Inactive Total Small Business Set-Aside (FAR 19.5)

This is a Sources Sought to conduct market research to determine the availability of small business vendors capable of providing the requirement for Triage Education. Please see Statement of work for ... This is a Sources Sought to conduct market research to determine the availability of small business vendors capable of providing the requirement for Triage Education. Please see Statement of work for details. This requirement is for the Augusta VA 501 Greene Street, Hatcher Building Suite 2, Augusta, GA 30901. The sources sought does not guarantee the issuance of an RFQ. If you have the availability to provide the requirement, please respond to the sources sought with a capabilities statement. The sources sought is issued solely for information and planning purposes. It does not commit the Government to contract for any supply or service whatsoever. The VA is not, at this time, seeking proposals and will not accept unsolicited proposals. Responders are advised that the U.S. Government will not pay for any information or administrative costs incurred in response to the sources sought; all costs associated with responding to the sources sought will be solely at the interested vendor s expense. Not responding to the sources sought does not preclude participation in any future RFQ, if any is issued. Any information submitted by respondents to this RFI is strictly voluntary. All submissions become Government property and will not be returned. If you wish to note any discrepancies or additions needed in the statement of work (SOW) to successfully complete this service, please provide it in your response. Please note any information provided will be verified as an actual need and does not guarantee a change in the final SOW. Please note that requirements defined to date may change before a final solicitation is released. Sources Sought requirements are as follows: Please acknowledge if your company is an authorized provider of the of these services. Submit responses and related information via email to Audrey.hughes@va.gov by 9:30 AM EST, December 10, 2020. Proprietary/Confidential material shall be clearly marked on every page that contains such. Include the name, phone number, and email address of the lead from your organization. VA reserves the right not to respond to any or all emails or materials submitted. Provide Past Performance, if services have been provided before. STATEMENT OF WORK Project: Accredited Triage Comprehensive Training Course GENERAL INFORMATION 1. Purpose: Obtain an accredited on-line comprehensive Emergency Department (ED) triage training course. 2. Scope of Work: The contractor shall provide all resources necessary to accomplish the deliverables described in the statement of work (SOW), except as may otherwise be specified. The Contractor shall provide a complete comprehensive on-line triage training course that is accredited by the American Nurses Credentialing Center s Commission on Accreditation (ANCC). 3. Background: The Emergency Departments is designed so patients seeking treatment is first seen by a triage nurse. This continuous training course will allow those nurses maintain and obtain further skills to ensure the proper patient care is obtained from the first contact and throughout the treatment process. 4. Performance Period: This is a one-time purchase for 50 training courses. 5. Type of Contract: This contract will be a Firm-Fixed-Priced Contract. 6. Place of Performance: Charlie Norwood VA Medical Centers located at 950 15th Street, Augusta GA 30901 and 1 Freedom Way, Augusta GA 30904. 7. Hours of operation: Hospital normal hours of operation are between 8am and 4:30pm, Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. Holidays falling on a Sunday will be observed the following Monday. Warehouse deliveries are accepted between 8am and 3:30pm, Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. Federal Holidays New Year s Day January 1st Martin Luther King s Birthday 3rd Monday in January President s Day 3rd Monday in February Memorial Day Last Monday in May Independence Day July 4th Labor Day 1st Monday in September Columbus Day 2nd Monday in October Veteran s Day November 11th Thanksgiving Day Last Thursday in November Christmas Day December 25th B. GENERAL REQUIREMENTS 1. Contractor shall provide access to on-line resources, courses, help desk, testing program, progress reports and all needed materials to provide a comprehensive emergency department triage training course for 50 individuals. 2. Course shall be accredited by American Nurses Credentialing Center s Commission on Accreditation (ANCC). 3. Course shall provide a minimum of 23 Continuing Nursing Education (CNE) contact hours. 