SOI 1147 Dialectical Behavior Therapy AMENDED 2023-11-09.pdf

SOI 1147 Dialectical Behavior Therapy

Title: Solicitation of Interest (SOI) 1147 Dialectical Behavior Therapy

Agency: Children & Family Services, NYS Office of Bureau of Contract Management

Contract Number: TBD

Contract term: 8/1/2024 - 7/31/2027

Date of issue: 10/13/2023

Amended: 11/9/2023 (see amendments in red text on pages 4 through 6)

Due date/time: 11/17/2023 11/28/2023 by 4:00 PM Eastern Time

Location: Statewide

Counties: Statewide

Background

The New York State Office of Children & Family Services (OCFS) announces a Solicitation of Interest (SOI) for qualified entities that can provide Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) staff consultation and training services required within our Division of Juvenile Justice and Opportunities for Youth (DJJOY) to at-risk youth in our custody. DBT is an integral part of the New York Model (NYM). The NYM is the behavioral treatment program used by DJJOY staff to serve the needs of court adjudicated youth in our custody. The NYM is utilized throughout a youth’s placement, from their facility stay through their reintroduction to their communities through our Community Multi-Services Offices (CMSO). DBT fosters skills to manage painful emotions and decrease conflict in relationships. DBT specifically focuses on providing therapeutic skills in four key areas.

First, mindfulness focuses on improving an individual's ability to accept and be present in the current moment. Second, distress tolerance is geared toward increasing a person’s tolerance of negative emotion, rather than trying to escape from it. Third, emotion regulation covers strategies to manage and change intense emotions that are causing problems in a person’s life. Fourth, interpersonal effectiveness consists of techniques that allow a person to communicate with others in a way that is assertive, maintains self-respect, and strengthens relationships. Please see the Eligibility Criteria section for additional information.

It is expected that all DBT services will be provided in-person by the selected vendor. OCFS reserves the right to allow for remote services, at its sole discretion, when it is determined to be in the best interest of the State. The determination to allow for remote services must be pre-approved by OCFS and will only be made during the course of contract service delivery.

The locations where these services are expected to be provided are as follows:

NON-SECURE FACILITIES

Brentwood Residential Center for Girls

1230 Commack Road Dix Hills, NY 11746-8215

LIMITED SECURE FACILITIES

Finger Lakes Residential Center

250 Auburn Road Lansing, NY 14882

Highland Residential Center for Boys

629 North Chodikee Lake Road Highland, NY 12528

Taberg Residential Center for Girls

10011 Taberg-Florence Road Taberg, NY 13471

SECURE FACILITIES

Brookwood Secure Center for Boys & Girls

419 Spook Rock Road P.O. Box 265 Claverack, NY 12513

Goshen Secure Center for Boys 97 Cross Road, Goshen, NY 10924

MacCormick Secure Center for Boys

300 South Road Brooktondale, NY 14817

LIMITED SECURE AND SECURE FACILITIES

Harriet Tubman Residential Center for Girls

6706 Pine Ridge Road Auburn, NY 13021

Industry Residential Center for Boys

375 Rush-Scottsville Road Rush, NY 14543

Community Multi-Services Offices

Brooklyn 55 Hanson Place, Room 750 Brooklyn, NY 11217

Buffalo Ellicott Square Building 295 Main Street Suite 545 Buffalo, NY 14203

Albany 1 Park Place Suite 210, 2nd Floor Albany, NY 12205

Long Island- Hauppauge 250 Veteran's Memorial Highway, Ste 2A-20 Hauppauge, NY 11788

Long Island- Garden City (Satellite) 711 Stewart Avenue, Room 210 Garden City, NY 11530

Mid- Hudson Community 103 Executive Drive, 2nd Floor New Windsor, NY 12553

Rochester 259 Monroe Avenue, Room 309 Rochester, NY 14607

Syracuse The Atrium 100 S. Salina St., Suite 105 Syracuse, NY 13202

Utica 207 Genesee Street, Room 409 Utica, NY 13501

OCFS Main Office 52 Washington Street Rensselaer, NY 12144

Secure Residential Facilities: This is the most controlled and restrictive of the residential programs operated by OCFS, where intensive programming is provided for youth who require this type of environment. Secure facilities are located in non-urban areas with virtually all program services provided on-grounds. Access to and from secure facilities is strictly controlled. The facility is either a single building or a small cluster of buildings surrounded by security fencing and individual resident rooms are locked at night.

The majority of youth admitted to secure facilities are sentenced as juvenile offenders or juvenile offender/youthful offenders by the adult courts. Certain youth may be placed in secure facilities as Adolescent Offenders per Raise the Age guidelines and juvenile delinquents, where the Family Court has authorized secure placement within 60 days of custody admission or when the youth has been “fennered” from a limited-secure facility for violent behavior. Services provided include education, employment training, recreation, counseling, and medical and mental health services.

