RECRUITMENT SERVICES

The South Carolina Department of Mental Health (SCDMH) is seeking recruitment services for a Qualified Provider List (QPL) to support hiring for critical healthcare positions across their 23 facilities, specifically targeting Psychiatrists, Physicians, and Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRNs). The comprehensive recruitment services include candidate sourcing, screening, evaluation, reference verification, position specification drafting, and monthly candidate summaries. Prospective recruitment firms must submit sealed bids by February 18, 2020, at 3:00 PM, with questions due by February 7, 2020, at 12:00 PM. The contract term is one year with four potential one-year renewals, creating a maximum contract period of five years from March 2, 2020, to March 1, 2025. Offerors must provide documentation demonstrating recruitment experience, detailed recruitment procedures, candidate database information, and at least two references specific to psychiatrist recruitment work. Bidders are not required to be located in South Carolina but must be responsive and responsible, and they may choose to participate in specific recruitment categories without responding to every position line item.

The solicitation allows multiple bids from single offerors if submissions have significant differences beyond pricing, with fixed recruitment service prices capped at $24,000 per Psychiatrist/Physician placement and $16,000 per APRN placement. No specific set-aside designations for disadvantaged enterprises were mentioned in the documentation. Vendors must be registered South Carolina vendors and carry workers' compensation and general liability insurance. Payment is exclusively made upon successful placement, not in installments or service initiation. Historical data suggests approximately 10 placements occurred in the preceding 24 months, though specific future recruitment volume projections were not provided. Each of SCDMH's 16 mental health centers, 4 nursing homes, and 3 hospitals will be individually responsible for paying vendors for successful recruitment services. While placement on the QPL does not guarantee contract utilization, all qualified and responsive bidders will be awarded a position on the list, with SCDMH emphasizing the challenge of identifying dedicated professionals for their facilities.