4. Course must provide at a minimum the below course material: - Overview and introduction to all courses in the entire curriculum - Set the foundation for the triage nurse, outlining terms and elements of competency for the triage role  - Explores mandates, standards of care, and standards of nursing practice applicable to the performance of ED triage - Triage competency - Legal /Risk management - Understanding triage applications of federal mandates (USA) - Summarize federal mandates affecting emergency care point-of entry processes; - Define the application of HIPAA in the triage process; - Review the evolution of EMTALA; - Explain medical screening exam definitions and limitations to the triage process; - Define EMTALA guidelines to rule out an emergency medical condition; - Outline the causes of EMTALA violations. - Practice methodologies to enhance safety as it relates to the physical plant, processes, or personal interactions that may contribute to the potential for violence; - Detect behaviors and situations associated with an increased risk for violence; - Demonstrate the skills necessary to mitigate the escalation of the anger cascade; - Select the appropriate method of restraint required, when necessary, to ensure the safety of patients, staff, and others in the department; - Discern circumstances in which retaliatory violence may occur and apply therapeutic interventions to prevent or cease such behavior; - Recommend a workplace violence policy that includes prevention, detection, and intervention in violent situations, as well as the appropriate response when deadly force is threatened. - Demonstrate an understanding of best practices related to chief complaints - Relate the concept of worst-case scenario to the prevention of mistriage. - Describe and define the rapid triage assessment - Incorporate immediate bedding strategies, when appropriate, using specific criteria. - Demonstrate a systematic and comprehensive triage assessment that addresses subjective and objective questioning and includes a pain assessment - Promote the consistent use of an evidence-based pain assessment tool, in conjunction with regulatory mandates, for the assessment and management of pain - Employ a systematic approach for collecting and recording necessary triage data in the patient medical record - Distinguish the elements required for meeting the best practices in triage documentation - Critique and identify necessary areas of improvement in the current triage documentation tool - Systematically review the patient s body system/part according to the focused assessment strategies taught - Summarize the advantages of a valid and reliable five-level triage acuity scale - Discuss the causes of mistriage - Discuss the subjective nature of acuity scales - Differentiate the elements of the Systematic Triage Assessment Process and their relationships before, during, and after assigning a triage acuity designation - Comprehensively define each acuity level and any pediatric-specific considerations - Discuss factors associated with triage drift - Use a systematic approach to accurately and consistently prioritize patients by assigning triage levels based on clinical presentation, discriminators, criteria, and any applicable algorithm, triage acuity scale, or index - Analyze factors that could escalate the triage acuity level - Verify the necessity of a triage reassessment policy and identify circumstances that may hinder meeting that policy - Distinguish the goals, outcomes, and expectations associated with a valid and reliable five-level triage scale as they relate to all stakeholders - Provide a background for the conceptual and clinical components of the Emergency Severity Index algorithm - Provide an overview of the Emergency Severity Index decision tree - Examine each step of the algorithm in depth - Provide practice scenarios with answers and rationale - Define appropriate nurse-initiated interventions for multiple complaints - Examine broad and narrow definitions of advanced triage protocols, in addition to their development and usage parameters - Differentiate the age-specific needs of very old and very young sick or injured patients during triage - Highlight the age-specific physiological differences and psycho-social dynamics of both age groups - List most differential diagnoses for abdominal, back, and extremity illnesses and injuries - Identify high-risk presentations for this group - Present applicable trauma criteria, as described by the American College of Surgeons, when caring for injured patients - Utilize the American College of Surgeon s trauma criteria when assessing patients for an actual or potential injury - Incorporate the MIST mnemonic into the prehospital and ED communication reporting system - Delineate the elements necessary to care for critically ill or injured patients using a coordinated and therapeutic approach. 5. Course shall provide course certificate for each completed course. 6. Course shall provide a system to allow a facility administrator to be able to track student progress and completion status. 7. Course shall allow students to have 1 attempt to retest for any course failures. . 8. Course shall allow students to leave a course and resume where stopped upon return. 9. Course shall provide support services at minimum during business hours preferably 24/7 to trouble shoot and resolve technical issues. 10. Course shall be accessible to students 24/7. 11. Course shall be accessible using various internet platforms. C. CHANGES TO STATEMENT OF WORK Any changes to this SOW shall be authorized and approved only through written correspondence from the CO. A copy of each change will be kept in a project folder along with all other products of the project. Costs incurred by the contractor through the actions of parties other than the CO shall be borne by the contractor. D. GOVERNMENT RESPONSIBILITIES 1. Government shall only provide student keys to individuals who work at/for the CNVAMC. E. INVOICES 1. Payment will be made upon receipt of a properly prepared detailed invoice, prepared by the Contractor, validated by the Contracting Officer s Representative (COR), and submitted electronically through OB-10 (https://portal.tungsten-network.com/). 