SOLICITATION NOTICE
R -- System Thinking Approaches and Strategic Partnerships
- Notice Date
- 2/1/2007
- Notice Type
- Solicitation Notice
- NAICS
- 541690
— Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services
- Contracting Office
- Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Library of Medicine, 8600 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD, 20894, UNITED STATES
- ZIP Code
- 00000
- Solicitation Number
- 07-58SB
- Response Due
- 2/16/2007
- Archive Date
- 3/3/2007
- Small Business Set-Aside
- Total Small Business
- Description
- In accordance with FAR Part 13, Simplified Acquisition procedures, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) intends to procure a technical expert that would work with Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) to develop programs and initiatives involving the use of systems thinking and strategic Partnerships as approaches to address health problems where scientists, practitioners, and decision makers can work together to accelerate the translation, implementation, dissemination, adoption, and maintenance of behavioral and social sciences research. This acquisition is a 100% small business set-aside and the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Code is 541690 with a small business standard of $6.5 million. The period of performance is from the date of award to September 29, 2008 with one option year from September 30, 2008 to September 29, 2009. The place of performance will include NIH and offsite (including contractor facility). Background: OBSSR furthers the mission of NIH by emphasizing the critical role that behavioral and social factors play in health, health care and well-being. OBSSR serves as the focal point for coordination and development of NIH policies, goals, and objectives in the behavioral and social sciences at NIH. OBSSR is also a liaison between the NIH intramural and extramural communities, other Federal agencies, academic and scientific societies, national voluntary health agencies, the biomedical research community, the media, and the general public on matters pertaining to behavioral and social sciences research. Based on its Strategic Prospectus, OBSSR?s vision is to bring together the biomedical, behavioral, and social science communities to work more collaboratively to solve the pressing health challenges facing our nation. OBSSR?s plan includes facilitating: (a) the next generation of basic behavioral and social science research; (b) transdisciplinary ?team science? that integrates biomedical, behavioral and social-ecological perspectives; (c) research that integrates the systems and multiple levels of analysis ? from cells to society ? required to understand and model how individual, group, societal and contextual factors interact; and (d) the translation, implementation, dissemination and maintenance of best practices to strengthen the science of dissemination, put what is known into widespread practice, reduce the burden of chronic disease and help eliminate inequities in health and health care. Project Objectives: The objective of this project is to develop an implementation plan for the OBSSR Strategic Prospectus. Specifically, this contract is intended to procure a technical expert that would work with OBSSR to develop programs and initiatives involving the use of systems thinking and strategic Partnerships as approaches to address health problems where scientists, practitioners, and decision makers can work together to accelerate the translation, implementation, dissemination, adoption, and maintenance of behavioral and social sciences research. Systems thinking approaches and strategic Partnerships show promise for unlocking the secrets of complex, multi-dimensional health issues, and for transforming this knowledge into effective interventions that can fundamentally change population health. OBSSR intends to harness systems thinking approaches to support very clear and specific objectives: 1) to better understand the complex biobehavioral bases of current population health issues; 2) to create a research culture that works to find and implement solutions to these health problems by understanding how to organize networks of stakeholders at multiple levels; 3) to develop more efficient systems that maximize existing resources; and 4) to effectively disseminate emergent knowledge. Scope of Work: The contractor shall participate in planning and advising on implementation of the key issues and foci of the Strategic Prospectus involving systems thinking approaches and the development of Strategic Partnerships. Specifically, the Contractor shall develop a detailed implementation plan in consultation with the Project Officer to achieve each of the following ten key OBSSR goals: 1. Facilitate the identification of and the development and application of conceptual frameworks and tools needed for implementation of Systems Thinking approaches and use of Strategic Partnerships in the systematic study of health and its determinants. 2. Promote and support the development of biometrics, and the maintenance and widespread use of databases containing longitudinal genomic, biomarker, social, and behavioral data related to health. 3. Contribute to the development of analytical frameworks, methods, and algorithms capable of integrating, analyzing, and interpreting highly diverse data with varying metrics from research on genomic sequences, molecules, behavior, and social systems. 4. Collaborate in the development of curricula, modules, and materials required to train health scientists in the application of systems thinking and tools. 5. Encourage the application of systems organizing principles among stakeholder organizations in BSSR, and promote the development of systems organizing expertise among leaders, policymakers, and researchers. 6. Contribute to the science of dissemination to understand the factors promoting or impeding the adoption and implementation of research by health providers, insurers, policy makers, and the public. 7. Provide recommendations and priorities for ways in which systems thinking and strategic partnerships can best be implemented and harnessed to address OBSSR?s Strategic Prospectus. 