SOURCES SOUGHT
R -- Nutrition Scientist Consulting Services for the HANDLS Study
- Notice Date
- 12/5/2016
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- NAICS
- 541690
— Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services
- Contracting Office
- Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Drug Abuse, Station Support/Simplified Acquisitions, 31 Center Drive, Room 1B59, Bethesda, Maryland, 20892, United States
- ZIP Code
- 20892
- Solicitation Number
- HHS-NIH-NIDA-SSSA-SBSS-17-065
- Archive Date
- 12/29/2016
- Point of Contact
- Lauren M. Phelps, Phone: 3014802453
- E-Mail Address
-
lauren.phelps@nih.gov
(lauren.phelps@nih.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- Request for Information/Sources Sought HHS-NIH-NIDA-SSSA-SBSS-17-065 Nutrition Scientist Consulting Services for the HANDLS Study Contracting Office Address: Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Drug Abuse, Station Support Simplified Acquisitions, 31 Center Drive, Room 1B59, Bethesda, MD 20892, UNITED STATES. Introduction: 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. Background: The NIA Intramural Research Program performs a longitudinal study of the effects of race and socioeconomic status on healthy aging in a representative sample of community dwelling residents from the Baltimore metropolitan region. This study, known as the Healthy Aging in Neighborhoods of Diversity across the Life Span (HANDLS) study, requires a detailed knowledge of the public health characteristics of this region including racial, socioeconomic, and nutritional characteristics. This information is used to assess the influences of these factors on a variety of health outcomes such as cardiovascular and cerebrovascular functioning, psychophysiological and cognitive performance, and muscular strength and conditioning. This requirement focuses on support for the nutritional aspects of the HANDLS study. Nutritional status influences an individual's risk for the development of chronic conditions, thereby affecting a person's ability to live a healthy and productive life. Therefore, nutrition science specific technique support, including nutritional monitoring and dietary recall, are required to determine the study population's nutritional status and the effects of nutritional status over the course of the longitudinal study. Purpose and Objectives for the Procurement: The purpose of this requirement is to procure nutrition scientist consulting services in support of the National Institute on Aging (NIA) Healthy Aging in Neighborhoods of Diversity across the Life Span (HANDLS) Study. Services shall include training, monitoring, data collection and analysis, and manuscript support for the nutritional domain of this study. Project Requirements: The Contractor shall provide nutrition science consulting support services to the National Institute on Aging for the HANDLS study as follows: •Use the Blaise computer assisted interviewing system and survey processing tool to assist in collection, analysis, and quality control of the HANDLS dietary data. •Train HANDLS study dietary data manager to appropriately and effectively use the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Automated Multiple Pass Method (AMPM) assessment. This includes development, implementation and evaluation of materials to train new dietary interviewers and provide periodic refresher trainings. •Train HANDLS dietary data manager to train telephone data collection staff in coding. Dietary interviewers must be able to learn to assign an 8-digit code to foods consumed by HANDLS study participants using SurveyNet a program developed and provided by the USDA. This includes development, implementation and evaluation of materials to train new dietary coders and provide refresher trainings. •Develop quality control checklists for evaluating dietary interviews and coding processes. •Check dietary data sets for errors using Microsoft Access queries; the contractor is expected to be able to identify errors independently. There are approximately 30 quality control checks (i.e., Microsoft Access programs) already prepared which must be performed, ranging from flagging extremely large or small amounts of food eaten, to checking the eating occasion, to time of data. Additionally, the nutrient file shall also be checked for errors in extremely high or low values for each nutrient in the database. •Once a record is identified as having a possible error, review the data to determine if an error was made in coding and make corrections as necessary. Corrections made must be documented. Following all corrections, if any, made to a dataset at any given time, re-check the dataset to ensure no required corrections were missed. •Train dietary data manager and dietary interviewers to perform the above detailed reviews and to make corrections to coding as needed. •Development of instructions to process dietary recall data using the USDA Post Interview Processing System for extraction of AMPM Blaise databases, reformatting AMPM data for SurveyNet, and auto-coding of foods and portion sizes. •Development of guidelines (such as assigning food groups to foods consumed in combinations) for the transformation of the dataset for food pattern analysis. •Compile dietary and supplemental questionnaire data for review and use. •Document information related to the nutritional component of the HANDLS study for use in writing manuscripts; prepare these manuscripts as directed and assist in processing their publication. •Present analysis of nutritional information from the study as directed. •Assess the diet