Inactive

This is a SOURCES SOUGHT ANNOUNCEMENT ONLY The intent of this Sources Sought Announcement is to assist in our decision-making process for services procurement. This is not a solicitation, nor request ... This is a SOURCES SOUGHT ANNOUNCEMENT ONLY The intent of this Sources Sought Announcement is to assist in our decision-making process for services procurement. This is not a solicitation, nor request for quotes or proposals. Through the receipt of responses, this will enable a more precise type of procurement process. The Government is not obligated to, nor will it pay for or reimburse any costs associated with responding to this Sources Sought synopsis request. This notice shall not be construed as a commitment by the Government to issue a solicitation or ultimately award of a contract, nor does it restrict the Government to a particular acquisition approach. Any inquiries are to be made in writing by email to the point of contact, John Waldrip, Contracting Specialist CS). Responses to this notice shall be sent by email to john.waldrip@va.gov by the due date and time of 03/26/2024 by 4:00 p.m. (Pacific Time). Upon receipt of capabilities statement, CS/CO may request additional market research aide such as informal pricing. Similar announcement will be posted on GSA and Integrated Critical Staffing Program (ICSP). Services Required: The Contractor shall provide 23.0 FTE Nursing Assistants (NA), to provide services on site to beneficiaries of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) located within the VA Palo Alto Health Care System. Contractor personnel will have use of all required patient care equipment, supplies, and computer access for performing services required by this contract. Place of Performance: Contractor shall furnish services at the VA Palo Alto Health Care System (VAPAHCS), 3801 Miranda Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94304, 795 Willow Road, Menlo Park, CA 94025 or 4951 Arroyo Road, Livermore, CA 94550. Anticipated need date: 09/01/2024. AUTHORITY: Title 38 USC 8153, Health Care Resources (HCR) sharing Authority. QUALIFICATIONS Staff/Facility License: The Contractor s Nursing Assistants assigned by the Contractor to perform the services covered by this contract shall have a current license as a nursing assistant in any State, Territory, or Commonwealth of the United States or the District of Columbia when services are performed onsite on VA property. All licenses held by the key personnel working on this contract shall be full and unrestricted licenses. Contractor s nursing assistants who have current, full and unrestricted licenses in one or more states, but who have, or ever had, a license restricted, suspended, revoked, voluntarily revoked, voluntarily surrendered pending action or denied upon application will not be considered for the purposes of this contract. Board Certification/Eligibility: Contractors shall be currently certified in Basic Life Support (BLS) Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) or equivalency. All continuing education courses required for maintaining certification must be always kept up to date. Documentation verifying current certification shall be provided by the Contractor to the VA COR on an annual basis for each year of contract performance. Technical Proficiency: Contractor s nursing assistants shall be technically proficient in the skills necessary to fulfill the government s requirements, including the ability to speak, understand, read and write English fluently. Contractor shall provide documents upon request of the CO/COR to verify current and ongoing competency, skills, certification and/or licensure related to the provision of care, treatment and/or services performed. Contractor shall provide verifiable evidence of all educational and training experiences including any gaps in educational history for all Contractor s nursing assistants and Contractor s nursing assistants shall be responsible for abiding by the Facility's Medical Staff By-Laws, rules, and regulations (referenced herein) that govern medical staff behavior. Citizenship related Requirements: The Contractor certifies that the Contractor shall comply with any and all legal provisions contained in the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, As Amended; its related laws and regulations that are enforced by Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the U.S Department of Labor as these may relate to non-immigrant foreign nationals working under contract or subcontract for the Contractor while providing services to Department of Veterans Affairs patient referrals; While performing services for the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Contractor shall not knowingly employ, contract or subcontract with an illegal alien; foreign national non-immigrant who is in violation their status, as a result of their failure to maintain or comply with the terms and conditions of their admission into the United States. Additionally, the Contractor is required to comply with all E-Verify requirements consistent with Executive Order 12989 and any related pertinent Amendments, as well as applicable Federal Acquisition Regulations. If the Contractor fails to comply with any requirements outlined in the preceding paragraphs or its Agency regulations, the Department of Veterans Affairs may, at its discretion, require that the foreign national who failed to maintain their legal status in the United States or otherwise failed to comply with the requirements of the laws administered by Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the U.S Department of Labor, shall be prohibited from working at the Contractor s place of business that services Department of Veterans Affairs