2. A properly prepared invoice will contain: a) Invoice Number and Date b) Contractor s Name and Address c) Accurate Purchase Order Number d) Supply or Service provided e) Total Amount Due F. SECURITY PER REVIEW OF VA HANDBOOK 6500.6, CONTRACT SECURITY, APPENDIX A- INFORMATION SECURITY AND PRIVACY CHECKLIST: 1. The C&A requirements do not apply, and a Security Accreditation Package is not required. 2. Acquisition of this service does not involve the storage, generating, transmitting, or exchanging of VA sensitive information to the vendor. 3. There may exist exposure to VA sensitive information, in particular to sensitive personal information (SPI) while implementing contractual services. Minimum Statutory Requirements 1. Prohibition on unauthorized disclosure: Information made available to the contractor or subcontractor by VA for the performance or administration of this contract or information developed by the contractor/subcontractor in performance or administration of the contract shall be used only for those purposes and shall not be used in any other way without the prior written agreement of the VA. This clause expressly limits the contractor/subcontractor's rights to use data as described in Rights in Data - General, FAR 52.227-14(d) (1). See VA Handbook 6500.6, Appendix C, paragraph 3.a. 2. Requirement for data breach notification: Upon discovery of any known or suspected security/privacy incidents, or any unauthorized disclosure of sensitive information, including that contained in system(s) to which the contractor/subcontractor has access, the contractor/subcontractor shall immediately and simultaneously notify the COR, the designated ISO, and Privacy Officer for the contract. The term security incident means an event that has, or could have, resulted in unauthorized access to, loss or damage to VA assets, or sensitive information, or an action that breaches VA security procedures. See VA Handbook 6500.6, Appendix C, paragraph 6.a 3. Requirement to pay liquidated damages in the event of a data breach: Consistent with the requirements of 38 U.S.C. §5725, a contract may require access to sensitive personal information. If so, the contractor is liable to VA for liquidated damages in the event of a data breach or privacy incident involving any SPI the contractor/subcontractor processes or maintains under this contract. The contractor/subcontractor shall provide notice to VA of a security incident as set forth in the Security Incident Investigation section above. Upon such notification, VA must secure from a non-Department entity or the VA Office of Inspector General an independent risk analysis of the data breach to determine the level of risk associated with the data breach for the potential misuse of any sensitive personal information involved in the data breach. The term 'data breach' means the loss, theft, or other unauthorized access, or any access other than that incidental to the scope of employment, to data containing sensitive personal information, in electronic or printed form, that results in the potential compromise of the confidentiality or integrity of the data. Contractor shall fully cooperate with the entity performing the risk analysis. Failure to cooperate may be deemed a material breach and grounds for contract termination. Each risk analysis shall address all relevant information concerning the data breach, including the following: (1) Nature of the event (loss, theft, unauthorized access); (2) Description of the event, including: (a) date of occurrence; (b) data elements involved, including any PII, such as full name, social security number, date of birth, home address, account number, disability code; (3) Number of individuals affected or potentially affected; (4) Names of individuals or groups affected or potentially affected; (5) Ease of logical data access to the lost, stolen or improperly accessed data considering the degree of protection for the data, e.g., unencrypted, plain text; (6) Amount of time the data has been out of VA control; (7) The likelihood that the sensitive personal information will or has been compromised (made accessible to and usable by unauthorized persons); (8) Known misuses of data containing sensitive personal information, if any; (9) Assessment of the potential harm to the affected individuals; (10) Data breach analysis as outlined in 6500.2 Handbook, Management of Security and Privacy Incidents, as appropriate; and (11) Whether credit protection services may assist record subjects in avoiding or mitigating the results of identity theft based on the sensitive personal information that may have been compromised. Based on the determinations of the independent risk analysis, the contractor shall be responsible for paying to the VA liquidated damages in the amount of $37.50 per affected individual to cover the cost of providing credit protection services to affected individuals consisting of the following: (1) Notification; (2) One year of credit monitoring services consisting of automatic daily monitoring of at least 3 relevant credit bureau reports; (3) Data breach analysis; (4) Fraud resolution services, including writing dispute letters, initiating fraud alerts and credit freezes, to assist affected individuals to bring matters to resolution; (5) One year of identity theft insurance with $20,000.00 coverage at $0 deductible; and (6) Necessary legal expenses the subjects may incur to repair