SOURCES SOUGHT
U -- HBCU Access Project
- Notice Date
- 6/30/2011
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- NAICS
- 611710
— Educational Support Services
- Contracting Office
- Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Library of Medicine, 6707 Democracy Blvd., Suite 105, Bethesda, Maryland, 20894, United States
- ZIP Code
- 20894
- Solicitation Number
- NIH-NLM-11-126-SES
- Archive Date
- 7/29/2011
- Point of Contact
- Shari E. Shor, Phone: 301-435-4388, Robin V. Hope, Phone: 301-435-4379
- E-Mail Address
-
shorse@mail.nlm.nih.gov, hoperv@mail.nih.gov
(shorse@mail.nlm.nih.gov, hoperv@mail.nih.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- This is a Small Business Sources Sought Notice. This is NOT a solicitation for proposals, proposal abstracts, or quotations. The purpose of this notice is to obtain information regarding: (1) the availability and capability of qualified small business sources; (2) whether they are small businesses; HUBZone small businesses; service- disabled, veteran-owned small businesses; 8(a) small businesses; veteran-owned small businesses; woman-owned small businesses; or small disadvantaged businesses; and (3) their size classification relative to the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for the proposed acquisition. Your responses to the information requested will assist the Government in determining the appropriate acquisition method, including whether a set-aside is possible. An organization that is not considered a small business under the applicable NAICS code should not submit a response to this notice. The National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Library of Medicine (NLM) is conducting a market survey to help determine the availability and technical capability of qualified small businesses, veteran-owned small businesses and/or HUBZone small businesses capable of serving the needs identified below. This Sources Sought Notice is for informational and planning purposes only and shall not be construed as a solicitation or as an obligation or commitment by the Government. This notice is intended strictly for market research. Background The Specialized Information Services (SIS) Division of the National Library of Medicine (NLM) is the premier institution dedicated to delivering authoritative health information. NLM's mission includes collecting, organizing and disseminating biomedical information for the good of the public's health. The Library disseminates its information resources through many channels to try to reach all populations. One of the factors contributing to the striking disparity in the burden of illness and death experienced by minorities is a lack of awareness of where and how to access vital biomedical information. As scientific and medical breakthroughs are discovered, health care professionals, researchers, and consumers benefit from access to reliable, up-to-date medical information available quickly and conveniently. NLM proposes to partner with an organization that provides outreach to minorities and specifically to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) for capacity building and technical assistance in a program with the main goal to improve access to and use of quality health information on the campuses and the surrounding communities. On campus, NLM wishes to reach HBCU faculty, staff and students in both academic and extracurricular settings. Use of NLM resources in courses, homework, student and faculty research, student health centers, or student clubs and other activities would be beneficial. In the community NLM wishes to foster collaborations with community organizations, faith-based organizations, and libraries. In addition to enhancing use of quality health information, NLM also wishes to promote health and medicine, both practice and research, as potential careers for students. By partnering with the NLM, the contractor will enhance the mechanisms of research and training at HBCUs through linking pre-health professional students and faculty to information, information technology and informatics research available at or through the NLM. Objectives The objectives of the program are to incorporate NLM information resources into HBCU courses and other activities; to increase awareness, knowledge, and use of NLM health information resources; to increase awareness and knowledge about health status and health disparities; and to increase the ability of HBCU faculty and staff to apply for and obtain NLM and other Federal funding. NLM does this with the recognition that using quality health information resources and understanding their benefits can assist communities in improving their health status. The program itself has several components and different objectives may apply to each of those. In addition to these overall objectives for the program, NLM recognizes that to be effective in the long-term, the sustainability must be built in to the appropriate components of the program. Project Requirements The proposed project is intended to bring NLM-sponsored health information access and training in information seeking and use to HBCU campuses. The overall annual program would consist of the following components (1) orientation and training of faculty and staff; (2) competition for funding; (3) conduct of funded projects; (4) technical assistance to award recipients; (5) reports by award recipients including oral presentation to NLM/the contractor staff and others. The orientation shall include an orientation to NLM and training in the use of significant NLM resources. The program shall include both demonstrations of NLM's resources and more formalized