6515--NOTICE OF INTENT TO SOLE SOURCE TO SDVOSB FOLLOW-ON TO EXISTING SYSTEM Nurse Call System Hardware & Software

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS Justification for Single Source Awards IAW FAR 13.106-1 For Over Micro-Purchase Threshold but Not Exceeding the SAT ($250K) Acquisition Plan Action ID: Contracting Activity: Department of Veterans Affairs, VISN 1, White River Junction VA Medical Center, 215 N. Main Street, White River Junction, VT 05009-0001. Brief Description of Supplies/ Services required and the intended use/Estimated Amount: Description of Action: The project 1 South Nurse Call has a firm-fixed price for the base year. The solution that will be deployed aims to provide medical providers, clinical teams, and VA support with a standardization of one updated nurse call system. The Jeron Nurse Call system provides an open platform that can integrate to the existing Vocera, Overhead Paging, Medical Devices, and Beds. The system will create a quieter care environment for the Veterans and their Care Teams through these integrations. Veterans calls can go directly to their care giver for quicker response times. Jeron Nurse Call will provide support staff with the ability to plug-and-play devices for repairs allowing for significantly shorter periods of downtime. The ability to take a room out of service without affecting any other room will allow for less interruptions to Veteran Care. Expanding the Nurse Call at White River Junction will provide our Veterans and Staff with a working integrated system. The Jeron Nurse Call system will improve our patient experience, clinical satisfaction, and patient safety. Description of Supplies or Services: The White River Junction VA Medical Center intends to install the Jeron system in our newly renovated 1 South unit. The White River Junction VA Medical Center currently has Jeron installed on 100% of the operational units of the hospital. Without nurse call, staff would not have the ability to place a Code Blue Call or for Veterans to initiate calls for help adding additional strain on care teams and support teams. Deploying a different OEM system limits the integration capabilities the system offers while also increasing the risk for education related failures with a less known nurse call system. The goal is to quickly and safety install our nurse call standard in the newly renovated space to bring functionality for our patients and front-line staff. The facility s primary goals are to maintain high quality care, standardize and improve safety, more effective and efficient use of staff and overall improvement in patient care. By procuring the standardized equipment, clinical care can be safer and more efficient patient care with increased functionality and clinical system integrations. To accomplish this, the proposed solution involves procuring the same Jeron system in the newly renovated space as the existing system in the rest of the facility, Jeron from SCI. The system includes integrating it with Vocera, Beds, Medical Devices, and Overhead Paging. This standardized implementation aims to streamline workflows, increase clinical response times, reduce time spent supporting the system, provide updated technology, streamline code blue notifications, and increase overall patient experience. Jeron can plug-and-play devices which will drastically reduce service calls and downtime of the nurse call system. The estimated cost of the Jeron Nurse Call System from SCI is $51,895.74 Unique characteristics that limit availability to only one source, with the reason no other supplies or services can be used: Standard Communications, Inc. (SCI) is a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business and the exclusive provider of Jeron products to the Department of Veterans Affairs. Through their partnership with the VA, SCI has successfully deployed and supported the same solution at numerous other VAMCs. As a result, they have acquired extensive knowledge of the capabilities of the current systems and have worked closely with the technical and functional resources within the VA. This familiarity with the VA will be critical in integrating new components with the existing legacy components. SCI has an in-depth understanding of the design and architecture of both the existing systems at the White River Junction VA Medical Center and the platforms intended to integrate with. Market research was conducted, which involved analyzing data from ECRI which listed the market leaders in nurse call systems. The research also included examining the solutions deployed at other VAMCs and product demos from various vendors. Based on this research, it was determined that only the Jeron Solution from SCI could fulfill the requirements of the White River Junction VA Medical Center. Since the Jeron products offer distinctive features that cater to the specific needs of the Clinical Teams and Support Teams, implementing the proposed solution is the most prudent and viable approach, both from a financial and technical standpoint. Jeron can provide a system that is VA serviceable by being a plug and play design. This would increase the system availability and decrease system downtime. Jeron is the only system that would allow for backward and forward compatibility. This would reduce total cost of ownership by being able to continue to run one backbone of the system. This also would allow for any future CBOC installs to be able to run on the same system installed at the Main Medical Center. Integrating the full healthcare network. Jeron products are manufactured and assembled in the USA. The product is readily available for delivery without major delays. This would limit the time of performance allowing White River Junction VA to have a working system faster and ensure limited interference to patient care. Description of market research conducted: The Government's technical experts have been conducting market research