8. Improve the dissemination of science by publicizing successful examples of collaborative research, fostering collaboration with health care delivery systems to translate research into practice, and encouraging a broad research dissemination mandate throughout NIH. Further, strong collaborative relationships between OBSSR and its internal and external partners are crucial to realizing its vision of science and public health. Hence, the Contractor shall develop a detailed implementation plan in consultation with the Project Officer to achieve each of the following goals: 9. Improve collaboration with internal NIH partners to improve the investment in basic and applied research in behavioral and social sciences at specific ICs and throughout NIH. 10. Improve collaboration with external partners to build support among key stakeholders, decision makers, gatekeepers, and the general public for a stronger science of behavior. For each of the specific objectives developed to address the goals listed above, the Contractor shall develop performance measures that may be utilized to assess OBSSR?s performance in achieving these goals and objectives. All objectives should meet the SMART criteria (i.e., Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timed). ? Specific ? Be precise about what OBSSR is going to achieve in the area of problem based research. ? Measurable ? Quantify the objectives. ? Achievable ? Is OBSSR attempting too much? ? Realistic ? Does OBSSR have the resources to achieve the objective? ? Timed ? State when OBSSR will achieve the objective? The expected tasks to be completed during the period of performance are as follows: 1) Convene a series of face-to-face meetings with the Project Officer, OBSSR?s Director and Staff members to consider the ten goals listed above 2) Using the information gathered in task 1, develop an implementation plan for refining and prioritizing the above goals with specific objectives and performance indicators of progress and success 3) Prepare the draft strategic implementation plan for the refined goals listed above 4) Circulate the draft plan to stakeholders and NIH Behavioral and Social Sciences Coordinating Committee for review and comments 5) Revise the plan based on the comments received 6) Finalize the plan for publication The Contractor shall assist in developing an evaluation plan and indicators for the implementation of the strategic priorities and specific objectives. The Assessment Plan is critical to the ongoing progress and success of the Office?s efforts. The Contractor shall develop indicators of progress and success. The contractor shall ensure that ongoing progress assessments will be easy to conduct and supportive of the Office?s efforts. The assessment approach will yield simple reports of progress over time, and indicate where success is indicated. The progress assessment will serve not only to enable the internal OBSSR group to track progress, but also will point to communications opportunities with Institutes and Centers, external research and program partners, and other key supporters. Technical Evaluation Criteria: In determining which quote represents the best value and results in the lowest overall cost alternative (considering price, special features, administrative costs, etc.) to meet the Government?s needs, the Government shall evaluate quotes using the following technical evaluation criteria, which are listed in the order of relative importance with weights assigned for evaluation purposes: 1. Understanding the Requirements/Technical Approach (40 Points) Expert knowledge of the quality, innovativeness, and clarity of the methodological approaches involved in the development and implementation of a strategic plan. Timeliness of approach to get the information necessary to develop and implement the implementation plan. Understanding of the Government?s intent for this procurement and the feasibility of approach to address its overall goals. Evidence of ability to access and collect data from targeted groups (NIH staff, behavioral and social science stakeholders, academicians, policy makers and others) within the specified time frame. Soundness of approach to incorporate Government input on the project. 2. Personnel/Staff Qualifications (40 Points) Qualifications, experience and availability of all proposed personnel, including any consultants and/or subcontractors, and evidence of substantial knowledge of the relevant literature (specifically, the literature on systems thinking approaches and partnership development) substantial experience in the diverse range of skills required for this project: behavioral and social sciences research, program evaluation expertise and methodology development, data analysis and synthesis, content analysis techniques, interview and focus group techniques, survey questionnaire design and administration, management of complex research projects, management of NIH or other Federally-funded grant and contract programs, writing and communication, and conducting meetings. Specific knowledge and experience with the content of the OBSSR?s Strategic Prospectus of June 2006. Expert knowledge and professional experience in the areas of systems thinking, systems integration and forging strategic partnerships. Augmentation of staff with appropriate consultants, and/or subcontractors, as necessary, and their documented expertise and commitment to the project. Evidence that proposed team can accomplish tasks in specified timeframe. 3. Organizational Capabilities, Experience and Commitment; Facilities and Resources (20 Points) Evidence of corporate capability to organize and manage resources and personnel effectively. Evidence of corporate experience and success in the application of systems thinking, systems integration and forging strategic partnerships for the systematic study of health and its determinants. Experience in evaluation studies and data analysis and synthesis, computer database software and system operations, content analysis techniques, interview and focus group techniques, survey questionnaire design and administration, management of complex research projects, management of other projects comparable to the size and scope of this procurement. For any subcontractor(s) proposed, effectiveness and timeliness of management plan in specifying responsibilities allocated to each organization and how these entities shall interact. Adequacy of mechanisms in place to hire technically qualified staff on a quick turnaround basis, as needed, and to ensure that personnel assigned to a project are retained during the entire project. Corporate commitment to quality of product and deployment of necessary resources to meet the project requirements. All interested parties shall submit electronic responses to Sally Boakye at boakyes@mail.nih.gov. Responses must be received no later than 4:00 PM EST on February 16, 2007 and shall not exceed 10 pages in length. Please reference solicitation number 07-058/SB on all correspondence to this notice. Inquiries regarding this notice may be sent to Sally Boakye at boakyes@mail.nih.gov.
- Place of Performance
- Address: The National Institutes of Health, 8600 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD
- Zip Code: 20894
- Country: UNITED STATES
- Zip Code: 20894
- Record
- SN01223624-W 20070203/070201220403 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
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