training in several resources that are likely to be most useful for this program. Additional orientation components may include segments that demonstrate ways campuses and communities would benefit from the information that is available through the NLM. These could include strategies for incorporating health information into relevant campus or community programs. They may also include information about health disparities, how to identify priority local health disparities, and how information may be incorporated into new or existing programs to combat these. Further components may include topics that would be useful for HBCU faculty or staff in preparing a proposal for funding or carrying out such a project. Topics might include project management, proposal writing, understanding the grants process, partnership development, participatory research, formulating a research question, conducting evaluation, writing for publication, sustainability, etc. This orientation may be carried out through in-person workshops or through electronic means such as webinars, online self-directed training, or any combination. However, there shall be a means to monitor participation in the orientation sessions, regardless of the format. The contractor shall prepare a solicitation for subcontracts of up to $20,000 each to enable HBUCs to carry out local projects on their campuses or in their communities. Information provided at the training workshops will assist HBCU faculty and staff to respond appropriately to the solicitation. Only HBCU institutions that had one or more representatives participate in the orientation and training shall be eligible for funding. The contractor shall develop formal proposal evaluation criteria which shall be reviewed and accepted by NLM prior to their implementation. The contractor shall then select and manage an independent review group to evaluate proposals and select the subcontractors. The award period shall be one year. The awards shall be made during the summer so that funding shall be available to the institutions for the beginning of the fall semester. The funded HBCUs shall be required to give oral presentations of their work in addition to standard quarterly and annual written reports. The contractor shall develop a standardized format for written quarterly and annual reports for the subcontracts. The oral presentations shall be part of the orientation and training for the following year's program and may be in-person or through electronic means. The method shall be determined by the contractor, with the approval of NLM each year. All materials, in any format, produced by the contractor related to this project, or produced by one of the subcontract award recipients shall include appropriate acknowledgement of the role of the National Library of Medicine, including the contract number. Any publications in peer-reviewed journals must be deposited in PubMed Central (see http://publicaccess.nih.gov/) Anticipated Period of Performance The period of performance shall be twelve (12) months from the date of award. An award is anticipated to be made on or about September 1, 2011. Other Important Considerations The proposed acquisition will be procured in accordance with the policies and procedures under FAR Part 12-Acquisition of Commercial Items and FAR Part 13.5-Test Program for Certain Commercial Items and. All responsible sources may submit a capability statement which will be considered by the National Library of Medicine. This Sources Sought Notice is not a Request for Quotes (RFQ), nor is an RFQ available. Interested firms responding to this Sources Sought Notice must adhere to the following: (a) Provide a capability statement demonstrating relevant experience, skills and ability to fulfill the Government's requirements for the above. The capability statement should contain enough sufficient detail for the Government to make an informed decision regarding your capabilities; however, the statement should not exceed 10 pages. (b) The capability statement must identify the responder's: small business type and size; DUNS number; NAICS code; and technical and administrative points of contact, including names, titles, addresses, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail addresses. (c) All capability statements must be submitted electronically no later than 12:00pm eastern standard time on Wednesday, July 14, 2011 to Shari Shor, shorse@mail.nlm.nih.gov. Disclaimer and Important Notes: This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in response. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. Any organization responding to this notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed to allow the Government to determine the organization's qualifications to perform the work. Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. After a review of the responses received, a pre-solicitation synopsis and solicitation may be published in Federal Business Opportunities. However, responses to this notice will not be considered adequate responses to a solicitation. Confidentiality: No proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information should be included in your response. The Government reserves the right to use any non-proprietary technical information in any resultant solicitation(s).
- Web Link
-
FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/spg/HHS/NIH/OAM/NIH-NLM-11-126-SES/listing.html)
- Place of Performance
- Address: Vendor site, United States
- Record
- SN02486961-W 20110702/110630235427-4091a11e6b30003c36a6c6b0f11189a5 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)
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