller complaints, incorrect call protocol, or other services not rendered to the expectation of the contract.

TASK 1.3 Hours of Operation. Operators are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and 365 days a year. During non-business hours, 5:00pm to 8:30a.m Eastern Standard Time (EST) on all federal working days, the Agency Duty Officer line will be forwarded to the answering service to screen all incoming calls. Additionally calls from the Agency Duty Officer line will be forwarded to the answering service for federal closures in the Washington DC area and on weekends and federal holidays. Federal closures in DC can be found on the OPM Operating Status website, located at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/snow-dismissal-procedures/current-status/.

During business hours Monday through Friday, 8:30am – 5pm EST, the anticipated range of calls to the answering service is 0 to 7 calls per day, as most days calls are not received during business hours. The answering service operators will answer and dispatch these calls as appropriate.

TASK 1.4 Procedures for Technical Issues. The contractor will have standard operating procedures implemented that ensure its staff will address technical and calling issues as soon as the issue is identified. In addition, the answering service will operate with a standard procedure to check the system is functioning and available on a regular basis. The contractor is required to maintain the answering service with availability 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. In case of a technical failure that affects availability and service, the phone line and services will be restored on average within 1 hour. Issues that cause failure of access to the phone line or services ideally will not occur at all; the contractor must have a contingency plan that ensures that if the line were to be unavailable, a solution can be reached or a redundancy system will be implemented within an hour of interruption of service

If the phone line at the answering service becomes unavailable for any reason, the contractor must inform the Agency Duty Officer and Medical Duty Officer of the outage if it is not resolved within 15 minutes from the start of the unavailability. This notification allows the Agency Duty Officer and Medical Duty Officer to inform necessary staff abroad to re-route communications. Once the issue is fixed, the answering service must contact the Agency Duty Officer and Medical Duty Officer again to confirm the issue is resolved.

http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/snow-dismissal-procedures/current-status/

TASK 2: Emergency Call Dispatching

TASK 2.1 Call Handling and Dispatching Procedures. COU and OMS staff will provide detailed call dispatching procedures to the contractor for emergency calls that occur during business hours and non-business hours. The procedures will include titles of Peace Corps’ on-call staff to contact and how to dispatch a call if the primary on-call staff member is not available. COU and OMS will also provide updated on-call schedules for Peace Corps staff, including names and phone numbers, to the contractor. Specific dispatching instructions will be updated via fax, email or phone to the answering service from the Office of Medical Services (OMS) and the Counseling & Outreach Unit (COU) as appropriate.

Emergency calls should be dispatched and patched via telephone to the appropriate after-hours staff member within 15 minutes of receipt of the initial call. If an operator is unsure about the emergency nature, s/he will forward the call to the appropriate Peace Corps on-call staff member.

If the contractor patches a call to a Peace Corps staff member (Agency Duty Officer, COU Clinician, Medical Duty Officer, or Doctor on Call) and the staff member states that the call should be dispatched to a different on-call staff member, the answering service must dispatch the message to the identified staff member without second guessing this request. Additionally, when asked by the Peace Corps’ on-call staff members, the operators will relay a brief message to a specific caller.

TASK 2.2 Written Record of Emergency Calls.

Operators will create a text record of the following information from all calls that require dispatch to the Peace Corps on-call personnel, both during business hours and non-business hours:

1. Name of caller (confirm spelling)

2. Phone number (verify the area code and number for accuracy)

a. If caller is at a pay phone station or calling by other methods that does not permit in-coming call, advise caller to locate a regular phone and redial emergency number. If no other options exist, ask caller to call back if s/he gets disconnected.

3. General nature of the call (check if it meets criteria for Emergency Call category)

4. If call is related to a Peace Corps V/T or staff member overseas:

a. Name of the V/T or staff member, and designation (V/T or staff title)

b. Relation of caller to the V/T or staff member

c. Country of service for V/T or staff member

5. Record which staff member operator dispatched and patched caller to, and what steps were taken to connect caller with a staff member.

6. Date and times of call receipt and time dispatched and patched should be included.

7. After recording information, the operator will follow the dispatch procedures for the appropriate on-call staff member as provided by COU and OMS.

TASK 2.3 Emergency Calls - Primary Dispatch Tree.

For emergencies and urgent calls, the contractor shall screen and dispatch domestic and international telephonic emergency messages to the designated on-call staff from:

• Peace Corps Volunteers or Trainees (V/T) in service

• Peace Corps Staff (PC Staff)

• Peace Corps Medical Officers (PCMO)

• Families of V/T

• Families of Staff

• Embassy Officials

• State Department or other Government Officials

• Outside callers regarding logistics related to the medical, security, or well-being of Peace Corps V/T, including hospitals, medical providers, taxi drivers, and hotel staff.

• Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCVs).

Calls listed in the Emergency Call Dispatch Tree below are considered urgent or emergency issues that require excellent customer service and rapid response from the answering service and Peace Corps staff. The first column identifies the reason for the caller to reach out to Peace Corps. The second column lists the common types of callers. The third column lists the designated primary on-call staff member this call should be dispatched to.

Emergency Call Dispatch Tree

REASON FOR CALL COMMON CALLERS DISPATCH TO:

Medical issue or medical evacuation (medevac) of a V/T

(excludes billing questions)

PCMO, PC Staff, V/T, Family/Friend, Hospital/Medical Providers, Air Ambulance, State Department, Hotel, Taxi Driver

Medical Duty Officer Medical issue of a Recently Returned V/T (RPCV) who is seeking urgent or imminent medical care

Recently returned RPCV

Taxi pick-up of V/T in Washington

DC

Taxi driver, V/T

Hotel logistics for V/T on medevac in Washington DC

Hotel staff, V/T, PC Staff

Mental health issue of a V/T PCMO, PC Staff, Family/Friend, Hospital/Medical Providers, V/T

COU Clinician Sexual assault of a V/T Family/Friend, PCMO, PC Staff, Hospital/Medical Providers, Family emergency: medical issue of a family member of a V/T, or other urgent family issue related to a V/T

Family/Friend, V/T, PC Staff, PCMO, Hospital/Medical Providers

Agency Duty Officer

Whereabouts inquiry or well-being of a V/T.

Includes concerns of V/T’s safety or a large-scale event affecting V/T’s country of service.

Family/Friends, PC Staff, State Department

Travel Issues of a V/T or PC Staff V/T, PC Staff Death of a V/T PC Staff, Family/Friend

Other urgent issue not listed above ONLY APPLIES TO: PC Staff, PCMO, State Department, V/T Call staff member requested by these callers, or Agency Duty Officer if unsure.

Numbers will also be provided for Office of Victim Advocacy (OVA) and Office of Safety and Security (OSS).

TASK 3: Non-Emergency Call Handling For non-emergency calls, the contractor will inform the caller to contact the appropriate Peace Corps phone line during regular business hours, as indicated in the Non-Emergency Call Handling Tree below.

These calls should not be dispatched to Peace Corps’ on-call staff. COU and OMS staff will provide updates to these procedures as necessary. The first column identifies common non-emergency reasons for calling, the second column identifies common callers, and the third column indicates how the call should be handled. Due to the large variation in non-emergency reasons for calling, this table lists the most common reasons that calls are made but is not exhaustive. If an operator is unsure about the emergency nature, s/he will forward the call to the appropriate Peace Corps on-call staff member.

Non-Emergency Call Handling Tree

REASON FOR CALL COMMON CALLERS CALL HANDLING

General questions about Peace Corps

Anyone

Inform caller to contact 1-855-855-1961 during business hours.

Caller should listen to phone tree, or press option 0 for further operator assistance.

Application/Invite: checking status, urgent deadline, technical issues, questions

Applicant, Invitee

Technical issues with website Applicant, Invitee Care packages and mailing questions

Family/Friends, Applicant, Invitee

General administrative: proof of service paperwork, loans, insurance, etc.

Family/Friends, V/T, Applicant, Invitee

Selling products/services Sales Callers

Medical bills (all)

Medical questions for Applicants/Invitees

Non-urgent medical questions for V/Ts or RPCVs

Applicant, Invitee, V/T, Family/Friends, Hospital/Medical Provider

Inform caller to contact 202-692-1500 during business hours.

Press or Media Inquiries Press or Media Inform caller to contact 202-692-2230 or email pressoffice@peacecorps.gov

TASK 4: Record Keeping, Reports, and Invoicing

TASK 4.1 Daily Call Record. The contractor will keep a text record of all emergency calls that are dispatched or attempted dispatch to the Peace Corps personnel on call. The record shall include information received by the operator in TASK 2.2. The operator will make these records available to the COU Program Specialist or designated Peace Corps point of contact on a daily basis via electronic means, such as through email or a secure online account. The records should be separated by calls dispatched to the COU on-call staff (Agency Duty Officer, COU Clinician) versus the OMS on-call staff (Medical Duty Officer, Doctor on Call).

mailto:pressoffice@peacecorps.gov

TASK 4.2 Monthly Call Record. The contractor will send the Peace Corps’ point of contact a report on a monthly basis via email with the following information. If preferred, the contractor may include this monthly report on the invoice.

A. Exact count of the number of calls received each month.

a. If possible, break-down of number of calls received during Peace Corps’ business hours versus number of calls received after-hours.

b. If possible, amount of time operators spent on phone with callers.