patient referrals; or other place where the Contractor provides services to veterans who have been referred by the Department of Veterans Affairs; and shall form the basis for termination of this contract for breach. This certification concerns a matter within the jurisdiction of an agency of the United States and the making of a false, fictitious, or fraudulent certification may render the maker subject to prosecution under 18 U.S.C. 1001. The Contractor agrees to obtain a similar certification from its subcontractors. The certification shall be made as part of the offerors response to the RFP using the subject attachment in Section D of the solicitation document. Clinical/Professional Direction: The qualifications of Contractor personnel are subject to review by the Associate Director for Patient Care Services/Nursing or his/her designee and the VA Medical Center Chief of Staff (COS) or his/her clinical designee and approval by the Medical Center Director as provided in VHA Handbook 1100.19. A clinical COR may be appointed, however, only the CO is authorized to consider any contract modification request during the administration of the resultant contract. Non-Personal Healthcare Services: The parties agree that the Contractor and all Contractor technologist(s) shall not be considered VA employees for any purpose. Inherent Government Functions: Contractor and Contractor personnel shall not perform inherently governmental functions. This includes, but is not limited to, determination of agency policy, determination of Federal program priorities for budget requests, direction and control of government employees (outside a clinical context), selection or non-selection of individuals for Federal Government employment including the interviewing of individuals for employment, approval of position descriptions and performance standards for Federal employees, approving any contractual documents, approval of Federal licensing actions and inspections, and/or determination of budget policy, guidance, and strategy. No Employee status: The Contractor shall be responsible for protecting Contractor technologist(s) furnishing services. To carry out this responsibility, the Contractor shall provide or certify that the following is provided for all their staff providing services under the resultant contract: Workers compensation Professional liability insurance Health examinations Income tax withholding, and Social security payments. Key Personnel: The VA requires 23.0 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) contract staff support. The Contractor shall be responsible for providing coverage to the VA during periods of vacancies of the Contractor s personnel due to sick leave, personal leave, vacations and additional coverage as required. In the event a scheduled nursing assistant is unable to complete an assigned shift, the contractor shall provide replacement nursing assistant coverage within 2 hours and notify the Contracting Office Representative (COR) immediately of the schedule change. Contingency Plan: Because continuity of care is an essential part of VA s medical services, The Contractor shall have a contingency plan in place to be utilized if the Contractor technologist(s) leaves Contractor s employment or is unable to continue performance in accordance with the terms and conditions of the resulting contract. Personnel Substitutions: During the first ninety (90) calendar days of performance, the Contractor shall make NO substitutions of key personnel unless the substitution is necessitated by illness, death or termination of employment. The Contractor shall notify the CO, in writing, within 15 calendar day(s) after the occurrence of any of these events and provide the information required below. After 90 days, the Contractor shall submit the information required below to the CO at least 15 calendar days prior to making any permanent substitutions. The Contractor shall provide a detailed explanation of the circumstances necessitating the proposed substitutions, complete resumes for the proposed substitutes, and any additional information requested by the CO. Proposed substitutes shall have comparable qualifications to those of the persons being replaced. The CO will notify the Contractor within 15 calendar days after receipt of all required information of the decision on the proposed substitutes. The contract will be modified to reflect any approved changes of key personnel. For temporary substitutions where the key person shall not be reporting to work for 30 consecutive workdays or more, the Contractor shall provide a qualified replacement for the key person. The substitute shall have comparable qualifications to the key person. Any period exceeding two weeks will require the procedure as stated above. The Government reserves the right to refuse acceptance of any Contractor personnel at any time after performance begins, if personal or professional conduct jeopardizes patient care or interferes with the regular and ordinary operation of the facility. Breaches of conduct include intoxication or debilitation resulting from drug use, theft, patient abuse, dereliction or negligence in performing directed tasks, or other conduct resulting in formal complaints by patient or other staff members to designated Government representatives. Standards for conduct shall mirror those prescribed by current federal personnel regulations. Should the VA COS or designee show documented clinical problems or continual unprofessional behavior/actions with any Contractor s nursing assistant, s/he may request, without cause, immediate replacement of said Contractor s nursing assistant. The CO and COR shall deal with issues raised concerning Contractor s nursing assistant conduct. The