Consultation and Oversight for Conversion of NIOSH Pneumoconiosis Programs to Accept Digital Chest Images

NIOSH is the federal agency responsible for conducting research and making recommendations for the prevention of work-related injury and illness. Under the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969, as amended by the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977, NIOSH administers a long-standing chest radiographic monitoring program for underground coal miners. In this, as in other health surveillance programs, conventional screen-film chest radiographic imaging has been an indispensable and important tool for monitoring the lung health of miners and other dust-exposed workers. In these programs, trained readers assess a worker's chest radiograph for the presence and severity of lung parenchymal opacities and pleural changes, using a classification system developed by the International Labour Office (ILO). The ILO classification system was designed to systematically record the changes seen on standard screen-film chest radiographs as a result of dust inhalation, and requires the reader to compare any abnormalities observed on the worker's radiograph to a set of standard radiographs exemplifying dust diseases, provided as hard copy films by the ILO. NIOSH is also involved in the training and certification of expert readers experienced in the ILO system through the B Reader program. NIOSH has long experience with the B Reader program and with research and monitoring activities using radiographic assessments and continues to have an extensive impact on national and international practices in workforce medical screening, research, hazard evaluations, clinical practice, compensation, and standard setting in occupational disease. Increasingly, medical imaging and patient information systems are utilizing digital approaches to data acquisition, transmission, storage, display, and interpretation. Over the next decade, conventional radiography will be completely replaced by digital radiography systems in the United States. Thus, it is essential for NIOSH to adopt and enable the application of digital systems in the recognition of occupational lung disorders within its own research and monitoring programs, as well as to be able to recommend and advise on the use of digital technology in the identification and assessment of occupational lung disease both nationally and internationally. This solicitation will provide NIOSH with expert support and guidance in the purchase, installation, and implementation of hardware and software systems to allow transition of the NIOSH radiographic program to digital radiography. Equipment, software, and changes to current practices and guidelines will be needed for image acquisition, receiving, storing, and soft copy display; disseminating images to B readers; soft copy display and interpretation of images by B readers; receiving classifications in electronic format from B readers; generating reports; and long-term information management, including storage of images, participant questionnaire information, and reports; and accessing information for generation of summary statistics. This effort will enable and facilitate the use of digital images for all current and future NIOSH occupational lung disease radiographic screening, surveillance, research, and service activities. . This requirement is being solicited as Full and Open Competition. The CDC expects to award a single cost reimbursement plus fixed fee type contract, and the period of performance is expected to be approximately 18 months from date of award. The complete solicitation document, and reference material, if applicable, will be available for downloading at www.fedbizopps.gov on or about 6/20/2008 and proposals will be due on or about 7/21/2008. No verbal or written requests for copies will be accepted. It is the responsibility of perspective offerors to stay abreast of additional postings regarding this solicitation at the FedBizOpps internet site. No government-wide notes apply.