Limited Secure Residential Facilities: This is the most restrictive service setting for youth adjudicated as juvenile delinquents. Limited secure facilities may also be used for youth previously placed in secure facilities, as a first step in their transition back to the community. Most limited secure facilities are located in rural areas, and virtually all services are provided on-grounds. Services provided include education, employment training, recreation, counseling, and medical and mental health services.

Non-Secure Residential Facilities: These facilities provide a non-secure level of placement for youth adjudicated as juvenile delinquents and consists of a variety of urban and rural residential centers. Youth in non-secure residential centers require removal from the community but do not require the more restrictive setting nor restraining hardware of a limited secure facility. Services provided include education, employment training, recreation, counseling, and medical and mental health services.

Community Multi-Services Offices (CMSOs) are located statewide and include community case managers, community clinicians, intake workers, court liaisons, youth division aides, and other service providers who work closely with the youth’s multi-disciplinary support team. The focus is to provide services to the youth and their family from the first day of a youth’s placement with OCFS until the youth returns to community supervision. The CMSO provides case management, supervision and counseling programs for all youth placed with OCFS. The community case manager, in collaboration with the facility support team members, is responsible for development of the Community Re-entry Plan (CRP) for each youth. The CRP builds on the individual treatment goals the youth achieves in placement and aligns them to community strategies that target identified areas of high risk through a cadre of primary and secondary community support services in the following domains: individual, family, school, peer group/community, and vocation/employment. Through the utilization of the Electronic Monitoring (EM) program, the CMSO is able to maintain a high level of youth supervision and support as youth make their transition from residential placement to their communities.

This advertisement is public notice that OCFS is seeking to contract with organizations to provide in-person and virtual DBT consultant services to OCFS staff, and DBT training and development to our DJJOY staff. Consultant services would include both direct consultation and training. Please see the Scope of Work section for additional information.

The purpose of this SOI is to invite any eligible and interested entities that believe they can satisfy this program’s needs to inform OCFS by a Letter of Interest (LOI). To be considered responsive, your organization’s LOI should be received no later than the deadline specified on the first page of this announcement. Please see the How to Respond section for additional information and submission requirements.

Through this announcement, OCFS is exploring the availability of vendors who have the expertise to provide the services required by OCFS. The results of this announcement are intended to determine if this opportunity will be competitively bid. If too few responses are received, OCFS may pursue other procurement options for this project.

Scope of Work (Amended 11/9/2023)

DBT consultant and training services will be provided in the following manner:

Consultation

On-site and virtual consultation will cover the following areas:

1. Egregious Behavior Protocol (EBP) – Review of the adequacy and quality of the application of EBP.

2. Consultation team – Treatment staff gather for group supervision, case conceptualization, and presenting treatment recommendations to each other regarding difficult cases. Observation and learning from staff interaction within the team, feedback within the consultation team regarding positives and deficits staff are experiencing or observing and troubleshooting issues within the team are the desired outcomes of this process.

3. Meetings with facility administration to address missing or weaker structural issues and program elements, e.g., regularly scheduled groups, consistent use of EBP, regularly held one-to-one individual sessions with youth, consistent use of diary cards in individual sessions.

4. Consultation by staff and supervisors regarding strategies for difficult youth where staff and supervisors will have an opportunity to identify and prepare case synopsis for problem-solving, support, coaching, and/or feedback.

5. Supervision of DBT treatment – assisting the facilities in setting up a supervisory process as it relates to DBT.

Training

On-site and virtual training includes the following:

1. Modeling by the trainer (e.g., conducting a skills group and/or chain analysis).

2. Role playing difficult clinical situations through trainee demonstration while providing in the moment coaching and feedback, including strengths and weaknesses.

3. Introduction of DBT training for new staff.

4. Training for clinicians to cover case conceptualization from a trauma informed lens, treatment hierarchy, and how to structure a session.

5. Homework plan for between sessions – work to shape treatment plans and ongoing notes to reflect DBT orientation, assessment, and treatment hierarchy.

“Consultation” should be considered as direct recommendations and support to facility/office staff and youth, that will help them to further understand and implement the DBT principles. “Training” should be considered teaching to a specific group of staff on a specific topic with DBT.

The anticipated Consultation and Training days/hours are subject to change based on need and facility population. The combined total of consultation and training days are not to exceed the maximum annual amount allocated for service delivery specified below in Funding Details. 25 days annually @ 7.5 hours each - 200 hours annually.

It is also mutually understood that all clinical, policy, and administrative decisions involving clinical care, including how DBT is implemented within OCFS/DJJOY, are the exclusive responsibility of OCFS/DJJOY personnel and not the contracted organization.

