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This is NOT a solicitation or request for quote (RFQ). This is NOT a request for proposal (RFP). This is NOT a job advertisement for hiring employees. The VA is seeking QUALIFIED VENDORS to provide a ... This is NOT a solicitation or request for quote (RFQ). This is NOT a request for proposal (RFP). This is NOT a job advertisement for hiring employees. The VA is seeking QUALIFIED VENDORS to provide a very brief response to this notice including only just what is asked for in this notice below. This is sources sought notice to industry and the only information is posted on Contract Opportunities web page at SAM.gov. Sources sought means seeking qualified vendors. The attachments included on the Contract Opportunities page do not include any additional information. If your company is interested please read this notice entirely and submit the required information, as requested herein. Provide Psychological Evaluation Services Fort Harrison VA Health Care System, Montana (MTVAHCS) BRIEF SCOPE OF WORK (This is for information only) IMPORTANT NOTE: This Sources Sought is for market research purposes only (to determine the socioeconomic status of interested companies). No award will be made off this posting. VA is seeking qualified vendors who have interest and capability of performing services to provide psychological evaluations for Veteran s Administration (VA) Police Officers to determine if the Officers can perform the duties of a Police Officer. Contractor shall provide new hire examinations/special examinations/courtesy in person with the evaluator either at contractor s office local to/or at the Fort Harrison/Helena VA Medical Facility, Montana (MTVAHCS). Annual recertifications either via secure video communication technology or in person local to MTVAHCS as per the PWS. TASKS and REQUIREMENTS: 1. The Contractor must be a licensed psychologist/psychiatrist who are qualified by their education, training, and experience to conduct psychological evaluation of Police Officers, including assessment of clinical and normal personality characteristics relevant to Police Officer selection and retention. Per VA Handbook 0730 Security and Law Enforcement, Appendix A and VA Directive 0730 Psychological Evaluations of VA Police Officers. 2. The Contractor must be able to make fitness determinations of whether an officer will be psychologically suitable for hire (initial assessments) or an incumbent able to continue employment (annual assessments or directed/special examinations). Contractor must have a vast testing ability to cover multiple factors in making determinations. 3. The Contractor is required to conduct the same test batteries for all applicants. Annual and Pre-Employment psychological interviews will consist of the same questions for all incumbents. To standardize procedures as much as possible, it is recommended that a limited number of psychologists/psychiatrists be delegated the responsibility to conduct these evaluations. Initial written assessments will also be followed by a face-to-face specialized interview. The Contractor must use a set list of questions for all initial interviews and allow the applicant to address any answers which raise concerns to fitness. The contractor will utilize this process for hiring recommendations to Montana VA Health Care System (MTVAHCS) Occupational Health. 4. The contractor must contact MTVAHCS Occupational Health prior to any testing taking place outside the agreed upon scheduled testing. The contractor making a recommendation for additional psychological testing must communicate articulable reason(s) to question the officer s capability of performing the duties of a police officer during the psychological assessment. Once approval is received from MTVAHCS Occupational Health, then the contractor may move forward with additional testing. If the incumbent is found to be psychologically unfit by the contractor, he/she must contact MTVAHCS Occupational Health immediately to provide verbal results and will have a written report sent to MTVACHS Occupational Health within 24 hours of completion of the exam. 5. All Psychological testing requests will be sent to MTVAHCS Occupational Health Point of Contact (POC). The Psychological testing is required for Pre-Employment and Annually for our Police Officers. a. For pre-employment, Occupational Health (POC) will notify contractor (candidate name and contact info and pertinent records). This notification will be made via secure communication (i.e., phone, fax and/or email). i. Occupational Health POC will obtain appt from contractor (within 30 days from initial notification). ii. Occupational Health POC will notify candidate of appointment date/time and provide any required forms and notify candidate of location of appointment. iii. Occupational Health POC will provide confirmation of appointment and type of exam to contractor. This confirmation will include expected deadline date for completion of exam and receipt of reports. iv. Contractor will conduct exam and return assessment within ten (7) business days from appointment, per the date sent in the appointment confirmation. b. For annual, Police Officer (PO) Administrative Officer (AO) notifies Occupational Health POC for