Department of Veteran Affairs Medical Center, Contracting Officer (9-90C), 3601 S. 6th Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85723

R -- SURVEY DATA COLLECTION AND MANAGEMENT SOL 678-75-00 DUE 091200 POC Richard Trevino, Contracting Officer (520) 629-4619 E-MAIL: Click here to reach the contracting officer via e-mail., Richard.Trevino2@med.va.gov. The following information, questions/answers, etc., are offered as a supplement to, and assist with, clarifying the original combined synopsis/solicitation. Supplemental Statement of Work Survey Data Collection and Management The purpose of the proposed contract is to improve the delivery of health care through the eyes of the patients. Use of standard patient perception and satisfaction instruments to assess SAVAHCS patients' experience in the following areas: adult inpatient, adult inpatient rehabilitation, adult office visit, and adult home care. Questionnaires shall focus on those areas of care (access, discharge planning, physical comfort and emotional support) that are most important to the patient. Questionnaires relating to such areas as amenities, parking and food are not acceptable. Reports will correlate responses to overall satisfaction and identify priority areas for the SAVAHCS to implement improvements. Patient survey instruments must ask patients to report, as well as rate their experiences with care. With reports-style questions, patients are able to comment on their specific experience receiving care and identify problem areas. Ratings-style questions alone have proven to be ineffective in pinpointing problem areas or have an inability to signal areas for improvement. Survey reports shall focus on discrete events during a patient's health care experience and yield results that managers can act upon and readily tie into larger quality improvement efforts. Reports on experiences provide clear information that directly pinpoints problems. Example: Instead of learning how "satisfied patients were with the discharge process", managers will know how often patients left the hospital without understanding when they could resume their normal activities. This type of information would be reported as a "problem score", or an opportunity for improvement. Such data gives managers and clinicians the kind of specific information they need to evaluate patient care and to plan interventions. The survey should also include selected satisfaction ratings questions that are statistically correlated with the report questions to help determine their importance and to prioritize the process for improvement efforts. Report Content: (1) Target executive summaries that highlight major findings from the survey that include key strengths and areas for improvement. Each summary shall present the methodology and key findings from the survey as well as focus attention on priorities for action and ranking of problem scores (opportunities for improvement). (2) A simple display of statistical significance on a graphic display. A comprehensive presentation-ready graphics highlight problem areas in the summary dimension of care and on specific questions. Focus on problem scores, with the ability to perform and display tests of significance in a straightforward manner. (3) A focus on opportunities for improvement should present an analysis of priorities based on problem scores and correlation with overall satisfaction. Data must be analyzed to focus on opportunities for improvement. The survey system should target issues that are the most urgent and produce problem scores for each question and dimension. (4) As an ongoing survey trend analysis to compare results over time to understand how patients and their experiences change over time. Results must focus on areas for improvement that change over time. (5) Consistent format display with responses shown in a consistent manner across all questions and summary measures using charts and graphs that permit rapid and directed comprehension of the information. (6) The offeror must have the ability to benchmark comparative data and provide statistically significant comparisons. (7) Data will be provided on diskette to allow SAVAHCS to perform other or independent analysis of the survey data. The annual costs for the offered program must include all survey management, survey administration, postage, analysis and reports (a complete turnkey system). SAVAHCS involvement shall be limited to such administrative tasks as supplying patient lists and health care organization logos. Pricing proposals should be priced based on per completed questionnaire. The SAVAHCS shall pay only for complete returned questionnaires. Offerors are expected to be currently involved in Hospital Patient Survey Data Collection and Management and have a history sufficient to have developed an established database for benchmarking and data comparison purposes. The offeror's survey instrument must be easily adapted for use and implementation to meet the SAVAHCS objectives. The contract is expected to be for a base year with 2 one-year option renewals. Question: Is the preferred survey method by mail or telephone based? Answer: Offerors may submit proposals based on either method which will be considered and evaluated. Question: How many responses are expected per mailing? Answer: There is no specific expectation but as close to a 100% return rate as possible. It is assumed different methodologies yield different results. Question: Has this study been done before? Answer: No, not specifically by the SAVAHCS. Question: Has the questionnaire been designed or will designing the instrument be part of this contract? Answer: The questionnaire has not been designed. The statement of work and SAVAHCS objectives have been developed, in part, based upon the healthcare satisfaction survey available from The Picker Institute, which has been used by the Department of Veterans Affairs on a national level. Question: Do you know how many questions the instrument is expected to contain? Answer: There is no expected set number of questions. The survey instrument should contain the appropriate questions necessary to meet the SAVAHCS objectives. Question: When do you expect to field this study? Answer: The first semi-annual survey will be conducted as soon as possible after contract award. Question: Are offerors required to submit a technical proposal and a separate business (price) proposal and how many copies of each? Answer: Offerors can submit both proposal areas together in one package. One copy of each proposal. Question: Is there a unique identification for each patient that will assist in not duplicating cases across specialty areas and treatment settings? For example, one particular patient may be treated in different settings and by different specialists. Answer: Yes, there will be a unique identification number generated for each patient by the SAVAHCS. Question: What is the gender distribution among the patients? Answer: An exact percentage of gender distribution is not available, but the majority of veterans served by the SAVAHCS are males. Question: Is there an estimated level of effort? Answer: Proposals will be evaluated and the contract awarded to the offeror deemed to represent the best value. That is, the stated non-price evaluation factors combined with price that is deemed will best meet the SAVAHCS objectives. Question: Approximately 2,540 questionnaires will be used each semi-annual cycle prorated by clinical specialty areas. What are the clinical areas and how many questionnaires will be applied to each area? Answer: The following list provides the expected clinical areas, questionnaire types, and number of questionnaires in each area. Unit/Service Questionnaire type Number of questionnaires per cycle 2 South Adult inpatient 100 3 East Adult inpatient 100 3 North Adult inpatient 100 Rehab Adult inpatient rehab 25 SW Blind Rehab Adult inpatient rehab 30 Saguaro clinic Adult office visit 100 Ocotillo clinic Adult office visit 100 Palo Verde clinic Adult office visit 100 Mesquite clinic Adult office visit 100 Yuma clinic Adult office visit 100 Sierra Vista clinic Adult office visit 100 Casa Grande clinic Adult office visit 75 Safford clinic Adult office visit 25 Geriatrics Adult office visit 20 Spinal cord injury Adult office visit 15 Cardiology Adult office visit 100 Dermatology Adult office visit 100 Hematology/Oncology Adult office visit 75 GI Adult office visit 100 Women Adult office visit 100 Neuro Adult office visit 100 General Surgery Adult office visit 100 GYN Adult office visit 60 CT Adult office visit 15 Ortho Adult office visit 100 GU Adult office visit 100 Amb Surgery Adult office visit 100 Eye Adult office visit 100 Vascular Adult office visit 90 Podiatry Adult office visit 100 NeuroSurg Adult office visit 100 Home Base Primary Care Adult home care 10 Semi-Annual Total: 2540 The due date for receipt of offers has been revised to 4:30PM (local time) on September 12, 2000. Posted 08/28/00 (W-SN490942). (0241)

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