Furthermore, the organization is expected to propose an approach to DBT training and implementation where the fundamental DBT principles are preserved, yet tailored specifically to youth in a juvenile justice setting.

Eligibility Criteria

Interested parties who meet the following criteria are eligible to respond:

• Agree to provide the services requested in the Scope of Work section.

• Provide resumes for at least four consultants who have completed adherent DBT training to include DBT intensives and advanced training in DBT and possess a minimum of three years of follow-up training.

• Provide a brief narrative in your Letter of Interest that describes a plan to meet the program requirements/deliverables noted in the Scope of Work section.

• Include a brief narrative in your Letter of Interest that explains your organization’s 5+ years of experience providing DBT implementation, consultation, and training to staff in juvenile justice facilities for court-adjudicated youth.

• Agree to provide OCFS with three or more professional references for DBT-related services provided by your organization, if requested, within five business days from the date of request.

• Be eligible to do business with New York State.

Funding Details (Amended 11/9/2023)

This is anticipated to be a three-year contract at $83,000 per year. These services will be based on the needs of the DJJOY facilities, CMSOs and Home Office. OCFS does not guarantee income. The anticipated rates being proposed by OCFS are as follows:

• Consultation and Training = 200 hours @ $337.50/hour, or 25 days @ $2,700/7.5 hours/day = $67,500 annually

• Travel = up to $15,500 annually

• Virtual Consultation and Training @ $337.50/hour, or $2,700 per 8-hour day of service delivery (with one 30-minute lunch)

• On-site Consultation and Training @ $400/hour, or $3,200 per 8-hour day of service delivery (with one 30-minute lunch)

• Total for virtual and on-site service delivery will not exceed $67,200 per year.

• Travel = up to $15,800 annually

Funding for this project is contingent upon the availability of funds in the state and/or federal budgets and the number of interested and eligible parties that respond to this solicitation.

Reporting/Auditing Requirements:

Reimbursement for services will be provided on a monthly basis and is contingent on the selected vendor submitting the following documents:

• Submission of Consultation Summary Report

• Submission of vendor invoice

• Submission of OCFS Claim for Payment Form

• Submission of Timesheet for in-person visits or confirmation email from administrator for virtual services

• Submission of OCFS mileage form and travel receipts (if applicable) o All travel will be reimbursed at State rates

Term of Contract

The proposed contract to perform this work is anticipated to be for three years. The anticipated start date is 8/1/2024, and the anticipated end date is 7/31/2027. Funding is anticipated to be available for the first year of the contract. The award of a contract does not guarantee funding will be available for subsequent years. Contractors may not begin providing services before the contract start date; OCFS has no obligation to pay for services rendered before the New York State Office of the State Comptroller and the Office of the Attorney General approve the contract.

How to Respond

To be considered responsive, interested parties should complete and submit all required documents in conformance with the format and content requirements as explained. A response that does not provide all the information requested may be subject to rejection.

The response should contain sufficient information to assure OCFS of its accuracy. The information provided should, wherever possible, verify your organization meets the requirements in the Eligibility Criteria section of this solicitation.

Responses must be emailed to RFP@ocfs.ny.gov and should be received by the due date and time specified on the first page of this announcement.

Interested parties should complete and provide the following documents:

• Attachment 1 – Letter of Interest

• Attachment 2 – Submission Checklist

• Resumes for at least four consultants who have completed adherent DBT training to include DBT intensives and advance training in DBT and possess a minimum of three years of follow-up training.

The subject line of the email submission of your response should include the following information: SOI 1147 Dialectical Behavior Therapy. Additionally, please clearly identify the vendor’s name in the body of the email and in the file names of attached documents to ensure your submission is processed efficiently. Early submissions are encouraged as late responses may be subject to rejection.

Please limit your Letter of Interest to a maximum of four page(s), Arial 12-point font, single line spacing and one-inch margins. Please see Attachment 1 – Letter of Interest provided for your reference.

OCFS will provide a confirmation email that the submission has been received. OCFS will not be liable for any costs incurred by interested parties in the preparation of documents submitted in response to this solicitation. Vendors may modify, in writing, or withdraw the content of any submission at any time prior to the due date and time.

Questions

Questions should be submitted via email to RFP@ocfs.ny.gov prior to the due date and time specified on the first page of this announcement. The subject line should include the following information: SOI 1147 Dialectical Behavior Therapy. Please submit your question(s) with adequate time for response. OCFS recommends allowing at least five business days. Late questions may not be addressed.

Under the requirement of the Procurement Lobbying Act all communications regarding advertised projects are to be channeled only through the primary contact identified herein.