the need of annual exam. i. For annual renewals, Occupational Health POC will notify contractor (employee name and contact info and pertinent records). This notification will be made via secure communication (i.e., phone fax and/or email). ii. Occupational Health POC will obtain appt from contractor (within 30 days from initial notification). iii. Occupational Health POC will notify candidate of appointment date/time and provide any required forms and notify candidate of location of appointment. iv. Occupational Health POC will notify employee of appointment date/time and provide dial in instructions or location of appointment. v. Occupational Health POC will provide confirmation of appointment and type of exam to contractor. This confirmation will include expected deadline date for completion of exam and receipt of reports. vi. Contractor will conduct exam and return assessment within seven (7) business days, per the date sent in the appointment confirmation. Further, the contractor shall communicate via secure means (i.e., fax and/or email) completed exam forms/documents to Occupational Health to be documented/stored, as required, within the VA system within seven (7) business days post examination. The Contractor must maintain all raw test material, interview notes and other material developed by the psychological evaluation by the contractor. (should this be number 6 and address 6. Contractor will inform the Occupational Health POC of any employee no-shows, cancellations or reschedules. Contractor will inform incumbent police officers they will not reschedule appointments without approval from the Occupational Health POC prior to making any scheduling changes and refer them back to the Occupational Health POC and send notification of request by secure communication to the Occupational Health POC. Psychological Testing for Police Officers: Candidates and incumbents must meet certain functional requirements prior to a job offer or continued employment with the Department of Veteran s Affairs. Written psychological testing for applicants and an annual law enforcement specialized psychological interview will be used for incumbents to determine whether a candidate/incumbent is able to meet those specific functional requirements. To meet the specific behavioral functional requirements for the successful police officer the applicant must: a. Possess a high level of personal integrity b. Be able to maintain control of anger and emotionality c. Be compassionate towards others, especially those who cannot care for themselves d. Be willing and able to quickly respond to emergency situations e. Have respect for authority and the rule of law f. Be emotionally able to apply physical and possibly lethal force as needed, and to recognize when such force is necessary, but in strict accordance with training and policy requirements. g. Be able to often work independently, but within a regimented group structure. Required: Written reports provided by the contractor will assess all the above. The use of psychological screenings primary objective for VA police officers are to screen out emotionally unstable and/or unsuitable officers, and to identify positive psychological characteristics associated with successful job performance. Emotional stability, in this context, refers to symptomatology of such severity that the individual s ability to meet the functional requirements of the position, including the carrying and use of firearms, would be impaired. A mental health diagnosis, on its own, cannot be used as a basis for a determination of instability. Suitability, in the psychological screening context, refers to personality characteristics pertinent to an individual s performance in the job and includes interpersonal skills, judgment, decision-making and integrity. Each evaluating psychologist will determine, based on his/her clinical judgement, the exact subset of dimensions to be assessed while adhering to the police officer functional requirements as outlined below: a. Possess a high level of personal integrity b. Be able to maintain control of anger and emotionality c. Be compassionate towards others, especially those who cannot care for themselves d. Be willing and able to quickly respond to emergency situations e. Have respect for authority and the rule of law f. Be emotionally able to apply physical and possibly lethal force as needed, and to recognize when such force is necessary, but in strict accordance with training and policy requirements. g. Be able to often work independently, but within a regimented group structure. For new-hire initial assessments, at least two psychological tests must be administered: one broadband measure of normal-range personality traits and the other, a broadband measure of psychopathology and personality problems. For the psychological test of normal-range personality traits, the evaluator shall choose between Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire (16PF) or California Psychological Inventory (CPI). For the psychological test of psychopathology and personality problems, the evaluator shall choose between Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI, latest version) or Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI). For annual assessments or