B. Exact count of the number of calls dispatched and calls patched each month.

C. These counts should be exact, even if they are below baseline (i.e., 400 calls or

1000 minutes).

TASK 4.3 Invoicing. The contractor will invoice on a monthly basis, in accordance with the invoicing instructions provided in the contract award. The invoice will include a break-down by number of calls or minutes on call, number of patches, number of dispatches, and additional charges associated with usage including units used and unit price.

TASK 5: Transition

TASK 5.1 Transition Into the Contract.

A. The contractor will complete account creation and set-up procedures for Peace Corps’ unique dedicated phone line within the first week (7 days) of the base period.

B. The contractor will complete training of operators and operators will be ready to answer, screen, and dispatch no later than the first week (7 days) of the base period, at which time the unique line and account will be available for active use by the Peace Corps.

C. The contractor will not hesitate to contact the designated Peace Corps’ point of contact if there are any questions about procedures for operators or other staff.

D. During the first two weeks of active call during the base period, staff in COU and OMS will call the answering service at least once a day during non-business hours to confirm access to the line is working.

E. During the first month of active call during the base period, ALL CALLS will be logged, including non-urgent calls. After the first month of active call during the base period, contractor is only expected to log urgent calls.

TASK 5.2 Transition Out of the Contract.

A. By the second to last week of the performance period, the contractor and operators will continue to follow call procedures as performed during the performance period. However, the contractor will also include a question to ask each caller what phone number(s) s/he dialed to reach the operator. The operator will inform the caller of a new number to reach Peace Corps (provided by Peace Corps staff) before the end of the call handling or dispatching.

B. The contractor will communicate information about received calls during the last two weeks to the designated point of contact at Peace Corps, who will use the information to identify gaps in the transition and close them before the transition period ends.

C. At the close of the contract, the contractor will leave a voice message on the unique phone number provided to Peace Corps that directs the caller to the new phone number (provided by Peace Corps staff). This voice message will kept on the unique number for 30 days.

5. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

The period of performance will be 5 years: an initial base year followed by 4 option years.

6. PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

This contract will be performed at the contractor facilities. The contractor is responsible to furnish all needed materials and services to perform the work described in this SOW; they will not need to be on-site at Peace Corps.

7. REQUIRED STANDARD OF SERVICE

The contractor must ensure that at all times the services performed under this SOW are in accordance with the standards of service below to ensure proper handling of calls.

A. Customer Service.

a. Operators will demonstrate friendliness with a professional manner and tone to all callers.

b. Operators will ask required screening questions and demonstrate patience for callers’ answers, especially for those who may be experiencing obvious distress.

c. Operators will speak kindly but authoritatively to callers with non-emergency issues when communicating Peace Corps’ instructions for these calls.

d. Operators will continue to demonstrate professionalism even in instances of callers speaking in a rude or unprofessional tone.

B. Protocol Adherence.

a. The contractor will complete Peace Corps’ account set-up and operator training on Peace Corps protocols to meet Peace Corps’ standards no later than 7 days into the contract’s start date.

b. Operators will adhere to call handling and dispatching protocols as outlined in the contract and further guidelines as provided by COU and OMS staff.

c. Operators and the contractor will ask questions to Peace Corps’ point of contact or on-call staff if there is uncertainty about a procedure.

d. The contractor will immediately update its staff and operators if a change occurs in Peace Corps’ call handling procedures, or when Peace Corps’ on-call staff schedule changes.

e. The contractor will provide electronic text records to the Peace Corps’ point of contact as specified in TASK 4 of the contract. The contractor will re-send records as requested if the initial information is missing or was not received.

C . Call Waiting Times.

a. Callers will experience an average call waiting time no longer than 30 seconds, with the ideal average call waiting time no longer than 15 seconds.

b. Callers will only be placed on hold during attempts to dispatch and patch the caller to Peace Corps’ on-call staff member.

D. Reliability of Phone and Answering Service Access.

a. The phone line and services provided by the contractor will be available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. The phone line and services should always be available 24/7 365. The contractor must have a contingency plan that ensures that if the line were to be unavailable, a solution can be reached or a redundancy system will be implemented within an hour of interruption of service.

b. The contractor and its staff will perform protocol to conduct regular checks that ensure the phone lines and services are accessible at all times, and to identify accessibility issues as soon as they occur.

c. The contractor will notify Peace Corps’ on-call staff if they become aware of an issue that prevents accessibility to the phone line or services provided by the contractor that lasts longer than 15 minutes.

The contractor will work immediately to address an issue the moment it is identified. The contractor will notify Peace Corps’ on-call staff as soon as phone and service accessibility is available after an outage.