Evaluation Process

An internal review by OCFS will confirm eligibility and evaluate responses to this opportunity. This solicitation is not a guarantee or promise of funding.

OCFS may require additional information from an organization before deciding whether the interested organization is eligible and can supply the requested commodities or services. If OCFS requests additional information, it should be provided within five business days from request or as otherwise directed in the request.

OCFS reserves the right to request three or more professional references for DBT-related mailto:RFP@ocfs.ny.gov services provided by your organization, which should be provided to OCFS within five business days from request. OCFS may choose, at its discretion, to perform a reference check when evaluating vendor responses for suitability. Eligibility is contingent upon vendors maintaining and certifying a Vendor Responsibility Questionnaire. Vendors must be responsible and cannot be listed on the OGS prohibited vendors list.

OCFS Reserved Rights

OCFS reserves the right to withdraw, amend or postpone this solicitation, without notice, and without liability, to any applicant, or other party, and may exercise these rights at any time. In addition, OCFS reserves the right to:

• place a monetary cap on the funding amount made in each contract award;

• change any of the schedule dates stated in the solicitation;

• make an award under this solicitation in whole or in part;

• disqualify any applicant whose conduct and/or LOI fails to conform to the requirements of this solicitation;

• reject any LOI if, in the sole discretion of OCFS, it determines the applicant is not a responsible vendor;

• request all applicants who submitted LOIs to present supplemental information clarifying their proposals either in writing or by formal presentation;

• direct all organizations who submitted LOIs to prepare modifications addressing solicitation amendments;

• make funding decisions that maximize compliance with and address the outcomes identified in this solicitation;

• fund only one portion, or selected activities, of the selected applicant’s LOI and/or adopt all or part of the selected applicant’s LOI based on federal and state requirements;

• eliminate any solicitation requirements unmet by all applicants, upon notice to all parties that submitted LOIs;

• waive procedural technicalities, or modify minor irregularities, in LOI received, after notification to the applicant involved;

• correct any arithmetic errors in any proposal, or make typographical corrections to LOIs, with the concurrence of the applicant;

• negotiate with the eligible applicant(s) prior to contract award;

• require that all LOIs be held valid for a minimum of 180 days from the closing date for receipt of applications, unless otherwise expressly provided for in writing;

• fund any or all of the LOIs received in response to this solicitation. However, issuance of this solicitation does not commit OCFS to fund any proposals. OCFS can reject any proposals submitted;

• use the LOI submitted in response to this solicitation as part of an approved contract.

At the time of contract development, awardees may be asked to provide additional budget and program information for the final contract;

• utilize any and all ideas submitted in the LOI received where an award is ultimately made;

• make inquiries of third parties, including but not limited to applicant’s references, regarding the applicant’s experience or other matters deemed relevant by OCFS. By submitting an LOI in response to this solicitation, the applicant gives its consent to any https://www.osc.state.ny.us/state-vendors/vendrep/vendrep-system inquiry made by OCFS;

• where applicable, require contractors to participate in a formal evaluation of the program to be developed by OCFS. Contractors may be required to collect data for these purposes. The evaluation design will maintain participants’ confidentiality and recognize practical constraints of collecting this kind of information;

• when applicable, consider statewide distribution and regional distribution within New York City, including borough distribution methodology, in evaluating proposals; and

• reject any extraneous terms, alternate activities/work to be performed, added conditions, or exceptions stated by applicants within their LOI. This includes, but is not limited to, proposed changes to the standard terms and conditions of the resulting contract(s).

Contract Documents

Not applicable.

Diversity

OCFS is committed to identifying, addressing, and reducing disproportionality and to eliminating racial and ethnic disparities in our systems of care and custody. Authentic partnerships and joint decision-making with families and communities promote social justice and race equity to address disproportionality and disparities in the provision of services to children and families. OCFS strongly encourages qualified minority-owned, women-owned, and veteran-owned businesses to submit a letter of interest in response to this announcement.

Contact Information

Primary contact:

Director of Contracts NYS Office of Children & Family Services 52 Washington Street Room 202S – Procurement Unit

RFP@ocfs.ny.gov

Submit to contact:

Director of Contracts Office of Children & Family Services 52 Washington Street Room 202S – Procurement Unit

RFP@ocfs.ny.gov

Attachments

Please see the following attachments to this announcement, which are available on the New York State Contract Reporter website at https://www.nyscr.ny.gov or the OCFS website at https://ocfs.ny.gov/main/contracts/funding/.

• Attachment 1 – Letter of Interest*

• Attachment 2 – Submission Checklist*

* Attachments marked with an asterisk must be completed and included with your response submission.

https://www.nyscr.ny.gov/ https://ocfs.ny.gov/main/contracts/funding/