since 2015 and formally concluded in 2023 with an award to Jeron. As part of the process, the facility reviewed other similar systems, including Rauland and Hill-Rom. However, Rauland system was invasive to install and was a significant cost burden on the Government at double the price of the Jeron system while Hill-Rom does not include backward forward compatibility that allows for older systems to communicate with newer systems. The Government's technical experts concluded that none of these products could meet the interoperability and compatibility requirements previously discussed. Jeron is the only provider that can provide White River Junction VA Medical Center with a high acuity/low acuity integrated system. The ability to be backward and forward compatible allows Jeron to run as one system provided White River Junction VA Medical Center financial benefit while providing the proper technology for acuity level in the medical center. By implementing the proposed solution, the medical center aims to improve the overall patient experience, reduce the response time, minimize maintenance expenses, and standardize on one system. In addition, VA Subject Matter Experts continually review industry trade publications and conduct internet research to identify any other brand name software available. Based on all the research efforts conducted, the Government's technical experts have determined that only the Jeron brand name can meet all the needs of the VA. Contracting Officer's Certification: Purchase is approved in accordance with FAR13.106-1(b). I certify that the foregoing justification is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief. ____________________________ ________________________ Date Objective The purpose of this Statement of Work (SOW) is to outline the tasks and responsibilities of the awarded Contractor in relation to the delivery and installation of the Jeron Nurse call system. This document highlights the technical specifications and services being requested by the White River Junction VAMC for consideration towards the purchase for nurse call stations, network hardware, and installation services for a newly renovated space. Vendors under this proposal shall provide all equipment, accessories, applicable training, and manuals. Project Management / Equipment Implementation Product delivery will be the responsibility of the Vendors working with the White River Junction VAMC project management POC, the Vendor will be responsible for coordinating and performing the delivery, implementation, and training for the devices. Background/Justification/ The White River Junction VA Medical Center intends to install the Jeron system in our newly renovated 1South space. White River Junction VA Medical Center currently has Jeron installed on 100% of the operational units of the hospital. Without nurse call, staff would not have the ability to place a Code Blue Call or for Veterans to initiate calls for help adding additional strain on care teams and support teams. The goal is to quickly and safety install our nurse call standard in the newly renovated space to bring functionality for our patients and front-line staff. The facility s primary goals are to maintain high quality care, standardize and improve safety, more effective and efficient use of staff and overall improvement in patient care. By procuring the standardized equipment, clinical care can be safer and more efficient patient care with increased functionality and clinical system integrations. To accomplish this, the proposed solution involves procuring the same Jeron system in the newly renovated space as the existing system in the rest of the facility, Jeron from SCI. The system includes integrating it with Vocera, Beds, Medical Devices, and Overhead Paging. This standardized implementation aims to streamline workflows, increase clinical response times, reduce time spent supporting the system, provide updated technology, streamline code blue notifications, and increase overall patient experience. Jeron can plug-and-play devices which will drastically reduce service calls and downtime of the nurse call system. The estimated cost of the Jeron Nurse Call System from SCI is $51,895.74 Equipment Specifications Equipment: All equipment must be new, state of the art, and not recertified nor refurbished. All equipment must be compliant with current VA requirements including vendor supported operating systems. Vendor will furnish and turn-key install the Jeron 790 Nurse Call system. Work to include but not limited to providing all equipment, equipment installation, cable, cable installation, project management, programming, certification, as-build drawings, and end-user training. Contractor will provide full unit installation including the following: System Equipment Set-up of integration to servers, switches, network hardware, nurse consoles, and patient stations, duty stations, peripheral stations, audio bathroom stations, auxiliary alarm stations, behavioral health tamper proof equipment in specialized areas, pillow speakers, staff/duty terminals, cancel buttons, and dome lights. Software set up Cabling installation services Other (2) User Manuals (2) Service Manuals Information on disposable procurement Services Training Installation 1South unit Patient station at each bedside with bed connectors, dome lights, and pillow speakers. Cancel buttons installed at the entrance of each patient room doorway. 