directed/special examinations, testing should only be used if the interview or screening tools raise concern for functional ability, stability, or suitability, and approval for testing must be obtained from MTVAHCS Occupational Health. All interview questions and testing instruments should be chosen based upon their relevance to job performance and not subject to selective cultural, gender or racial bases. If the examiner cannot demonstrate a job-related basis for the use of a particular test instrument, historical information, or interview question, it should not be used. This shall be a non-personal services contract. The Contractor, its employees, agents, and subcontractors shall not be considered VA employees for any purpose of fulfilling the PWS and shall be considered employees of the Contractor. Contractor shall furnish all labor, materials, equipment, tools, shipping, transportation, insurances, licenses, certifications, and supervision necessary to provide services in accordance with this Performance Work Statement (PWS). The Contractor is responsible for all charges and fees related to disposal of materials generated by the Contractor. This is anticipated to be a commercial service acquisition under the authority of FAR Part 13, Simplified Acquisition Procedures for Commercial Items. The work will be performed for the following location: Fort Harrison VA Health Care System 3687 Veterans Drive Fort Harrison, MTÂ 59636 IMPORTANT NOTE: This RFI (Request for Information) is for information only. No award will be made from this RFI. QUALIFIED VENDOR: A qualified source has the a) necessary equipment, vehicles, personnel, resources and current operations as well as b) recent experience (within past 3 years) of performing services of a comparable size, scope and complexity, AND c) be able to provide a licensed psychologist/psychiatrist qualified by education, training, and experience to conduct psychological evaluation of Police Officers, including assessment of clinical and normal personality characteristics relevant to Police Officer selection and retention. A qualified source also has current and valid registration in System for Award Management (SAM), https://www.sam.gov). A qualified source will also be able to comply with Limitations of Subcontracting pursuant to FAR 19.507. Please communicate via e-mail to Monica.Gary@VA.Gov by 2:00 PM CST on 19 April 2022 as to your company s ability to perform service per this brief Scope of Work. If interested, please provide the following: Provide company s capability statement describing ability to perform psychological evaluation services as outlined Please state your company s business size in relation to above NAICS Code and provide your socio-economic category if applicable Please provide your UEI (SAM Unique Entity Identifier) number If you have an FSS/GSA contract that includes this service Provide FSS/GSA contract number if applicable Ability to provide a licensed psychologist/psychiatrist qualified as outlined Outline the specific tasks to be performed by the Prime Contractor and the specific tasks required to be performed by a Subcontractor and the socio-economic category of any subcontractor. Prime must state if no subcontracting will be required. Only written responses, to items 1 through 7 above, will be accepted at this stage. Information is being gathered for market research purposes only. Industry exchanges and vendor teleconferences are at the discretion of the Contract Specialist. This is not a request for quotes. DISCLAIMER: This is a Request for Information (RFI) from industry in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 15.201(e) and on the requirement, that exists for the VA Medical Center(s) identified in this RFI. This is not a request for quote and not a contract. This announcement is not a request for proposals; therefore, responses to the RFI are not considered offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes only and does not constitute a solicitation. All information received in response to this RFI that is marked as proprietary will be handled accordingly. Responders are solely responsible for all expenses associated with responding to this RFI. No classified information should be included in the RFI response. Should you have concerns regarding this RFI you may request to contact the Contracting Office that will be assigned this requirement by emailing the sender of this RFI. Questions must be addressed in writing to the Contract Specialist. Requests for VA-business sensitive information, to include VA budget information, VA acquisition planning information, acquisition methods, strategies and set-asides must be addressed via the VA FOIA process: https://www.va.gov/foia/ Thank you for your interest in doing business with the VA. To learn more about the VA Mission, Vision, Core Values & Goals visit https://www.va.gov/about_va/mission.asp To understand the latest updates on the Veterans First Contracting Program visit https://www.va.gov/osdbu/verification/veterans_first_contracting_program_adjustments_to_reflect_the_supreme_court_kingdomware_decision.asp To find out how to do business with the VA visit https://www.va.gov/osdbu/library/dbwva.asp To become a CVE-verified VOSB or SDVOSB visit https://www.vip.vetbiz.va.gov/