quality, over the course of the longitudinal study, of HANDLS participants using the Healthy Eating Index (HEI) and provide analysis results. •Survey and record the nutritional components of study participant's daily diets using the Healthy Eating Index (HEI). The survey and associated scoring must be developed in a way that is standardized so that participants can be compared to themselves over time. Government Provided Information/Property: The Government will supply workspace, office supplies such as pen and paper, a telephone, and desktop computer for contractor use at the NIH Biomedical Research Center (BRC). The Government will also provide access to information necessary for completion of the efforts required. FAR Clause 52.245-1 Government Property shall be applicable to this requirement. Key Personnel: The estimated level of effort for this requirement is one (1) contractor employee on a part-time basis for 960 hours during the base period of performance and 672 hours during each of the optional periods of performance. The contractor employee shall be considered key personnel. Anticipated Contract Type: A Firm Fixed Price Purchase Order with Options to Extend the Term of the Contract is contemplated. The order shall be sourced via the Open Market, FAR Part 13.5 - Simplified Procedures for Certain Commercial Items, and is expected to exceed $150,000.00. Period of Performance: The required period of performance is one (1) one-year base period from March 1, 2017 through February 28, 2018 and four (4) subsequent one-year option periods. Place of Performan ce: The primary place of performance shall be Contractor site. Conference calls and email shall be the primary mode of communication; however, the Contractor may be required to work at Government facilities in the continental United States, primarily the NIH Biomedical Research Center located at 251 Bayview Blvd, Suite 100, Room 3A526, Baltimore, MD 21224. Travel is not authorized for this requirement. Data Rights: The National Institute on Aging shall have unlimited rights to and ownership of all deliverables provided under this procurement including data, reports, briefings, surveys, analyses, recommendations and all other deliverables. In addition, it includes any additional deliverables required by contract change. The definition of "unlimited rights" is contained in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 27.401, "Definitions." FAR clause 52.227-14, "Rights in Data-General," shall be incorporated into any resulting award by reference. Confidentiality of Information: No information of a personal nature will be disclosed by the government to the contractor. However, HHSAR Clause 352.224-71 Confidential Information shall be applicable to this requirement. Testing results shall be considered confidential information. Capability Statement: Contractors that believe they possess the ability to provide the required services should submit documentation of their ability to meet each of the project requirements to the Contract Specialist. The capability statement should include 1) the total number of employees, 2) documentation of ability to provide the required support, 3) any contractor GSA Schedule contracts by which all of the requirements may be met, if applicable, and 4) any other information considered relevant to this program. Contractors must also provide their Company Name, DUNS number, Physical Address, and Point of Contact Information. Please also note any concerns or recommendations regarding the anticipated contract type. Interested organizations are required to identify their type of business, applicable North American Industry Classification System Code, and size standards in accordance with the Small Business Administration. The government requests that no proprietary or confidential business data be submitted in a response to this notice. However, responses that indicate the information therein is proprietary will be properly safeguarded for Government use only. Capability statements must include the name and telephone number of a point of contact having authority and knowledge to discuss responses with Government representatives. Capability statements in response to this market survey that do not provide sufficient information for evaluation will be considered non-responsive. When submitting this information, please reference the solicitation notice number. All capability statements sent in response to this Sources Sought Notice must be submitted to Lauren Phelps, Contract Specialist, via email at lauren.phelps@nih.gov before the closing date and time of this announcement. All responses must be received by the specified due date and time in order to be considered. Note: This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in the response. No proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information should be included in your 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 review of the responses received, pre-solicitation and solicitation notices may be published in Federal Business Opportunities. However, responses to this notice will not be considered adequate responses to a solicitation. The solicitation release date is pending. The Government anticipates negotiation of a firm fixed price contract.
- Web Link
-
FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/spg/HHS/NIH/NIDA-2/HHS-NIH-NIDA-SSSA-SBSS-17-065/listing.html)
- Record
- SN04342636-W 20161207/161205234235-9a7c53b9d4badb4ccbd3f8f4829d542f (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)
| FSG Index | This Issue's Index | Today's FBO Daily Index Page |