1 console station to be installed at each of the nurse stations (2 total). Staff duty / Hallway console stations installed in the main corridors. Testing of fully functionality following installation Additional gateway equipment to support infostructure as needed for installation. Training Provided / Training Materials Vendor will be required to provide two user manuals. Vendor will be required to provide two service manuals. Vendor will be required to provide an on-station in-service on the proper use and setup. Vendor will be required to provide the cleaning methods/guidelines for nurse call hardware and other accessories. All employees who will be utilizing nurse call system, including Providers, Technicians, nursing personnel, Biomedical Engineering, and Clinic staff members ("Trainees"), must be trained by an authorized representative by Jeron prior to using the System. No charge on a mutually agreeable date and time. Jeron will provide multiple training days and cover all shifts of staffing. Installation SCI s Responsibilities: Based on approved deployment work schedule, the contractor shall provide all labor necessary to install, deploy and configure the requirements of WRJ VAMC Contractor shall receive and place equipment in the pre-arranged designated areas at the WRJ VAMC The Contractor shall unpack and install all equipment in the designated area and dispose of all trash. Disposing of the trash is the responsibility of the Contractor. Contractor shall perform all installation and configuration necessary to complete the work, plus perform technical service checks to ensure product is fully operational in accordance with manufacture operating standards. Vendor will coordinate all site visits with the Biomed staff at least 24 hours in advance. The vendor will provide at-least a 5-year manufacturer warranty on the device from the date of installation. The SCI contractor will ensure installation of the system is timed with general contractor schedule for the WRJ Ward Renovation schedule. The SCI Contractor will provide placement documentation to include gang box sizes, placement, and conduit needs to the facility general contractor. Medical Center s Responsibilities: Providing access to patient care spaces, hallways, and equipment rooms during normal business hours for implementation of the general system installation requirements. Providing a single point of contact to work with in planning and implementing the services described. Assign additional clinical staff during the transitions if required. Responsible for any structural changes (cabinets, desks, etc.). On-site assembly and installation of items and performance of services identified in this document will take place during hours defined as: 0730 to 1500 (i.e.: 7:30 am to 3:00 pm ET), Saturday or Sunday, excluding Federal Holidays High risk clinical areas shall require after hours install. The Contractor is required to provide all tools, labor, and materials to complete assembly and installation of the items detailed in this document. The Contractor shall have an on-site representative for the duration of assembly and installation to serve as the primary interface with the WRJ VAMC staff. The WRJ VA will provide a staging area for the equipment to be staged before deployed Delivery Location Contractor shall deliver all equipment to the: White River Junction VA Medical Center 163 Veterans Dr. White River Junction, VT 05009 ATTN: Rebecca Hevey Records Management The following standard items relate to records generated in executing the contract and should be included in a typical procurement contract: Citations to pertinent laws, codes, and regulations such as 44 U.S.C chapters 21, 29, 31 and 33; Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552); Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552a); 36 CFR Part 1222 and Part 1228. Contractor shall treat all deliverables under the contract as the property of the U.S. Government for which the Government Agency shall have unlimited rights to use, dispose of, or disclose such data contained therein as it determines to be in the public interest. Contractor shall not create or maintain any records that are not specifically tied to or authorized by the contract using Government IT equipment and/or Government records. Contractor shall not retain, use, sell, or disseminate copies of any deliverable that contains information covered by the Privacy Act of 1974 or that which is generally protected by the Freedom of Information Act. Contractor shall not create or maintain any records containing any Government Agency records that are not specifically tied to or authorized by the contract. The Government Agency owns the rights to all data/records produced as part of this contract. The Government Agency owns the rights to all electronic information (electronic data, electronic information systems, electronic databases, etc.) and all supporting documentation created as part of this contract. Contractor must deliver sufficient technical documentation with all data deliverables to permit the agency to use the data. Contractor agrees to comply with Federal and Agency records management policies, including those policies associated with the safeguarding of records covered by the Privacy Act of 1974. These policies include the preservation of all records created or received regardless of format [paper, electronic, etc.] or mode of transmission [e-mail, fax, etc.] or state of completion [draft, final, etc.]. No disposition of documents will be allowed without the prior written consent of the Contracting Officer. The Agency and its contractors are responsible for preventing the alienation or unauthorized destruction of records, including all forms of mutilation. Willful and unlawful destruction, damage or alienation of Federal records is subject to the fines and penalties imposed by 18 U.S.C. 2701. Records may not be removed from the legal custody of the Agency or destroyed without regard to the provisions of the agency records schedules. Contractor is required to obtain the Contracting Officer's approval prior to engaging in any contractual relationship (sub-contractor) in support of this contract requiring the disclosure of information, documentary material and/or records generated under, or relating to, this contract. The Contractor (and any sub-contractor) is required to abide by Government and Agency guidance for protecting sensitive and proprietary information.