falsified or damaged credit records, histories, or financial affairs (see VA handbook 6500.6, appendix c, paragraph 7.a, 7.d) Information System Security The contractor shall ensure adequate LAN/Internet, data, information, and system security in accordance with VA standard operating procedures and standard contract language, conditions laws, and regulations. The contractor s firewall and web server shall meet or exceed the government minimum requirements for security. All government data shall be protected behind an approved firewall. Any security violations or attempted violations shall be reported to the VA project manager and the VBA Headquarters Information Security Officer as soon as possible. The contractor shall follow all applicable VA policies and procedures governing information security, especially those that pertain to certification accreditation. Security Training All contractor employees and subcontractors under this contract or order are required to complete the VA's on-line Security Awareness Training Course and the Privacy Awareness Training Course annually. Contractors must provide signed certifications of completion to the CO during each year of the contract. This requirement is in addition to any other training that may be required of the contractor and subcontractor(s). Contractor Personnel Security All contractor employees who require access to the Department of Veterans Affairs' computer systems shall be the subject of a background investigation and must receive a favorable adjudication from the VA Security and Investigations Center (07C). The level of background security investigation will be in accordance with VA Directive 0710 dated September 10, 2004 and is available at: http://www.va.gov/pubs/asp/edsdirec.asp (VA Handbook 0710, Appendix A, Tables 1 - 3). Appropriate Background Investigation (BI) forms will be provided upon contract (or task order) award and are to be completed and returned to the VA Security and Investigations Center (07C) within 30 days for processing. Contractors will be notified by 07C when the BI has been completed and adjudicated. These requirements are applicable to all subcontractor personnel requiring the same access. If the security clearance investigation is not completed prior to the start date of the contract, the employee may work on the contract while the security clearance is being processed, but the contractor will be responsible for the actions of those individuals they provide to perform work for the VA. In the event that damage arises from work performed by contractor personnel, under the auspices of the contract, the contractor will be responsible for resources necessary to remedy the incident. The investigative history for contractor personnel working under this contract must be maintained in the databases of either the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) or the Defense Industrial Security Clearance Organization (DISCO). Should the contractor use a vendor other than OPM or Defense Security Service (DSS) to conduct investigations, the investigative company must be certified by OPM/DSS to conduct contractor investigations. 1. Background Investigation The position sensitivity impact for this effort has been designated as [LIMITED, MODERATE, SUBSTANTIAL, or MAJOR] Risk and the level of background investigation is [NACI, MBI, or BI]. 2. Contractor Responsibilities a. The contractor shall bear the expense of obtaining background investigations. If the investigation is conducted by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) through the VA, the contractor shall reimburse the VA within 30 days. b. Background investigations from investigating agencies other than OPM are permitted if the agencies possess an OPM and Defense Security Service certification. The Vendor Cage Code number must be provided to the Security and Investigations Center (07C), which will verify the information and advise the contracting officer whether access to the computer systems can be authorized.  c. The contractor shall prescreen all personnel requiring access to the computer systems to ensure they maintain a U.S. citizenship and are able to read, write, speak and understand the English language. d. After contract award and prior to contract performance, the contractor shall provide the following information, using Attachment B, to the CO: (1) List of names of contractor personnel.  (2) Social Security Number of contractor personnel.  (3) Home address of contractor personnel or the contractor's address.  e. The contractor, when notified of an unfavorable determination by the Government, shall withdraw the employee from consideration from working under the contract.  Failure to comply with the contractor personnel security requirements may result in termination of the contract for default. g. Further, the contractor will be responsible for the actions of all individuals provided to work for the VA under this contract. In the event that damages arise from work performed by contractor provided personnel, under the auspices of this contract, the contractor will be responsible for all resources necessary to remedy the incident. 3. Government Responsibilities a. The VA Security and Investigations Center (07C) will provide the necessary forms to the contractor or to the contractor's employees after receiving a list of names and addresses.  b. Upon receipt, the VA Security and Investigations Center (07C) will review the completed forms for accuracy and forward the forms to OPM to conduct the background investigation.  