final arbiter on questions of acceptability is the CO. Contingency Plan: Because continuity of care is an essential part of the Facility s medical services, the Contractor shall have a contingency plan in place to be utilized if the Contractor s nursing assistant leaves Contractor s employment or is unable to continue performance in accordance with the terms and conditions of the resulting contract. HOURS OF OPERATION VA Business Hours: Multiple Shifts to include: 0700 AM-330 PM; 730AM-400PM; 0800AM-430PM; 1030AM-700PM; 1130AM-800PM; 1230PM-900PM; 3:30pm-0000am. Contract personnel shall be available and present during normal VAPAHCS hours, which will be established, and may be revised as deemed appropriate for patient care. Currently, normal operating hours are twenty-four hours per day for 7 days per week. A. Off-hours Coverage: Contractors will not be on-call. Federal Holidays: The following holidays are observed by the Department of Veterans Affairs: New Year s Day President s Day Martin Luther King s Birthday Memorial Day Juneteenth Independence Day Labor Day Columbus Day Veterans Day Thanksgiving Christmas Any day specifically declared to be a national holiday. Cancellations: Unless a state of emergency has been declared by VAPAHCS leadership, the Contractor shall be responsible for providing services. CONTRACTOR RESPONSIBILITIES Clinical Personnel Required: The Contractor shall provide Contractor s nursing assistants who are competent, qualified per this performance work statement and adequately trained to perform assigned duties. Standards of Care: The Contractor s nursing assistants care shall cover the range of nursing assistants as would be provided in a state-of-the-art health care facility and the standard of care shall be of a quality, meeting or exceedingly currently recognized national standards as established by: The professional standards of the Joint Commission (TJC): http://www.jointcommission.org/standards_information/standards.aspx The standards of the American Hospital Association (AHA): http://www.hpoe.org/resources?show=100&type=8 and. The requirements contained in this PWS. Administrative: estimated 10% of time not involved in direct patient care Quality Improvement Meetings: The Contractor s nursing assistants shall participate in continuous quality improvement activities and meetings with committee participation as required by the VA facility Chief of Service, Nurse Executive, or designee. List all meetings, associated time and frequency. Meeting Frequency (once a year, etc.) Annual Hours Quality Improvement Once a month 12 Staff Meetings: The Contractor s nursing assistants shall attend staff meetings as required by the VA facility Chief of Service, Nursing Executive, or designee. Contractor to communicate with COR on this requirement and report any conflicts that may interfere with compliance with this requirement. Meeting Frequency (once a year, etc.) Annual Hours Staff Meetings/Rounds Twice a month 24 QA/QI documentation: The Contractor s nursing assistant shall complete the appropriate QM/PI documentation pertaining to all procedures, complications and outcome of examinations. Patient Safety Compliance and Reporting: Contractor s nursing assistant(s) shall follow all established patient safety and infection control standards of care. Contractor s nursing assistant(s) shall make every effort to prevent medication errors, falls, and patient injury caused by acts of commission or omission in the delivery of care. All events related to patient injury, medication errors, and other breeches of patient safety shall be documented in the medical record of those impacted and disclosed to the patient or surrogate. As soon as practicable (but within 24 hours) Contractors shall notify COR of incident and submit an entry in the VA Patient Safety Reporting System, following up with COR as required or requested. Response Method: The Government requests capability statements and comments from interested businesses regarding the requirements described above. Responsible sources are encouraged to submit a response to this notice with a statement of interest on company letterhead. When responding, in Subject line insert: Sources Sought VAPAHCS Nursing Assistants. At a minimum, the following information shall be provided: 1. Company Name; 2. Company Mailing Address; 3. Point(s) of Contact including telephone number(s) & email address(es); 4. Socio-Economic (i.e., Small/Large Business, HUBZone, Service-Disabled Veteran Owned, 8(a), etc.) as it relates to NAICS Code 561320 ($30 Million). 5. Provide a summary of the type of services performed and experience as it relates to staffing. 6. UEI Number 7. Sub-Contracting Intentions (provide above items 1 thru 6 of intended vendor along with description of sub-contractor duties). 8. Declare if holding GSA/FSS contract or ICSP participant. Provide GSA contract #, effective dates and if Mass Modification is in-place that allows pricing to exceed awarded pricing level. For ICSP, provide which group your company is participant. 9. Additional information and/or comments. Veterans First Contracting Program and the VA Rule of Two (Kingdomware v. United States) 38 U.S.C. 8127 - 8128: Service-disabled veteran owned small business (SDVOSB) or Veteran owned small business (VOSB) concern must be registered and verified in VA's Vendor Information Pages (VIP) database at www.vip.vetbiz.gov to be eligible for award as a SDVOSB or VOSB if/when a solicitation is issued for this requirement as a SDVOSB or VOSB set aside. In addition, this requirement has been determined to be set aside as SDVOSB or VOSB acquisition, only SDVOSB or VOSB that respond to this specific notice with in the above stated due date will be eligible for award.