National Library of Medicine, Office of Acquisitions Management, Building 38A, Room B1N17, 8600 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20894

U -- TRAINING SERVICES SOL NLM/97-084/LTN DUE 091197 POC Liem T. Nguyen, Contract Specialist, 301-496-6546 Description of Acquisition or Award: The National Library of Medicine (NLM), in conjunction with the National Heart Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), and the National Institutes of Health's Office of Public Information (OPI), intends to negotiate on a sole-source basis with Spry Foundation, 2000 K. Street, NW Suite 845, Washington, DC 20006, under the authority 41 U.S.C. 253 (c)(1) and FAR 6.302-1(b)(1) for obtaining training services to "train the trainers" to teach elderly citizens to use modern electronic communications, including the World Wide Web, to search for and retrieve information that would better their health status. The Spry Foundation will train trainers of seniors to teach Internet knowledge and skills that will enable the seniors to access health care information on the Internet. Training on the use of NLM's MEDLINE, along with educational information relating to NHLBI's National Heart Attack Alert Project, will be emphasized. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) funded a study by the Spry Foundation in 1996 that brought in 150 seniors from the Washington, DC, metropolitan area, exposed them to a variety of Internet-based electronic information resources (including NLM's MEDLINE), and, as a result, determined that they benefited greatly from this training and that there is a vast need for such training nationally. NIH believes that it can best promote this needed training by acquiring the services of the Spry Foundation to conduct the "train the trainers" project that would take carefully selected seniors from around the country, run them through a concentrated training program at NIH/NLM, support them as they subsequently train their peers in their local areas, and carefully follow-up and evaluate the results. In recruiting the trainees, special emphasis will be given to trainers who instruct rural, low socio-economic, minority, or mild to moderately disabled seniors, and middle income seniors in community centers and in public libraries. Selection of trainers will require a commitment to implement a training program for senior citizens within 45 days after completion of their training. Also, trainers will be expected to evaluate the adequacy of the training and model curriculum developed. A minimum number of senior citizens trained by trainers should be established. Participants would be drawn from the greater Washington, DC Metropolitan area, Massachusetts, Ohio, Iowa, Pennsylvania, New York, Florida, and California. This project will involve national and area agencies on aging and public and medical libraries. Because of the Spry Foundation's prior experience in the 1996 study and the expertise it gained from the effort, including the creation of a curriculum and the identification of competent trainers, it is the only source that can accomplish this training program within the time frame required. Any other organization would essentially have to replicate the Spry Foundation's efforts under the 1996 study in order to successfully perform the "train the trainers" project. The period ofperformance shall begin on or about September 15, 1997 and extend for one year. This notice of intent is not a Request for Quotations (RFQ) nor is an RFQ available. (0239)

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