c. The VA facility will pay for investigations conducted by the OPM in advance. In these instances, the contractor will reimburse the VA facility within 30 days. d. The VA Security and Investigations Center (07C) will notify the contracting officer and contractor after adjudicating the results of the background investigations received from OPM. e. The contracting officer will ensure that the contractor provides evidence that investigations have been completed or are in the process of being requested.  G. ELECTRONIC AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY STANDARDS INTERNET/INTRANET The contractor shall comply with Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Directive 6102 and VA Handbook 6102 (Internet/Intranet Services). VA Directive 6102 sets forth policies and responsibilities for the planning, design, maintenance support, and any other functions related to the administration of a VA Internet/Intranet Service Site or related service (hereinafter referred to as Internet). This directive applies to all organizational elements in the Department. This policy applies to all individuals designing and/or maintaining VA Internet Service Sites; including but not limited to full time and part time employees, contractors, interns, and volunteers. This policy applies to all VA Internet/Intranet domains and servers that utilize VA resources. This includes but is not limited to va.gov and other extensions such as, .com, .edu, .mil, .net, .org, and personal Internet service pages managed from individual workstations. VA Handbook 6102 establishes Department-wide procedures for managing, maintaining, establishing, and presenting VA Internet/Intranet Service Sites or related services (hereafter referred to as Internet ). The handbook implements the policies contained in VA Directive 6102, Internet/Intranet Services. This includes, but is not limited to, File Transfer Protocol (FTP), Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP), Web pages, Active Server Pages (ASP), e-mail forums, and list servers. VA Directive 6102 and VA Handbook 6102 are available at: Internet/Intranet Services Directive 6102 http://www.va.gov/pubs/directives/Information-Resources-Management-(IRM)/6102d.doc Internet/Intranet Services Handbook 6102 http://www.va.gov/pubs/handbooks/Information-Resources-Management-(IRM)/6102h.doc Internet/Intranet Services Handbook 6102 Change 1 updates VA's cookie use policy, Section 508 guidelines, guidance on posting of Hot Topics, approved warning notices, and minor editorial errors. http://www.va.gov/pubs/handbooks/Information-Resources-Management-(IRM)/61021h.doc In addition, any technologies that enable a Network Delivered Application (NDA) to access or modify resources of the local machine that are outside of the browser's "sand box" are strictly prohibited. Specifically, this prohibition includes signed-applets or any ActiveX controls delivered through a browser's session. ActiveX is expressly forbidden within the VA while .NET is allowed only when granted a waiver by the VA CIO *PRIOR* to use. JavaScript is the preferred language standard for developing relatively simple interactions (i.e., forms validation, interactive menus, etc.) and Applets (J2SE APIs and Java Language) for complex network delivered applications. SECTION 508 The contractor shall comply with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act (29 U.S.C. § 794d), as amended by the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (P.L. 105-220), August 7, 1998. In December 2000, the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (Access Board), pursuant to Section 508(2)(A) of the Rehabilitation Act Amendments of 1998, established Information Technology accessibility standards for the Federal Government. Section 508(a)(1) requires that when Federal departments or agencies develop, procure, maintain, or use Electronic and Information Technology (EIT), they shall ensure that the EIT allows Federal employees with disabilities to have access to and use of information and data that is comparable to the access to and use of information and data by other Federal employees. The Section 508 requirement also applies to members of the public seeking information or services from a Federal department or agency. Section 508 text is available at: http://www.opm.gov/HTML/508-textOfLaw.htm http://www.section508.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=Content&ID=14 H. CONFIDENTIALITY AND NONDISCLOSURE It is agreed that: 1. The preliminary and final deliverables and all associated working papers, application source code, and other material deemed relevant by the VA which have been generated by the contractor in the performance of this task order are the exclusive property of the U.S. Government and shall be submitted to the CO at the conclusion of the task order. 2. The CO will be the sole authorized official to release verbally or in writing, any data, the draft deliverables, the final deliverables, or any other written or printed materials pertaining to this task order. No information shall be released by the contractor. Any request for information relating to this task order presented to the contractor shall be submitted to the CO for response. 3. Press releases, marketing material or any other printed or electronic documentation related to this project, shall not be publicized without the written approval of the CO.