PWS Attach 10 Current COTS Software_CCIN 13OCT22.docx

CURRENT COMMERCIAL OFF THE SHELF (COTS) SOFTWARE

Below is an overview of the current COTS software products in use by VA to underpin several national web and mobile applications.

This document should not be construed as a constraint on the scope of the Connected Care Integrated Network (CCIN) IDIQ base contract or future task orders (TOs) issued against the base contract; rather, this document has been developed to provide additional information around the COTS products that underpin several VA applications.

SOMNOWARE

Product Description: Somnoware Healthcare System’s premier product for sleep and pulmonary remote management is referred to simply as “Somnoware.” This is a cloud-based solution that has been approved through the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRamp) licensing process at Somnoware’s expense specifically for VA and is provided to VA as a Software as a Service (SaaS) solution.

Somnoware integrates with VA’s commercial Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) machine vendors, utilizing data from their individual data storage systems to analyze, deliver results to providers, and allow therapies to be adjusted remotely, without the patient having to come to a traditional face-to-face visit. In addition, Somnoware supports in-home sleep studies and, with an additional license, pulmonology therapies and treatment.

VA is currently procuring annual software maintenance and annual licensing for the Sleep and Somnoware Respiratory Care Platform modules of Somnoware. Software maintenance is the process of enhancing and optimizing software, as well as remedying defects; it includes technical support and all new fixes, patches, releases, updates, upgrades, security improvements, and feature enhancements that ensure the software solution stays in alignment with current medical protocols.

VA Implementation and Integrations: OCC has spent over a year negotiating with local sites to prepare them for the transition to the new package; creating and deploying communications strategies to raise awareness; developing and providing training, and providing deployment support. OIT Biomedical Engineering has been fully engaged throughout VA for local setup and installations. The customized Somnoware SaaS solution is being integrated into the provision of remote sleep monitoring and management of CPAP therapies. Additionally, the product is being used to enable home sleep studies that replace the more expensive process of in-hospital sleep studies, which historically have several months of backlog at VA sites due to high demand.

CIRRUSMD

Product Description: CirrusMD is a Software as a Service (SaaS) health platform white labeled for VA as VA Health Chat. VA Health Chat allows Veterans to receive virtual care, anywhere and anytime Veterans via an iOS or Android app or a web browser. With VA Health Chat, Veterans are able to chat with VA Staff directly and in real-time, without the need for a VA appointment or VA-issued equipment. VA Health Chat allows Veterans to contact VA Pharmacists, Nurses, Medical Schedulers, Women’s Health experts, Urgent Care Providers, and other VA healthcare team members via an easy-to-use text-based chat platform via the web or a user-friendly mobile application. Depending on the Veteran’s main healthcare location, these services may be available 24 hours a day. When a provider feels the encounter would be enhanced by the addition of video, they can seamlessly invite the Veteran to join an on-the-spot video session. VA has increased access to care, reduced Veteran wait time for care, recorded very high levels of patient satisfaction, and achieved patient care savings with VA Health Chat.

CirrusMD’s platform can serve potentially millions of patients simultaneously. Through chat and communications services, it simplifies the complexity of healthcare workflow, facilitating interactions and integrations between different users, and making existing staffing resources more productive for enterprise deployment.

CirrusMD provides each implementation with customized interfaces, labeling, workflows, reporting, and functionality developed with the input of local users and leadership. Each VISN has individual staffing models, workflows, business hours and requirements, that while similar, allow VA to serve their Veterans on one platform with customized patient experiences.

Cirrus MD is built for enterprise care and hosted in a VA-specific implementation. It meets all Federal privacy and security standards resulting in an approved VA ATO and FedRAMP certification, which required building a fully isolated VA environment using FedRAMP-authorized third parties and meeting specific government security requirements.

VA is currently buying annual software maintenance and annual licensing for the Cirrus MD platform. Chats are provided via a pay-per-chat model and, currently, 50,000 chats per year are included in the pricing quoted. Software maintenance is the process of enhancing and optimizing software, as well as remedying defects; it includes technical support and all new fixes, patches, releases, updates, upgrades, security improvements, and feature enhancements that ensures the software solution stays in alignment with current medical protocols.

VA Implementation and Integrations: Much work has been done to deploy this solution within the VA Healthcare system. To date, VA has integrated VA Health Chat into its complex VA infrastructure and network services, care workflows, and 10 geographically separated Veterans Integrated Services Networks to provide virtual care options for millions of Veterans. Work is currently in progress to integrate VA Health Chat into VA’s Electronic Health Record (EHR).

Beyond the complex technical integration required for these products, many VA hours have been used to optimize the Veteran and staff experience and workflows. Each VISN has dozens of staff members who have been trained in the use of this platform. Additionally, each VISN has spent many hours, training, staffing, marketing, and learning VA Health Chat to deliver this healthcare option to our Veterans.

VIIMED

Product Description: ViiMed is a digital healthcare platform designed to coordinate care, remotely monitor patients, and empower patient self-management throughout treatment and recovery. ViiMed provides a low-code platform that enables users to build features, content, and workflows without the need and cost of custom development. Integration with other contracted OCC COTS technology is available in Viimed, such as consolidating OCC’s Virtual Care Manager video capability. Along with the product license, ViiMed provides integration services with VA’s proprietary systems, ensuring their product becomes a seamless part of the ecosystem of applications found in the public app stores and on OCC’s own VA branded app store.

There are multiple tier levels of pricing for ViiMed tied to the number of careflows purchased. VA has initially purchased the 5 careflow level of Viimed with plans to expand to 15 and above careflows. VA’s primary focus to date has been integration with VA backend services as this is technically challenging and has required significant resources.

VA Implementation and Integrations: OCC has spent a year planning and executing with the vendor to implement the platform into production. VHA’s Pain Management, Whole Health, and MOVE! Program Offices have spent extensive time building out content for Veterans.

PULSE ANALYTICS

Product Description: Pulse Analytics is a proprietary solution created by TekFive and implemented at other agencies, such as NASA. Pulse Analytics has been implemented to meet the need for application and data analytics to monitor, improve and predict outcomes from within OCC’s mobile/web product offerings and serves as a substitute for Google Analytics which cannot be used in conjunction with Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and Protected Health Information (PHI). OCC’s white-labeled and custom applications have integrated code that feeds data into the Pulse Analytics platform. This data is also recorded by Pulse Analytics in the OIT Rockies analytics platform for quality improvement and resource assessment. The dashboards and content provided by Pulse Analytics are used to drive decision-making by business owners, OCC leadership, project management, and developers of specific applications.

The “license” provides access to the proprietary system, branded for VA, along with all of the custom development, operations, and maintenance needed to keep the platform running within the VA’s mobile enterprise cloud. Resources are currently provided by TekFive to OCC’s development teams to ensure integration occurs with the Pulse Analytics platform.

VA Implementation and Integrations: VA has spent approximately 2 years inserting custom code into all OCC’s mobile applications and systems to establish data connections and implement the platform, including developing data displays and dashboards.